


In the Melancholy Moonlight

by wheremyarmorends



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canonical Character Death, F/F, F/M, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:48:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 128
Words: 609,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27376723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wheremyarmorends/pseuds/wheremyarmorends
Summary: Lumos!"Love is the light that will guide you home." Lucy Diggory has heard these words from her family all her life, but when her foundation is shaken, falling apart piece by piece, her idea of home begins to change. Love asks difficult questions; the answers to these questions rarely feel quite right. But at the end of the day, love remains true. Lucy loves Ottery St. Catchpole, and her family's simple and sweet life there. Lucy loves Hogwarts too, and the family she built there.Nox!When all goes dark, which love-light will guide her home?Note: I do not own anything about Harry Potter, and I do not support JKR. I do not own any images I may use either, though I do wish I were talented enough to make my own artwork for this story. Happy reading!
Relationships: Cho Chang/Cedric Diggory, George Weasley/Original Female Character(s), Harry Potter/Original Female Character(s), Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 166
Kudos: 76





	1. Something Bittersweet About Dusk

There had always been something bittersweet about dusk for me. I perched myself on a rock on the edge of the forest, watching as the golden August sun dipped lower and lower and eventually disappeared behind the hills. I closed my eyes and felt the weight of the precious moment between sunset and moonrise envelop me. 

We hadn't been able to afford my medicine again that month. My older brother had outgrown his robes, I needed a set of my own, and we had to buy two sets of schoolbooks instead of one, leaving no money left for me. Cedric had tried to insist that his robes were still big enough for one more year, but Dad just patted him on the back and praised his selflessness. So there I found myself, temporarily suspended between the parallel realities of day and night, sitting on a rock on the edge of a forest close to (but far enough from) home.

I released the breath I hadn't realized I was holding, opening my eyes just as the last rays of the sun disappeared.

* * *

I tried to focus on the weight of his hand on my shoulder as my brother and I navigated the crowded King's Cross station. The weight of his hand on my shoulder, the presence of Cedric, was far more comforting than the hordes of people swarming around us, far more comforting than the knowledge that my whole life was about to change, and certainly far more comforting than the gash on my leg that had still not fully healed. I was trying not to limp, trying my absolute hardest, but my sock pulled the wrong way on the cut every time I took a step.

"There it is, Lucy," Cedric said in my ear, gesturing with his chin at the wall separating Platform 9 from Platform 10. "That's where we go."

Our goodbye with Mum and Dad was difficult, but it was behind us. Ahead lay the barrier between my past and my future, and it was my older brother who would help me cross it. Seemed fitting, I thought, for many reasons.

"We need to make sure no one's watching," he whispered, his eyes shining with excitement as he tried to hide his smile. "Then we'll run through together."

"Will you hold my hand?" I asked, feeling more and more anxious the closer we grew to the wall.

He immediately grabbed my hand in response. "Absolutely."

My eyes darted back and forth. Muggle men in suits with briefcases and Muggle women in dresses with sleek handbags hurried back and forth, their eyes straying little from the paths laid out before them in the foot traffic patterns. The coast was clear --- no one paid two children in typical Muggle school clothes any mind. 

"On the count of three," Cedric said, squeezing my hand. I squeezed back, my stomach flipping. "One... two... three!"

I held my breath and closed my eyes, running with all I was worth. I waited for an impact that never came. Instead, warm sunlight greeted me when I opened my eyes. A cherry red train stood tall and proud over the crowd of children and parents and owls and toads, "HOGWARTS EXPRESS" emblazoned on the front in golden letters.

"Oh, look, there are the Weasleys!" he exclaimed. "Do you want to go say hi?"

I nodded, releasing his hand and following his lead through the packed platform. But just as we were about to get there, a loud whistle blew, and the redheaded boys clambered on. Cedric and I followed suit.

"Oy, Fred, look who it is!"

"The Diggorys made it after all!"

Cedric smiled. "Our mum didn't want to say goodbye to both of us this year."

"We can tell. You still have lipstick on your cheek." Cedric's sleeve immediately flew to his face, drawing laughter from the twins and a giggle from Ron. "Just kidding, old chap. Good to see you. Do you want to go with us to see Lee's tarantula?"

"I should probably go find Henry, sorry," he said, turning to me. "Do you want to follow me, or sit with Ron?"

I shrugged, casting a glance at Ron.

"Well, we told Mum we'd look after Ronniekins, and there's no better way to do that than leave him with a friend," Fred said.

"Besides, Ced, I think Henry would want to see the tarantula," George reasoned. "Let's help the little ones find a seat then go see it together."

Cedric relented with a shrug, and we wandered until we found a car with open space. A boy with black hair sat there, gazing out the window. Fred opened the door, and the boy turned his head to face us. His eyes were startlingly green.

"Is anyone sitting here?"

The boy shook his head, and George practically shoved Ron and I through the door. "There you two go."

"Did we introduce ourselves, Harry? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then."

I made brief eye contact with Cedric as the twins swept him away. He shot me a bemused smile before disappearing from view.

"Are you really Harry Potter?" Ron asked, sitting down across from him. I put my bag in the overhead compartment and sat one seat away from Ron. I watched as the boy parted his hair to reveal a lightning-shaped scar. I fought the urge to let my jaw fall open. Ron seemed equally shocked. "I thought it might have been one of Fred and George's jokes, they're quite hard to take seriously sometimes," he stammered. "So is that where You-Know-Who, you know...?"

Harry nodded. "I don't remember much of it, though. Just lots of green light."

"Wow," Ron replied, his voice hushed. 

"I'm sorry, but I missed your name," Harry said, looking toward me and smoothing his hair over his scar. 

"It's okay, they didn't say it. I'm Lucy, Lucy Diggory."

"She's my neighbor," Ron added. "Well, sort of."

"Are both of your families all wizards?" Harry asked, appearing somewhat starstruck.

I nodded. 

"I think Mum's got a second cousin who's an accountant," Ron explained, "but we don't talk about him much so I'm not sure. But other than him, yes, we're all wizards. I heard you went to live with Muggles. What are they like?"

Harry sighed and slumped against the seat. "I wish I had three wizard brothers instead."

"Five," Ron sighed, also slumping against the seat. "And one little sister. Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, then me. I guess you could say I have a lot to live up to. Bill was Head Boy, Charlie was a Quidditch captain, and now Percy is a prefect."

"Quidditch?" Harry asked, his eyebrows furrowing. "What's Quidditch?"

"You don't know Quidditch?" Ron sounded scandalized. He turned to me, thoroughly bewildered. "He doesn't know Quidditch!"

I offered Harry a weak smile. "Ron loves Quidditch. He can tell you all about it." 

Harry smiled back, before returning his attention to Ron. I stared out the window as they talked, and at some point fell asleep, lulled by the sight of the rolling hills beneath the cloudy sky.

My sleep was blessedly dreamless. When I awoke to a knock at the door, a thick yellow and black scarf had been draped around my shoulders. I missed what the brown-haired boy had to say in my sleepy stupor, but when the door slid shut, I rubbed my eyes with the heel of my hand.

"Your brother came by and said not to bother waking you up," Harry explained. "That's his scarf."

"You missed lunch," Ron said, sounding very sympathetic. "Do you want one of my sandwiches?"

The boys laughed; something about that was very funny. 

"Or some of my candy?" Harry offered. "I bought plenty to share. We're eating Every-Flavor Beans right now."

"If you want to risk it!" Ron exclaimed with a laugh.

I smiled. "I'm not terribly hungry, but thank you for the offers."

"I don't know why he was so bothered about losing his toad," Ron said. "If I brought a toad, I'd lose it as quick as I could. But in all fairness, I brought Scabbers, so I can't talk."

"Percy's rat?" I asked. His ears turned red, but he nodded.

"He might have died and you wouldn’t know the difference. I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn’t work. I’ll show you, look." He drew a wand from his bag. "Unicorn hair's nearly poking out. Anyway-"

He was interrupted by another knock at the door. The boy was back, but this time he wasn't alone. 

"Has anyone seen a toad?" the girl next to him asked. "Neville's lost one." We all shook our heads, but she was now focused on Ron's wand. "Oh, were you about to do magic? Can I see?" Without waiting for an answer, she took the seat between Ron and me. "Go on, then," she urged. "I really want to see."

"Alright," he said reluctantly, now quite flustered. Still, he pointed his wand at Scabbers, saying, "Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow. Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow!" 

"Did Fred and George teach you that spell?" I asked with a giggle. 

He sighed and nodded. 

"Are you sure that’s a real spell? Well, it’s not very good, is it? I’ve tried a few simple spells just for practice and it’s all worked for me. Nobody in my family’s magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it’s the very best school of witchcraft there is, I’ve heard. I’ve learnt all our set books off by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough. I’m Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"

Harry and Ron looked quite stunned by how quickly the girl had spoken. I bit back a laugh.

"I'm Ron."

"And I'm Harry Potter."

"Are you really?! I know all about you, of course --- I got a few extra books for background reading, and you’re in _Modern Magical History_ and _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century_." 

"Am I?"

"Goodness, didn’t you know, I’d have found out everything I could if it was me. Wait, who are you?" she asked, turning her attention to me.

"Lucy, Lucy Diggory."

She offered her hand, which I accepted. She had a very firm handshake. "Are you a Hufflepuff?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "This is my brother's."

"I sure hope I'm a Gryffindor, it sounds the best by far. I heard Dumbledore himself was one. But I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad. Anyway, I had better keep helping Neville find his toad."

"Do you want help?" I asked the boy. He nodded. He looked near tears. I turned to Harry and Ron, saying, "I'll be back."

They waved as I followed Neville and Hermione out into the hall. Before we had even knocked on the door of the next compartment, Neville lurched forward.

"There he is!" Neville exclaimed, rambling down the hallway. He had nearly reached his toad when it suddenly changed directions and jumped between Neville's legs. He tried to turn around and catch him, but he stepped on the hem of his robes instead and fell flat on his face. Laughter came from every direction; the toad chase had attracted quite a crowd. But the toad was still on the run, coming right toward me. I reached forward quickly, snatching it in my hands. Hermione and I hurried over to Neville and helped him get to his feet.

"Stop laughing!" Hermione shouted to the rest of the train. "It's not funny!" But the laughter only grew. I handed the toad to Neville, who was now very red in the face. 

"Thank you," he whispered.

"Let's go back to our compartment," Hermione said, grabbing him firmly by the arm. "You can come too, Lucy, if you want."

"I should find my brother," I said apologetically. "But I'll see you at school."

"I recommend changing into your robes. I think we're almost there." And with that, Hermione marched Neville away, and they ducked into a compartment. The laughter slowly died down, and I wandered the hall until I came across Cedric's cart. Two kids in there were wearing the same black and yellow scarf I was sporting. My brother smiled at the sight of me and gestured for me to come in.

"This is my sister, Lucy," he said to the other students. They were all already in their Hufflepuff robes. "Lucy, this is Beatrice, Evelyn, and Gabriel. Evelyn and Gabriel are two of the Hufflepuff prefects this year."

"Nice to meet you." I took the scarf off and handed it to Cedric. "Harry and Ron said you came by while I was asleep."

"Yeah, you were _sound_ asleep. You should probably go change, we'll be there soon."

"I was about to. I just wanted to bring your scarf back."

"You'll get one of your own Hufflepuff scarves soon, I'm sure," he said with a grin.

The rest of the compartment cheered. I giggled. "I hope so. See you tonight, Ced."

"See you, Lu!"

* * *

Once off the train, I clambered into a boat with Ron, Harry, and Hermione. The boat was guided by a giant man named Hagrid, I learned. A lantern on the front of the boat illuminated the water in front of us as we went across the large lake separating us from the castle. I studied the stars above, trying to pick out constellations. I had seen the night sky so many times, yet it had never been quite this clear. A heavy silence fell over the students as the fleet of boats sped through the water. 

"Heads down!" Hagrid called as we approached the cliff. I obeyed, my stomach doing flips when I realized how close we were. My heart hammered in my chest.

I craned my neck as I shakily stepped onto the beach to take in the sight. The castle's spires extended into the starry night, a chilly breeze whipping my robes around me. 

"Oy, you there! Is that yer toad?"

"Trevor!" Neville exclaimed, scooping him up and holding him close.

At the top of the staircase, Hagrid knocked on a door, which swung open to reveal a witch in robes the color of dewy grass.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."

I felt my heart begin to thunder even faster in my chest as her piercing eyes surveyed the group. She turned on her heel and motioned for us to follow her as the doors swung open. 

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room. The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."

"Smarten up?" Ron whispered.

"Oh no, what spell will they ask of us? Um, um, umm," Hermione whispered.

Harry and I exchanged panicked looks.

"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall as she left. "Please wait quietly."

"How exactly do they sort us into houses?" Harry asked Ron.

"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."

I felt my heart drop to my toes. Cedric hadn't warned me about a test.

The hall was suddenly flooded with mysterious white light. Ghosts! I had never seen one before. Cedric mentioned that each house had its own ghost, but Ottery St. Catchpole never had any.

"New students!" one of them exclaimed, hovering over us. "About to be Sorted, I suppose?"

A few people nodded.

"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff, my old house!"

 _I hope to see you there too,_ I added silently.

"Move along now, please." Professor McGonagall was back. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."

The ghosts floated away through the wall obediently, whispering among themselves.

"Now, form a line and follow me."

I kept my head down, following Harry's feet in front of mine. I looked up when he stopped.

A hat sat on a stool at the front of the hall. A great rip opened, and it began to sing, as if from a mouth:

"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,  
But don't judge on what you see,  
I'll eat myself if you can find  
A smarter hat than me.  
You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your top hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat  
And I can cap them all.  
There's nothing hidden in your head  
The Sorting Hat can't see,  
So try me on and I will tell you  
Where you ought to be.  
You might belong in Gryffindor,  
Where dwell the brave at heart,  
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry set Gryffindors apart;  
You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,  
Those patient Hufflepuffis are true and unafraid of toil;  
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
if you've a ready mind,  
Where those of wit and learning,  
Will always find their kind;  
Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,  
Those cunning folk use any means  
To achieve their ends.  
So put me on! Don't be afraid!  
And don't get in a flap!  
You're in safe hands (though I have none)  
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"

Everybody clapped as the hat bowed, then the room returned to a reverent silence. McGonagall extracted a roll of parchment from her robe and said, "When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbott, Hannah!"

She scurried to the stool. The hat settled over her eyes and yelled, "HUFFLEPUFF!"

With a last name starting with D, I knew I would be toward the front. But the Ds came and went, without a "Diggory." I glanced toward the Hufflepuff table, trying to make eye contact with Cedric, trying to see if he was as confused and distressed as I was. But then, my name was called. "Everlin, Lucy!"

I looked around, to make sure there was no other Lucy walking to the front. But when no one moved, I placed one foot in front of the other all the way to the stool at the front. Everlin was my middle name, after all. There had to have been a mistake. It was as easy as that.

The hat was lowered, and I was submerged into complete blackness. I heard a voice, but it wasn't in my ears. It was in my head.

"I have sorted two like you before, and they were in separate houses. One in Gryffindor, one in Hufflepuff."

"My brother is a Hufflepuff," I said. "My dad was, too, I think. My mum is a Gryffindor. Is that what you mean?"

"You know what I mean," the Hat interrupted. "I ask not about your family, nor about the others like you. I have already sorted them, see. My job is to sort _you_ for who you are, not for they are or who they would like you to be."

I winced, though I wasn't quite sure why.

"Oh, I see I have struck a nerve. You feel that you have to be what everyone expects of you. You think that copying your brother is what's best for you."

"It has to be. Please put me in Hufflepuff."

"Why are you fighting me so much, child? I am sorting you so that I may help you. Let me see your mind, your heart. Show me who you really are."

"I don't know how," I gritted out, suddenly feeling claustrophobic. "If you show me how, I will."

"What do you fear most? Being forgotten? Being seen as a fool? Being seen as a coward?"

I took a steadying breath, trying to calm my mind. I searched for the answer. "I fear hurting those I love more than anything."

"There we go. Now I can see more. Tell me about a time that made you happy."

"I rescued a Crup puppy from the woods around my home when I was nine. He makes me happier than anything."

"I see, I see."

Then the Hat went silent.

My mind wandered to the day I found Tuck. The sun was barely risen, and I was walking toward my house when I heard a soft whimper to my right. I had bent down and pulled the brush back. A black and white spotted puppy was cowering against the dead body of what appeared to be his mother, bloodied and cut up and still. The sight of her carcass made me feel ill, so I scooped the puppy up and hurried home. 

Over the next few weeks, he became my best friend. I named him Tuck for the way he liked to sleep with me in bed with his nose securely tucked under my pillow. We were inseparable. Even now, my heart ached for him. I had wanted so badly to bring him with me to Hogwarts, but Crups weren't allowed. 

I still wanted to find the creature that murdered his mother. I had searched in the woods, many times over, knowing it was unlikely that I would ever find answers but wanting to try anyway. My father said it was too dangerous, that I shouldn't risk my own well-being for an unsolvable mystery. But Mum understood. She knew how badly I wanted justice for my pup, even if I put myself in harm's way in the process. She knew, perhaps even better than I, that it wasn't even justice necessarily that I wanted. I wanted to protect my pup from the same fate, more than anything.

"Good, good," the Hat said. "I see quite clearly now. But one last thing. Show me your wand."

I pictured it in my mind. I recalled the electricity that shot through me the first time I held it. Cypress, with a unicorn hair core. Within that moment, I became incredibly aware of the power I contained. I didn't want it, not entirely, but I understood that it was entrusted to me nonetheless, and nothing I could say or do could change the fact that magic was in my blood, in my soul. I finally had a channel for this power, a sense of direction to guide it and help it grow.

Though light in my hand, I knew that my wand might just be everything I've ever wanted in life.

The Hat had one last question. "And what is that, what you want in life?" 

I hesitated. "I don't know."

As soon as those words left my mouth, several images came to mind. Cedric, my parents, Tuck, the Weasleys, my new friends. Safe. Smiling. But most importantly, safe. Why did I feel such immense satisfaction?

"GRYFFINDOR!" the Sorting Hat roared.

* * *

 _Cedric said he was happy for you,_ I tried to reassure myself as I unpacked my belongings. _He wasn't mad at all. He said Mum will be proud to have another Gryffindor in the family._

Every time I looked down at my suitcase, I caught a glimpse of the maroon and gold badge now on my chest, of the maroon folds of my robe, of the golden stripes on my maroon tie, of the maroon and gold checkered blanket on my bed. Mere hours ago I was wrapped in Cedric's yellow and black scarf, certain I would have a matching one in time. Now it was a maroon and gold scarf I found in the trunk at the foot of my bed.

The other girls in my dorm were talking excitedly, but I wasn't paying them much mind. If nothing else, I was thankful that Hermione and Harry and Neville and the Weasleys were in Gryffindor too. But oh, how I ached to be with Cedric. 

"What about you, Lucy?"

I turned around quickly. "I'm sorry, I was lost in thought. What did you ask?

"It's alright," Hermione said. "I asked if you preferred to shower in the morning or at night."

"Oh, I-I don't know." My mind raced. I hadn't thought about this. "What about you?"

"I like to shower in the morning, personally. Everyone else seems to be in agreement."

I felt my shoulders relax. I could shower alone. "That's funny, I'm more of a night shower person myself."

She smiled. "That _is_ funny. Why didn't you just say that from the beginning? Well, it's all yours."

I offered a smile back and grabbed my pajamas out of my bag, tossing the rest of my belongings from home into my trunk and deciding I'd deal with them in the morning. The bathroom was adjacent to our bedroom. A line of showers occupied one wall, toilets on the opposite, and sinks connecting the two. A row of windows revealed the starry sky, the clouds having dispersed.

I ducked into the closest shower stall, leaving my pajamas in a heap outside the curtain. Once inside, I carefully removed my tie, red and gold and not black and yellow, and dropped it to the ground next to my pajamas, careful to only let my arm slide through. I kicked my shoes off next and peeled off my socks. As expected, one was encrusted with blood from the cut on my calf -- I dropped the clean one outside on top of my tie. I took my robe off carefully, avoiding eye contact with the lion now defining me as Different Than Cedric. I dropped it outside with a trembling hand. When all of my clothes were piled outside, I turned on the water and twisted my leg around to get a better look.

The cut was rimmed with pink skin and oozing pus. My stomach flipped, and I looked away, focusing instead on lifting my bloody sock to the water and letting it wash the stains out. I lingered in the water as if it could wash away my sorrow and confusion. I mulled over everything the Sorting Hat had said to me, about being myself and not who everyone else wants me to be. But if I valued everyone else's opinions above my own, I wondered, why should I be my own person? And why, oh why, was I in Gryffindor? 

When I entered my dormitory again, feeling no better but at least feeling cleaner, my new roommates were all in bed, and everyone except Hermione seemed to be asleep. She was reading a book by the light of her wand. 

"How was your shower?" she whispered. 

"It was good, thank you." I folded my robe hastily and tossed it on top of my trunk. "The warm water felt good after today."

"It has been rather overwhelming, hasn't it?"

I nodded, crawling into bed. I considered asking what book she was reading, but I decided against it. "Good night, Hermione," I said instead, closing my eyes and pulling the blankets to my chin.

"Good night," she replied, yawning behind her hand and turning another page.


	2. Be Brave

_I'll forever be amazed  
How I learned the meaning of the phrase  
Be brave_

_"Be Brave"  
Owl City_

* * *

Hermione extinguished her wand light a couple minutes later with a whispered "Nox," and was soon snoring softly in harmony with my other roommates. I, on the other hand, couldn't fall asleep. I was tormented by my mind. 

I was angry. I was confused. I was afraid.

I felt anything but brave. Why, oh why, was I a Gryffindor? 

The Sorting Hat said its job was to sort me for who I was, but how was I supposed to accept that everyone's ideals were what had shaped me? How was I supposed to reconcile to myself that their expectations of me were simply better than anything I could ever hope to truly become? How was I supposed to fit the mold of Gryffindor when I had worked my whole life to model myself after Cedric, who exemplified everything Hufflepuff stood for?

The more I dwelt on the inescapable reality of my situation, the more suffocated I felt. When I couldn't take it any longer, I silently slipped from my dormitory and shuffled down to the common room. I walked to the window seat and curled up to look at the stars, still shining so clearly.

"I take it you could not sleep either?" a voice asked.

I jumped and turned to face the source of the voice. Percy Weasley was sitting on the couch, an open book in his lap. I managed a nod.

"I didn't mean to frighten you, Lucy, it's alright. You're not in trouble."

I relaxed slightly. "What are you reading?"

"I'm trying to read ahead in my potions book for this year," he said, showing me the cover before he closed the book and placed it on the side table at his elbow. "I figured I might as well be productive while I couldn't sleep."

"Why couldn't you sleep, if you don't mind my asking?"

"The same reason as you, most likely. Too much on my mind, with a new year up ahead. Believe it or not, this is my first year as Prefect."

I thought back to the way he had singlehandedly brought Gryffindor all the way through the castle to our common room; come to think of it, I couldn't recall who any of the other prefects were. "I never would have guessed," I admitted, "because it seems to have come so naturally to you."

He chuckled. "With four younger siblings, I would hope I've learned a thing or two at this point."

I smiled. "That makes sense."

"Speaking of learning, do you have any questions about lessons I can answer for you, while we're both awake?"

"Hm." I tried to think, but I had so many questions it was hard to formulate any single one to ask. "I pestered Cedric with questions all summer, so I think I'm alright. But I do have a question, about the Sorting. Why did they say my name was Lucy Everlin instead of Lucy Diggory? Everlin is my middle name."

"I saw your brother talking to Professor McGonagall during dinner, so he was probably clearing that up. I would encourage you to ask her about the issue when she gives you your schedule in the morning, though, just to be sure it's correct when the professors take attendance."

"Okay, thank you. It was quite disorienting," I added with a slight laugh.

He grinned. "I'm sure it was. I had the opposite problem, myself. When the Sorting Hat touched my head, the first thing it said was something along the lines of 'A third Weasley? Hopefully you're the last.'"

I laughed for real at that. "But there were four more coming! Gryffindor will have five Weasleys next year, unless Ginny is like me and changes it up."

"Oh goodness, I hadn't thought about that. Five of us in a house all at the same time. That will be quite the experience."

"I bet."

"Do you have any other questions, Lucy? About anything?"

 _Yes, of course,_ I thought. _The biggest question. About what I'm supposed to do on September 23. But not tonight._

"Not tonight," I said instead. "But thank you for talking to me."

"Of course. If you're sure you don't have any questions, I should probably try to sleep, as should you."

"I will in a couple of minutes," I replied. "Good night, Percy."

"Good night, Lucy."

When he left, it was just me and the twinkling stars and the crackling fire. And for a moment, it felt almost like home.

* * *

As irony or fate or destiny (or scheduling) would have it, my first class was Herbology with Professor Sprout, who might have been my Head of House had I been a better Diggory. Though the whole situation still felt odd to me, it was a relief to hear Professor Sprout call "Lucy Diggory?" instead of "Lucy Everlin?"

"Here!" I replied, drawing a couple of confused looks. 

"You look nothing like Cedric," one Hufflepuff commented. I blushed. _I know,_ I wanted to say.

"Well, regardless of whether or not she looks like Cedric, I'm positively thrilled to have another Diggory in my class, even if she is wearing red and gold instead of black and yellow," Professor Sprout responded with a bright smile.

I managed a smile back, even though I felt quite like I had been slapped. I knew she meant well, but her comment still stung.

_If only you knew, Professor Sprout, how badly I wish I were in your house colors. Trust me._

I was grateful to have Hermione at my side in everything, who seemed to be the only person in our year that didn't get lost between classes. Our uncommon timeliness was appreciated by teachers, which helped make a good first impression. My name was Lucy _Diggory_ , after all, and not Lucy Everlin, and that name carried weight.

My favorite part of the first week was our first astronomy lesson, at midnight on Wednesday. I thought I could see the stars clearly from the Gryffindor common room, but from the top of the astronomy tower, the sky seemed endless.

"How do you know so many constellations?" Hermione whispered, as I pointed out yet another for the class.

"Insomnia," I replied with a smile.

She giggled. "Fair enough."

When class was dismissed, a sleepy bunch of students tottered out of the room until only Harry and I remained in the classroom. Harry was still scribbling notes, but I was content just to peer through the telescopes for as long as I could.

"Lucy?" Harry called.

I removed my eye from the telescope and joined him. "Yes?"

"Sorry to bother you, but do you remember what this one was?" he asked, pointing to Gemini.

"That's Gemini. See, if you connect these like this, and these like this," I explained, running my finger over his map, "it looks a little bit like twins."

"Oh, that makes sense! Thank you."

"Of course," I said with a smile. "I like the stars."

"Me too," he replied, stuffing his map in his bag and leading the way down the ladder. "It's nice to fall asleep looking at them. I never got to see them from my bed at home."

"Did you live in the city?"

He nodded. He opened his mouth to say something, but seemingly changed his mind. "I hope you know how to get back to the common room," he said a moment later. "I can barely find it during the day, but in the dark? Not a chance."

I giggled. "Don't worry, I think I know the way. But we could use a little light regardless, don't you think?" I drew my wand from my robes. "Lumos!" My wand tip glowed brilliantly.

"Whoa, you already figured it out!"

I smiled sheepishly and blushed. "I've been practicing as much as possible. I can try to teach you right now, if you'd like."

"Sure!"

We sat on the nearest bench, and he drew his wand.

"I know the shape goes up to the right and then down to the right, but I can never make it go quite long enough."

"Oh, I had the same problem, but I was in the library, so I grabbed a book. Imagine a book in your mind, and run your wand from one corner to the center of the top edge, then back down to the other corner. That's about the right size for the motion."

He closed his eyes and held his wand in front of him. "Lumos," he said slowly. His wand flickered and died.

"Oh, it lit up a little! Try it again."

"Lumos," he repeated, making the movement of his wand more confident. This time, it illuminated as fully as mine.

"You did it!" I exclaimed. At the end of the hallway, I heard the hissing of a cat. We exchanged a quick glance.

"Mrs. Norris!" he whispered.

"We need to go before Mr. Filch hears us. Run!" I whispered back, jumping up from the bench and running down the hall. The Gryffindor common room, unfortunately, was on the west side of the castle. Astronomy was on the east side. Harry and I darted through the dark, keeping our ears and eyes peeled for any sign of people, or ghosts, or cats. We saw none, however, and tumbled through the portrait hole into the common room without further incident. Hermione and Ron were sitting awkwardly beside each other on the couch, the only kids left in the common room.

"There you two are," Hermione said reproachfully. "We were worried! Where were you?"

Harry and I exchanged a look and dissolved into a fit of giggles. We didn't want to admit we had run through the whole castle at one in the morning because we were frightened by a cat, but we did anyway, and Ron and Hermione began laughing too. Even as Hermione and I headed to our dorm and the boys headed to theirs, we kept giggling. And even as I felt asleep, the shadow of a smile lingered on my face.

* * *

It was obvious from the beginning of our very first Potions class that Professor Snape had a personal grudge against Harry for a reason only he knew. It began the second he called Harry's name, and it continued throughout the class in the form of cutting comments and passive-aggressive glances of judgement fired Harry's way like poisonous darts. After having fun with Harry on Wednesday night (or perhaps Thursday morning would be more appropriate to say), I wanted to be brave and defend my new friend, but I couldn't. I was too afraid. That is, until the end of class, when Professor Snape snapped at Harry for not stopping Neville from brewing his potion incorrectly, which was so unjust my anger overrode my fear.

"Please, Professor Snape," I said, stepping between him and Harry and trying to keep my voice as diplomatic as possible despite the burning anger bubbling inside. "If it's anybody's fault, it's mine, not Harry's. I saw Neville doing it incorrectly because we were working next to each other, but I didn't say anything because I was afraid to hurt his feelings. Please don't punish all of Gryffindor for my mistake. It would be unfair. If-" I hesitated, taking a shaky breath before continuing, painfully aware of how the rest of the room was silent and all eyes were on me. The adrenaline rush of my anger was subsiding. My sheer willpower to set this right was all that remained. "If you're going to remove points, please take them off of my assignment and give them to Neville. It was my mistake, and I'm sorry."

The expression on his face was unreadable at first. His emotions were completely hidden from me. Then, a slight smirk. "Unfair, you said?"

I hesitated again. Then I nodded slowly. "Yes, sir. It was my mistake. Not Gryffindor's."

His smirk deepened. "Spoken like a true Hufflepuff. You don't belong in Gryffindor." A couple of snickers could be heard in the stillness of the room. My face flushed, and I fought the tears that climbed up my throat to my eyes. Professor Snape never once broke eye contact. "You may begin packing up," he said to the rest of the class. When his focus returned to me, he bent down until his nose was mere inches from mine. His cold black eyes glittered with malice. "You think you can come to Hogwarts and have your every whim catered to, but that isn't the case. By all rights, you don't belong here, and you know it. If not for the pity of the Headmaster, you wouldn't even be standing in my classroom right now, daring to defy me. It would be wise for you to learn to control the monster within you in the future. For now, I fear it's already too late." And with that, he turned on his heel and walked away. "Class dismissed!"

I released a breath I didn't realize I had been holding, and the weight of what I had just done settled on my shoulders like a leaden backpack. Suddenly struggling to breathe, I grabbed my bag and ran from the classroom.

"Lucy, wait!" a voice called. Hermione? I ignored it and kept running, not paying any attention to where I was going but just longing to get as far away from the potions classroom as possible. Up flights of stairs, down flights of stairs. I finally stopped once I was outdoors. A steady rain was falling, and a cool breeze stirred the trees. I set my bag down in the shelter of the castle and stepped out into the open, taking a deep breath and letting the tears flow silently.

He was right, of course. I didn't belong in Gryffindor. But there I was, and there I was to stay until the gravity of fate pulled me away and onto another adventure. He was probably right too, about learning to hold my tongue. Cedric would have likely handled the situation better than I. At the same time, Snape had told me I had spoken like a true Hufflepuff, which should have made me proud. But the fact that he told me I didn't belong in Gryffindor made me want to belong to Gryffindor more than I had ever wanted to before.

When my tears had dried and my clothes had become significantly more wet, I turned and entered the castle again, but rather than going to the Great Hall for lunch, I headed in the direction of my common room, seeking a warm fire and dry clothes. I was lucky again, and walked through empty halls to an empty common room to an empty dormitory. I stripped my wet robes and climbed into dry ones. And I even wrapped my Gryffindor scarf around my shoulders before I sat cross-legged in front of the fireplace.

Fire, in all of its chaos and unpredictability, was somehow contained within the confines of the brick of the fireplace, without any true restriction or rules or reprimand. Sure, if I were to remove one of the burning logs and place it near something flammable, it would cause damage. Fire in the wild could burn for hours, days, weeks, months unchecked. Ravaging, destroying, wreaking havoc in the form of damage that took decades to truly overcome. But when given a place to burn safely, fire glowed brightly and happily, sharing light and warmth as long as fuel -- or magic -- kept it alive, until it contentedly settled into embers and gave the last of its life before dwindling into darkness and cold.

So, I supposed, was the life of a Gryffindor. Back in the potions classroom, I felt the same flash of fighting fire I felt when I found Tuck. The same flash of fighting fire I felt when I first held my wand. And looking back, the same flash of fighting fire I felt any time a challenge stood in between me and the well-being of those I loved. As long as there was fuel there to sustain me, I burned. Not with temper, not even truly with anger. But with a sense of protectiveness, of justice, even. No, not justice. A sense of determination to bring justice, softened though it may be by my more compassionate tendencies.

Contrary to what I had always believed, maybe the fire wasn't bad. I had grown weary of tampering down any little lick of flame, anything other than what I was expected to be, anything other than what I expected myself to be. Maybe it just needed to be allowed to burn. Maybe it was the stifling that made it in fact impossible to control fully. But then again... maybe I wasn't meant to burn. Maybe I was too dangerous to burn. 

"Oh, there you are, Lucy! I've been looking everywhere for you!" 

I whirled around. Hermione had found me. "You have?"

"Of course, silly. You can't just run and expect not to be followed. I care about you."

I bit my lip. Cedric was the only one who had ever truly followed me before. But at Hogwarts, I had done nothing but push him away. The first morning of classes, he had asked if I wanted to talk about being a Gryffindor. I had felt the tears rise to my eyes, so I squeaked out a no and turned away. He had asked again at lunch, and again at dinner. The next morning, he had approached me just outside the Great Hall before breakfast with a shyness I had rarely seen.

"I know you're upset, Lu, and I hope it's not with me. I talked to Beatrice and she said that the best thing to do was give you space and welcome you back when you're ready to talk, so that's what I'll do. Is that alright with you? Would you like some space?"

I had been unable to stand the earnestness in his eyes and looked away. "I'm sorry, Cedric," I managed before I turned on my heel and fled to the nearest bathroom to cry. True to his word as always, he had stopped asking if I wanted to talk. He had stopped following me. We still exchanged a good morning at breakfast and a good night at dinner, but beyond that, he gave me the space I never denied wanting.

Hermione brought me back to my senses by tugging on my scarf and holding the crest up for me to see. "You know he was wrong, don't you? About belonging in Gryffindor?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you were brave today, Lucy. You stood up for what was right, even against a teacher. You know," she said, lowering her voice to a whisper, "I don't think I could stand up to a teacher like you did. Especially not Professor Snape." She shivered. "He frightens me."

"You're frightened too?" I asked quietly, incredulous.

"Of course. Everyone feels a little frightened sometimes, and Professor Snape is frightening. But today, you took a stand anyway, and that took courage."

"Thank you, Hermione."

"It's only the truth, Lucy," she said, reaching forward to hug me. "I'm glad I have a friend as brave as you."

I hugged her back, pleasantly surprised by how loved I felt in that moment by a girl I had just met. "I'm glad I have a friend as caring as you. Thank you for following me."

Though the moment was sweet, Professor Snape's words had drudged up the darkest fears I kept buried deep in my heart. And new fears arose as well.

I didn't deserve to be at Hogwarts, I knew that. I was burden, a danger, a threat. A monster. 

I didn't deserve a friend like Hermione. Hermione was quickly becoming the best friend I could ever hope to have, I could ever dream of having.

It was for that reason, really, I decided secrecy was essential to the survival of our budding friendship. Because though we were in Gryffindor, nobody in their right minds would be brave enough to be friends with a werewolf.


	3. A Monster

After dinner that night, I decided to take the long way back to the common room. I had let my guard down and let Hermione see my vulnerability, but for her safety, I couldn't let it happen again. So instead, I wandered the halls by myself, eventually finding my way out to the courtyard. 

A few of the clouds from the afternoon had dissipated, leaving a couple of patches of stars. I sat with my back to the fountain and let my mind wander. 

My parents (for obvious reasons) were incredibly paranoid, or, as they preferred to phrase it, safety-oriented. They always feared the darkness --- every corner of our home was lit with the brightest candles imaginable. Cedric and I were allowed outside only for very specific reasons, and never after sunset or before sunrise. 

We were allowed to de-gnome the yard as necessary, which we both enjoyed. We were also allowed to help Mum with her gardening work; Cedric was always the best in his year in Herbology, and Professor Sprout had already told me she suspected that I shared the same green thumb. 

But our favorite activity had always, always, always been flying. Cedric asked for his first broom when he was six, and by the time I was six, I was begging for one too. Our parents, I suppose, figured that no werewolves could bite us when we were flying, so we spent hours upon hours in the sky at a time. We would toss Quaffles back and forth, throw Every-Flavor Beans into the air for the other to catch, and even attempt the same Quidditch maneuvers we watched in the pictures of _Seeker Weekly_. I still had the letter in my trunk I received from Cedric after he successfully used a Sloth Grip Roll in a match for the first time; that had always been his favorite maneuver to try. 

It had been only a week since I had last flown, but the sky above called me louder and louder every passing hour. I longed to shoot up into the clouds, and fly right through one of the holes where the stars shone through. I wanted to look at the ground and not be afraid of falling. I wanted to look up and see nothing but stars forever. I wanted to stare at the moon until I forgot who I was, what I was. 

For me, the feeling of flying had been hard to explain. It came more naturally to anything else, as if my very soul were tethered to the sky, and each second spent apart strained everything within me. I was feeling the strain that night; the stone pillars around me seemed awfully reminiscent of a cage. I wanted to fly, but I was confined. First years weren't allowed their own brooms anyway.

I was jerked from my reverie by a pair of voices. 

"She wouldn't stop talking about how excited she was to be coming back to learn more about the potions she'd need at St. Mungo's, but I just want her to stay away. As soon as I break free of her shiny, perfect precedent, she always comes back and overshadows me again. I mean, what potions does she need to learn here anyway she couldn't learn anywhere else? Literally _anywhere_ else?" 

"I don't know, Bea, but I'm sure there's a reason she's coming here. Maybe wolfsbane? I don't think we learn that, even at the N.E.W.T. level." Cedric was talking to Beatrice Haywood. And they were coming closer.

"Why would she need that anyway?" she spat in response. "And why would she learn that _here_ of all places? Dumbledore's smart. He surely knows having a werewolf at Hogwarts would be madness. They're dangerous monsters that can't be trusted. If I found out there was a werewolf here, I might just kill whoever it is on sight and make it look like an accident."

Suddenly, I wasn't feeling well. I crept through the shadows to the opposite side of the courtyard from them and darted back into the castle. While earlier in the afternoon, I was lucky enough to find an empty common room because it was lunchtime, I was not so fortunate on the first Friday night of the semester. Once through the portrait hole, I was met with chaos. A massive game of Exploding Snap was taking place on one side of the room, while the other side of the room was devoted to what appeared to be a wizard's chess tournament. In the center of the room, a few students were flipping through magazines or reading letters from home, but even as I walked in, most of the people in the middle had decided that it was too noisy and started dispersing toward the dormitories.

Though I had been temporarily distracted by the wildness I had seen in the common room, as soon as I was alone in the shower, I couldn't help but cry for the second time that day.

Monster. Everyone's favorite word for me. 

Monster. On September 23, I would become one.

Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster.

I would sit somewhere far away from the school, watching the sun sink lower and lower on the horizon. The twilight breeze would be cool on my skin, my bare human skin. Once the last golden rays of the sun would disappear, I would close my eyes and wait. Wait to become aware of myself again. Wait to once again feel dawn's dew beneath me and the warmth of the first light of morning above me. Wait to recall everything I had done in the middle of the night.

While I had no control over what I did in werewolf form, I could always remember every detail. I was allowed to watch the --- what had Hermione called the Muggle moving pictures? --- "movie" every morning in the form of scattered flashbacks, but it was as if I had a camera attached to my snout, capturing every detail of the scene before me without any sense of consciousness or awareness of self. It was frightening, to see what I had done. What I was capable of doing.

Monster.

Monster.

Monster.

Me.

I was a monster. My new goal was simple: keep everyone out and let no one in. I expected it would be easy. Cedric had stopped chasing me already. Next easiest would be Harry and Ron. Hardest would be Hermione. The only thing I needed to figure out was how to isolate myself without hurting them. But I knew where to start.

* * *

The next morning, I was the first person awake in my room, which was perfect.

As quietly as I could, I changed out of my pajamas into my robes, grabbed my bookbag, and slipped from the room.

I had decided that I needed a place where I could be completely alone. To study. To exist. In perfect solitude, where I couldn't hurt anyone. Where no one would find me. I would tell Hermione that I found I studied better by myself but that I'd still help her if she needed it (knowing full well she didn't need help). It seemed gentle and kind while also firmly distancing myself. I knew she'd understand the need to study as effectively as possible, because studying was all she ever did.

I climbed through the portrait hole and went down flight after flight of stairs until I was outdoors. I knew that, somewhere in the fog, the Quidditch Pitch was to the west and the Black Lake was to the south. I decided to head toward the Quidditch Pitch. 

It was about a ten-minute walk, having only a vague sense of where I was going. But suddenly, the majestic stadium stood before me. I felt rather small, but very excited nonetheless. I walked with a renewed sense of vigor as I looked for a staircase or a ladder or anything, anything that would allow me access to the stadium I had wanted to play in my entire life. I knew that first-years never made the Quidditch teams, but that didn't mean I couldn't dream about the day I'd finally get to play, even if I wore maroon and gold instead of black and yellow. I'd still proudly wear the Diggory name on my back.

When I found a spiral staircase that led to the stands, it took all of my willpower not to sprint straight up to the top. I took them two at a time, though, and took a second at the top to gaze fondly at the beautiful pitch. The grass below was lush and green, and even though the fog obscured the commentary box from view, I could only imagine how spectacular it must be to watch a Quidditch match from there. I found myself wondering if they already had a commentator this year. I wouldn't mind commentating while I waited for a spot on the Gryffindor team to open up.

I eventually snapped from my daze and found a spot to sit and spread out my parchment to start on Professor Snape's essay. As I wrote, the fog above dispersed, and even a couple of rays of sun shone through. But still no one came to the pitch, and for that I was thankful. I finished my essay and moved onto the reading for Charms. I became so engrossed in the book I read three chapters ahead, and I was about to turn to a fourth when someone called my name.

I snapped the book shut and looked around. Who had found me?

"Up here!"

I squinted against the brilliant blue sky and saw my brother flying towards me. He brought his broom to a stop on the other side of the wall.

"Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you. Why weren't you at breakfast?"

I opened my mouth to tell a lie about how I wasn't hungry, but the truth escaped my lips instead. "I wanted to find a place to study in isolation without anyone following me."

His brow wrinkled in concern. "Why?"

"Why? Why?! Why wouldn't I, Cedric?"

He reeled a bit. I couldn't remember the last time I had snapped at him. I was about to apologize, but he had quickly regained his composure. "It's more fun to study with other people, Lu, not to mention that it's a good way to make friends."

I tried to rein in my emotion, but bitterness and pain dripped from my next words. "Not even a Gryffindor would be brave enough to be friends with a monster like me."

"Oh," he said, his face softening in sudden understanding, "you heard her."

"Yeah. I did. Her, and Professor Snape, and-"

"Hey, hey, it's okay." He brought his broom closer to the wall and dismounted, sitting next to me on the bench. "I know I said I wouldn't follow you, and I'm sorry that I went back on my word. But if I let you take my broom for a ride around the castle, will you please talk to me?"

I slowly moved my charms book from my lap to the bench beside me. "Take your broom? All the way around the castle? As in, fly your broom?"

He smiled. "I know how much you must miss it. I heard first-year Gryffindors don't start flying lessons until this Thursday."

I stared at his broom, his twelfth birthday present. It was a beauty of a broom, it really was. A Cleansweep 7, the first Cleansweep released in thirty-five years. The only broom that was better was the brand-new Nimbus 2000. "I thought first-years couldn't have their own brooms," I managed to say.

"It's not yours, it's mine, and I'm lending it to you. C'mon, I know you can't say no. A lap around the castle in exchange for an honest conversation?"

I looked away from the broom and into his eyes. "You mean it?"

"I can't believe you're not in the air yet!" he laughed, practically shoving the broom into my hands. "Go!"

I beamed and pulled my hood over my head to avoid being recognized before mounting the broom quickly and shooting straight into the sky with a "Yippee!" Once in the sky, I saw other students on brooms, some talking to friends, others tossing Quaffles back and forth, still others reading textbooks. I zipped toward the castle, turning a few loops just because I could. 

I spotted the flaming red hair from a distance --- the Weasley twins had taken to the skies as well. They seemed to be deep in conversation, even though one of them was hanging upside with his knees locked around the shaft of the broom and the other was turning small figure-eights. I grinned as I headed them, and sped up as much as I dared, squeezing perfectly in between them before shooting straight up into the sky.

"Who the _bloody_ hell was that?" I heard one of them wonder aloud. I smiled before turning another loop and heading back toward the Quidditch Pitch, this time soaring far over their heads. 

Cedric smiled at me as I dismounted. "Feeling better?"

I smiled back and nodded. "So much better. Thank you."

"Of course, Lu."

I sat back down beside him and sighed. "Time to keep my end of the bargain, I suppose. But first, can I ask what made you change your mind about me?"

"That's a good question, but it has a long answer. Is that okay?"

"Of course, that's fine. I promised you an honest conversation."

"Okay. Well, essentially, I changed my mind last night after I realized how different you and Bea are, even though I thought you were very similar at first. I suppose I should start at the beginning. The year before my first year, Beatrice was the victim of a curse that trapped her in a painting for nearly an entire school year."

I gasped. "That's horrible!"

He nodded. "Not only did it traumatize her, but it traumatized her older sister, Penny, even more. They were both Hufflepuffs, but, well, they had very different ways of moving on from the situation. Penny wanted to do everything possible to protect Beatrice, to the point of smothering her, but Beatrice wanted to do everything possible to protect herself _by_ herself, to the point of completely isolating herself from her sister and trying to solve her own problems with nothing but anger and fear and determination. Things are better now that more time has passed and they've both had space, but based on what I'm guessing you heard last night, you know their relationship's still very complicated."

I nodded. "For the record, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, honest. I was in the courtyard already, looking at the stars, when you came out."

"I trust you. So you heard what she said about werewolves being monsters?"

I nodded again, more slowly. 

"Did you hear my response?"

"No," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "I ran away after she said she'd kill a werewolf on sight and make it look like an accident."

At this, Cedric wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to him. "You know I'd never let that happen to you, right?"

I nodded, unable to speak.

"Good." I remained with my head against his shoulder as he talked. "By the end of the conversation, I convinced Beatrice that the wolfsbane potion would keep the school safe. Beatrice only said what she did because she still struggles with a lot of fear, most of it irrational. She takes her emotion out on other people and even other things sometimes. She keeps everything inside to try to protect herself, and when she can't take it anymore, it bursts out of her in a way she can't always control. Before we came out to the courtyard, I had to repair a flowerpot in our common room that she blasted with a knockback jinx."

"Really?" I asked with a small giggle.

"Oh yeah, it was probably in two hundred pieces. I fixed it, though. But to return to my main point, you're not like that, Lucy. I know you're afraid, and you have every right to be. But your heart is still so soft. You still care so much about others, which is why you're out here in the first place, isn't it?"

"Yeah," I said softly. "I don't want to hurt anyone. The only way to guarantee that is if I'm alone."

"But you haven't hurt me, and we've been siblings for a while now."

I almost laughed. "You're different," I mumbled. "You're family. You're obligated to be nice to me."

"I'm not obligated, Lucy, I choose to love you the way I do. And I know that if you let people in, they'd choose to love you too. I chose to follow you, because I believed it was best for you to know I still cared. Beatrice hates it when people try to follow her because she's afraid of them hurting her. She'd much rather go to them when she wants, the way she came to me last night, and be alone the rest of the time. But I think you hate being alone because that's what you have to do once a month, and you need people to follow you because you're afraid of hurting them if you seek them out."

I blinked, taking a moment to absorb his words. "Wow. You're right. How did you just summarize me so perfectly? You're not even the Sorting Hat, but you still read my mind."

Cedric laughed. "I'm your brother, hopefully I've gotten good at knowing you by now."

"Dare I say too good," I giggled, raising my head from his shoulder so I could look at him again. "Thank you for following me, Cedric."

"Of course, Lucy. Are you feeling any better?"

I nodded. "I'm glad Beatrice won't try to kill me."

"Not on my watch. I promise."

"That's good."

"I know it'll take some time to process, but will you please think about what I said and consider letting people in? I know that there are so many people here who would love you, just as you are."

"Werewolf and all?"

"Werewolf and all. Because you're enough just as you are."

"Gryffindor and all?"

He laughed. "Gryffindor and all. But don't expect me to go easy on you when we face off in Quidditch, you hear?"

"Go easy on me? Cedric, I'm insulted. I can fly circles around you even when you're trying your hardest.

He laughed again. "I can't argue with that. Maybe I should be asking _you_ to go easy on _me_."

I smirked. "Never."

* * *

The weather on the day of our first flying lesson was perfect. A crisp autumn breeze was on the air, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. For the first time since arriving at Hogwarts, I couldn't stop smiling. I trembled with excitement, anxious to feel a broom in my hands again, even if the school brooms were really as awful as Fred had told me they were. (He and George hadn't figured out yet that it had been me in Saturday; I heard them asking around the Gryffindor common room all day Saturday and Sunday if anybody knew the identity of the flyer, but they didn't think to ask a first year.)

I planted myself between Harry and Hermione for the lesson. Neither had ever been on a broom before, and I wanted to help however I could. I wanted them to love flying as much as I did.

When Madam Hooch told us to hold our hands out over our brooms and command them up into our hands, mine obeyed instantly, as did Harry's. We shared a grin before I turned to help Hermione, who managed to coax her broom up after a few more tries.

"Don't be afraid," I whispered. "The broom knows what to do, maybe even better than you do. Trust it."

She took a deep breath. "Okay."

Madam Hooch then explained how to mount the broom. I felt as though I'd burst from anticipation, it felt like an eternity before she said we'd be allowed to take off. "Now, when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard. Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet and then come straight back down by leaning forwards slightly. On my whistle, mind you. Three... two..."

Neville shot into the sky, wobbling back and forth wildly. I got the impression he hadn't meant to do that.

"Come back, boy!" Madam Hooch shouted, but Neville continued to rise higher and higher and higher. He glanced toward the ground, and fell off the broom, landing with a sickening crack. 

Madam Hooch rushed toward him as the rest of us watched in stunned silence. I found myself wondering if I would have been able to save him if I had tried, suddenly feeling guilty.

"Madam Hooch?" I called. "Would you like me to catch Neville's broom?"

She looked my way after helping Neville to his feet. "That would be wonderful, Miss Diggory, thank you. None of the rest of you is to move while I take this boy to the hospital wing! You leave those brooms where they are or you’ll be out of Hogwarts before you can say 'Quidditch.' Come on, dear, let's go."

I shot up into the sky, chasing the runaway broom. It climbed higher and higher, thoroughly confused without its rider. Brooms were far from sentient, mind you, but their magic needed to be channeled by a responsible rider. Since Neville had fallen off, it just kept the same path he had established before falling off. That was --- up.

I slowly began to catch up to the broom. Below me, the voices of my classmates grew fainter and fainter. I put on a burst of speed and extended my hand, firmly wrapping my fingers around the wooden shaft and pulling it down until it was securely wedged beneath my arm. 

When I turned around to head back to the ground, though, it became apparent I had missed something. Harry and Draco were flying, too, glaring daggers at each other.

"Give it here, or I'll knock you off that broom!" Harry shouted.

"Oh, yeah? Try it then!"

And try Harry did. He leaned forward on the broom and shot toward Draco, and would have bowled him over entirely if Draco hadn't moved out of the way at the last possible second. Harry remained unfazed and whipped his broom around to face Draco. I was awestruck. Harry was a _natural_ on a broom.

"No Crabbe and Goyle up here, Malfoy," Harry called. "Now give me Neville's Remembrall."

"Catch it if you can!" Draco yelled, chucking it as hard as he could and starting to fly back to the ground. Harry, however, streaked after the small glass ball, catching it when he was no more than a meter off the ground and tumbling to the ground from there, the Remembrall remarkably intact. I couldn't believe my eyes.

I saw Professor McGonagall in the distance, however, and my heart sank for Harry when she barked his name. I snapped out of my daze and started descending, Neville's broom still firmly tucked under my arm. Professor McGonagall and Harry left the training grounds in a hurry, and I reached the ground shortly thereafter. The students were abuzz.

"I sure hope Professor McGonagall doesn't murder Harry, because that was some of the best flying I've seen in my life," a Slytherin boy said, looking just as stunned and impressed as the rest of us.

"What about mine?" Draco snapped, his pale face growing unusually red.

"Oh, yours was good, too," the boy replied, "but Harry's? I mean, has he even been on a broom before?"

"No, never," I replied. "That was incredible."

Before another comment could leave Draco's mouth, the boy turned to me with a curious look. "You're that girl that stood up to Snape, aren't you?"

Now it was my turn to turn red as I nodded. 

The boy smiled. It was a far kinder smile than I was expecting to see on a Slytherin. "Nice. Name's Archie. Yours?"

"Lucy," I replied.

Madam Hooch reappeared then, looking rather flustered still. When she saw two unattended brooms instead of just one, her eyes flickered. "Did I lose another student?"

"Harry Potter broke your rules, Madam Hooch," Draco piped up, morphing his face into a mask of perfect innocence. "Don't worry, though, Professor McGonagall marched him away. I'm sure she'll sort him out."

"Thank you, Mr. Malfoy. No matter, the lesson will continue. Everyone, please get back on your brooms. We will try this again."

For the rest of the lesson, my concern for Harry faded (my concerns as a whole faded, really) as I zipped through the skies with the other experienced flyers while Madam Hooch worked one-on-one with the Muggle-borns. As I found out at dinner, I had no reason to worry anyway.

Seeker tryouts wouldn't be happening after all. Harry was the youngest Quidditch player in one hundred years. 

Well, allow me to rephrase. I had no reason to worry about _that_. Hermione burst into our dormitory after dinner, horrifically bent out of shape.

"After you talked to Harry and went to go talk to Percy, that foul Malfoy challenged Harry to a wizard's duel! And he agreed! He's going to get Gryffindor in so much trouble! He got off easy with breaking the flying rule earlier, but if he gets caught tonight, he's going to lose us the points I got from Professor McGonagall for knowing about switching spells! We have to stop them!" She never ceased to amaze me with how quickly she could talk.

"Slow down," I said calmly. "It'll be alright. Neither of them know any spells that could cause serious damage, and it might actually help them get along better in the future to release some tension now."

"By dueling?"

"Emphasis on _might_." I grinned, trying to diffuse her anger. "Whatever points they may lose, I know you can gain back. I can help, too. Remember how Professor Sprout gave me points on Monday?"

She nodded. "You're right. But I'm still going to stop them. The duel is taking place at midnight, and I intend to stay in the common room until they try to leave. Do you want to wait with me?"

I found myself in a difficult spot. To refuse her would put some distance between us, distance that might protect her. At the same time, Cedric's voice lingered in the back of my mind. If I accepted her offer, we'd be one step closer to true friends.

I was too much of a coward to commit to either idea. "I'm kind of tired," I said, "but you can come wake me up at midnight if you'd like. I might be able to help talk them out of it. Is that alright?"

She nodded. "That's more than alright with me. You don't want to be sleepy in Potions tomorrow."

"I suppose I should warn you now that I'm a deep sleeper."

"It's okay, I guessed that already. You're that only roommate that doesn't complain about my showers."

"What do you mean?"

"I shower at sunrise every day, but the other girls act like it's the middle of the night! A shower first thing really is the best way to start your day, you know, and I've been waking at sunrise for as long as I can remember. I try to be quiet, of course, but everyone else always wakes up."

I giggled. "I sleep like a baby when I'm not suffering from insomnia."

And sleep like a baby I did. Hermione said she had been shaking me for two minutes before I finally stirred.

"Is it midnight?" I asked sleepily.

"No. There was no duel. It was a trick. Filch was waiting there, and while we were running away, we ran into the forbidden corridor."

I was suddenly wide awake. I sat up in bed. "What was in there?"

"A dog with three heads guarded a trap door. It was too dark to see much else. We're lucky we escaped alive."

"I'm glad you did." I reached forward and placed a hand on hers. "Are you alright? Your hands are shaking."

"I'm alive," she managed. "I'm never speaking to Harry or Ron ever again."

It was too late for a discussion about that. "How about you get some sleep?" I asked. "You'll feel better in the morning."

"I hope so," she replied, seeming thoroughly unconvinced. "I'm sorry I didn't come to wake you. They came down at 11:30 and I had to follow them."

"I completely understand." Even more so than that, I felt significantly (selfishly) relieved to have not been there. "Get some sleep, Hermione. You need it."

"Alright," she relented. "Good night, Lucy."

"Good night, Hermione."

I laid awake a couple minutes longer, reflecting. I hoped I had actually helped her feel better, but the fact that she had come to me in her distress was touching. I might have helped someone instead of hurting them. And it felt fantastic. I felt so good I had forgotten about the three-headed dog, even, by the time I fell back asleep.


	4. Where You Hold It All Together

_Pull me closer now  
Where you hold it all together  
Seamless and bound _

_"Hold It All Together"  
CHPTRS_

* * *

The night of my first dosage of wolfsbane came far sooner than I would have liked. But as I had learned, the moon cycles never stopped, for anyone, for anything. No matter what happened, the moon continued to grow, peak, wane, disappear, grow, peak, wane, disappear. 

I slipped out of the castle after my last class, dodging Hermione's questions about where I was going and disappearing among a crowd of fifth-year Ravenclaws, who were all much taller than me. I didn't slow down until I came to the bench Cedric and I had agreed upon, and from there, I sat and waited.

The plan was simple. This was step one. Every evening for the week leading up to the full moon, before sunset, Cedric would get the potion from Penny Haywood in front of the Hufflepuff common room and meet me outside on a bench far away from the castle grounds so I could take the potion where no one would see before heading to the Great Hall for dinner.

Step two came on the night of the full moon. Madam Pomfrey would accompany me to the edge of the Forbidden Forest as sunset began and give me the last dosage to take as soon as the sun set. Cedric had expressed concern for my safety in the forest, but Professor Dumbledore had assured them that as a sleepy wolf with my wits about me, I would be able to remain on the edge of the forest and sleep until sunrise without issue.

Step three came in the morning. Madam Pomfrey would meet me at Hagrid's hut at sunrise and escort me back to the castle, giving me a wideye potion to help me through the day.

The only people present in the meeting were Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, my brother, and myself, though I was informed that the three other Heads of Houses were aware of my, as Dumbledore had kindly called it, "condition." 

"If you would like to tell other trusted friends, I would encourage it," Dumbledore had told me. "The two prior werewolves that came through this school would have had a much more difficult time without friends close by their sides who knew about the transformations. Perhaps Percy Weasley would be a good place to start, seeing as he is your prefect."

I had nodded, feeling somewhat ill at the thought of ever confessing my secret to anybody. "I will think about it, sir."

"Good," he had replied, his eyes locked on mine. It seemed for a second he tried to read my mind, but I receded inward into myself, the way I always did, and he looked away without further comment. 

Cedric came along the path, a large goblet in hand. 

"Hi there. How are you?" He sat next to me on the bench, carefully balancing the large goblet in his hands but glancing over at me once it was secure.

"I'm scared," I admitted. I glanced toward the sky for a second. "I think we only have to wait a couple more minutes."

He nodded sympathetically. "It's okay to be scared, Lucy. I'm here now, and I'm your brother. I'm not going anywhere. Do you want to talk about anything while we wait?"

I leaned back against the bench. "I can't think of anything in particular, other than that the sunset is pretty tonight. How about you?"

"It _is_ pretty," he agreed. "I just wanted to see how you were doing. Have you thought any more about what I said last Saturday?"

"Well..." I sighed. "I have. But things have happened that are outside of my control so I haven't made a lot of progress."

"What happened, if you don't mind my asking?"

"To make a long story short, Hermione isn't talking to Harry or Ron anymore. I still study by myself in the stands. When Quidditch practice happens, I study on the stairwells. But only the ones with Gryffindor coverings, of course," I added in a teasing tone. 

He smiled. "Of course." His face grew more serious. "I'm sorry to hear that, though. Are there other people you could talk to, while the three of them sort it out?"

I shrugged. "Not really. I don't have much in common with the other girls in our dorm. They prefer _Witch_ _Weekly_ to _Seeker Weekly_. Speaking of, have you finished the newest one yet? I heard they interviewed Ludo Bagman."

"I haven't finished it yet, but I'll give it to you tomorrow at breakfast. But in the meantime, why don't you try bonding with the other girls tonight? You'll be here for seven years, after all, and it can never hurt to have more friends. It sounds like Hermione could benefit from it, too, if you'd be more comfortable with her around."

"Okay, I can try. You'll still give me the magazine when you're done, though, right?"

He smiled. "Of course, of course. I know you love Quidditch more than anything."

"Yeah." I sighed and opened my hands. "Certainly more than what I'm about to do. I think it's time."

"Okay." Cedric gently placed the goblet containing the wolfsbane, the wretched yet blessed wolfsbane, in my hands. "You can do this. I'm right here."

I refused to look down at the potion, instead focusing on Cedric's eyes, such a distinct shade of grey. I had often wished as a young girl that I shared his grey eyes instead of his brown hair, but my eyes were more blue than they were grey. 

I lifted the goblet to my lips and began to gulp it down. Everything within me resisted the potion. Though it tried to climb back up my throat, I only swallowed faster, not even stopping to breathe until I felt I would faint. I lowered the goblet slightly and shut my eyes, gasping and half-gagging. 

"You're almost done," Cedric said softly. "You can do this. Breathe in through your nose. Yes, just like that. Only a couple swallows more."

I raised the goblet to my lips once more and finished the potion. My eyes watered as I lowered the goblet, and I wiped at my eyes with the sleeve of my robe when he took it from my hands.

"Good job, Lu, you did it." Cedric set the goblet on the ground and laid one of his hands on top of mine, lightly rubbing his thumb against the knuckles the way Mum always had. "How are you feeling?"

I hiccuped, then gagged again. "I hate that so much," I managed, wiping my eyes again.

"I know you do. It's over now. It's okay."

"Until tomorrow."

"But for today? It's over. Besides, I'm sure it'll get better as we go. You should get used to it."

At dinner, I took Cedric's suggestion and convinced Hermione to sit with Lavender and Parvati. The nausea I had felt after the potion was fading, so I eagerly dove into the meal. 

"You might want some vegetables," Hermione suggested, looking slightly horrified by the contents of my plate. I looked down quickly and immediately saw what she meant. I had gone overboard on the meat... way overboard. 

"You're right," I replied quickly, my face growing red. "I guess I'm hungry tonight."

Hermione smiled. "I understand. Just trying to make sure you're staying healthy. My parents are dentists, you know. Did you know that eating apples is good for cleaning your teeth?"

"Is it really?" Lavender asked. "I've been trying this new whitening-enchanted toothpaste that my sister invented, but it doesn't seem to be working. She probably messed up the charm again."

Hermione nodded. "Apples are full of nutrients too! Especially soluble fiber, so if you're going to eat all of that meat-" She reached for an apple and placed it firmly next to my plate. "-you'll be glad to have that."

I wasn't entirely sure what soluble fiber was, but I trusted Hermione.

The conversation shifted to the hair product advertisement they had seen on the Gryffindor notice board. 

Lavender ran her fingers through her tightly-coiled curls. "Do you think it could really make my hair straight if I wanted it to be?"

"Why would you ever want that, Lavender?" Parvati asked. "Your curly hair is beautiful!"

"Easy for you to say," she moaned. "You don't have to try to take care of it! You just have to brush your hair and it looks shiny and perfect for an entire day!"

"At least you don't have Hermione's hair, though," Parvati replied, shooting her a wary look. "No offense, Hermione. It's just that I don't think there's enough Sleekeazy's Hair Potion in the world to make... that bushy lion's mane actually go flat."

"At least you all have thicker hair than me," I interjected, trying to remedy the situation as Hermione's face grew bright red. "Lavender, your curls are so bouncy and full it looks like your hair is alive, especially in the sun. Parvati, your ponytail is nearly as thick as my wrist! And Hermione, your hair frames your face perfectly. But mine?" I tugged on a braid for emphasis. "I mean, just look at mine! It's so thin! I wish I needed hair potion to control it, but my hair has never done a fun thing in its life! My hair might as well belong to an elderly witch who lives with her twenty-three kitten kneazles!" 

The other girls were laughing at this point, even Hermione. I smiled. My self-deprecation often only had me as an audience, but now it was the star of the show and had dragged me into the spotlight along with it.

Lavender gasped, then squealed. "You know what we should do tonight?"

"What?" Parvati asked, because Hermione and I were too startled by the high-pitched squeal to speak. It seemed Parvati was already used to it --- or deaf to it, more likely. 

"Gryffindor girls makeover night! I have plenty of cosmetics-"

"And I'm really good at hair!" Parvati exclaimed. "Let's do it! Are you two in?"

Lavender and Parvati turned to stare at us, their eyes gleaming. Hermione and I exchanged a grimace.

"I've never used makeup before," I said slowly.

"Me neither," Hermione echoed.

"It's settled, then! Gryffindor girls night!" Lavender said proudly. "Oh, this will be great!"

An hour later, copies of _Witch Weekly_ were strewn all over our bedroom, which smelled intoxicatingly of flowers. Parvati was yanking on Hermione's hair next to me, mumbling to herself that the braiding charm always worked on her twin sister Padma's hair. Lavender's breath smelled strongly of her cinnamon gum as her brushes danced across my face.

I knew she wanted to ask about the scars. I knew everyone always wanted to ask about the scars. I had become skilled at blocking the stares from the corners of my vision, but I knew they were always there. But she didn't ask, so I didn't offer any explanation when she muttered that I needed more foundation than she originally expected. 

"How do you know so much about this?" Hermione asked. "About make-up and hair and potions and charms, I mean?"

"Older sisters," Lavender answered, blowing a small bubble and popping it. "I've been their experimental person my whole life. It's fun to be the one giving the makeover for once!"

"And I," Parvati grunted, working the brush through another tough knot, "know so much about hair because my sister and I have so much of it."

"Do either of you have sisters?" Lavender asked. 

"No," we replied.

"I have an older brother, but no sisters. My brother's name is Cedric. I've always wanted a sister. What are they like?" I asked.

"They don't like sharing," Lavender replied grumpily. "I had to charm all of this myself."

"But sisters also understand you more than brothers," Parvati said. "My brother has the emotional intelligence of a troll."

We all laughed. I was thankful that Cedric was better than that. 

Lavender studied my face. "I think the foundation is done. Here, see for yourself, before I add eye shadow."

I held the mirror and nearly dropped it on my shock. My scars had disappeared entirely, except for the one across my nose, but even then, it was scarcely detectable. "Wow," I managed. "I look..."

"Not done yet!" she interrupted, yanking the mirror from my hands and grabbing the brushes from the air. "I always like doing eyes by hand, personally. The charms are too intricate otherwise."

I don't know what time it was when Hermione and I were done with our makeovers, but Parvati and Lavender had done what they set out to do. Hermione and I were nearly unrecognizable. Hermione's hair, no longer bushy, was neatly braided into a crown and curled. My hair was curled as well, and for the first time, it didn't seem thin. My scars were gone, and red and gold sparkles around my eyes, making my irises look startlingly blue. Hermione's eyes were rimmed with red and gold too, her brown eyes appearing amber. 

We had smiled for their sakes, but when the two of us were alone in front of the bathroom mirror while the other two changed into pajamas, we scrubbed our faces until they were shiny and red and clean. 

"Never again," Hermione whispered. "If I ever seem slightly inclined to do any of that ever again, please smack me."

"Alright," I said absently, studying my once again scarred face in the mirror. Jagged white lines of healing stretched from ear to ear and hairline to jawline. Some were small, others were not. Some were raised, others were not. I raised a hand to my cheek and traced one. I dropped it as soon as I realized what I was doing and sighed.

"You know, my mother always said that beauty comes from within," Hermione said. "Though she usually said that to make me feel better about my buck teeth, I can imagine she'd say the same about your face."

"You really think so?" 

"I know so. It's the truth anyway."

* * *

Cedric had said it would get better as the week went on, but that didn't happen. Tuesday, the queasiness took longer to fade away. I only managed half a plate of food at dinner. Wednesday, I woke up with a raging headache. The queasiness never left, and I only managed a quarter of a plate of food at dinner.

"Do you want to come study with me in the library tonight?" Hermione asked. "I know you like studying by yourself, but I'd like to know more about flying before tomorrow!"

I shook my head slowly, pushing a carrot around my plate with my fork. "I'm sorry, Hermione, I'm just not feeling well at all."

"You should go to the Hospital Wing," she replied. "You seem a bit pale."

I shook my head again. "It's okay, I'd rather just go to bed."

I fully intended to do just that when Hermione and I went our separate ways after dinner, her off to the library and me off to our dormitory. But when I climbed through the portrait hole, I found Ron sitting by himself on the ground in front of the fireplace, staring at his chess set.

"Hi, Ron," I said, coming to sit across from him. "How are you?"

He blinked in surprise. "Hi, Lucy. You're talking to me?"

I nodded. "I don't have any reason not to, do I?"

"Hermione sure thinks you do," he muttered. "I thought she was going to murder me when I asked you for help in Herbology."

"Don't worry about it, I was happy to help. Why were you sitting by yourself?"

"Nobody to play with. Percy has to study. Fred and George and Harry all have Quidditch practice." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I heard you tell Hermione you weren't feeling well, so I'm guessing you don't want to play with me either."

"I can play a game," I said with a smile. "If you're ready to lose, that is."

"I don't lose," he replied, smirking. "All right, you're on."

He was right. He didn't lose. Not the first game, nor the second game, nor the third game. We were halfway through the fourth game when the Quidditch team poured through the portrait hole, whooping and laughing. When the twins and Harry saw what we were up to, they crowded around. Fred gave enthusiastic play-by-play commentary as George explained what was happening to Harry. I was about to lose yet again when another voice came from the portrait hole.

"Lucy?" I glanced up to see Hermione standing there, arms folded across her chest. "I thought you said you were... you..." She whirled on her heel and marched up the stairs, slamming our door with a bang.

"What's gotten into her?" George asked.

"Did she get a queen piece stuck somewhere it doesn't belong?"

"I hope not," my queen retorted. "Let's just finish this game!"

"I should go check on her," I said apologetically. "I said I couldn't study because I wasn't feeling well, but the game distracted me. Does someone want to finish for me?"

"I can," George volunteered, taking my place as I stood. "Feel better, and good luck."

"Thank you." I laughed. "You're going to need luck, too."

"Nah," he replied with a dismissive hand motion. "You set me up perfectly. I love beating my little brother at chess."

I laughed again and followed Hermione up to the dorm. The door was locked, so I drew my wand in frustration and muttered an "Alohomora" before entering.

"Hermione?" She didn't move her book an inch. Lavender and Parvati, however, turned to glare at me. I felt my face grow hot. My nausea came rushing back. "I... I'm sorry."

I snatched my pajamas from my bed and fled into the bathroom. I barely got to the toilet fast enough. I emptied the contents of my stomach into the bowl, and I knew that the tears streaming down my face weren't just due to the burn of bile in my throat. I knew, too, that the wolfsbane had already been absorbed by my body, so I didn't need to worry about it losing any of its effectiveness. But oh, how I hated vomiting. 

I showered slowly, letting my tears mingle with the shower water --- again. By the time I returned to our dorm room, all of the lights were off and everybody was (at least pretending to be) asleep. I crawled into bed, feeling small and miserable. That night was astronomy night too, something I always enjoyed. But when I had to crawl out of bed a few minutes before midnight, having not slept a wink, and face Hermione again, it seemed I had never felt so defeated.

After the lesson was finally through, my roommates dropped off to sleep almost instantly back in our bedroom, but my stomach continued to churn angrily again no matter how I laid on the bed. Suddenly, my heart began to race, so I bolted to the bathroom and emptied the contents of my stomach into the first stall's toilet --- again.

I sat there a couple more minutes, trembling on the cold tile floor with my head in my hands. When no more came, I returned to bed and tried to get comfortable, but I couldn't. After twenty minutes of tossing and turning, I decided enough was enough. It was time to take advantage of my second-biggest secret: it was time to sleepwalk.

As the full moon drew nearer, I grew more and more restless when I was by all rights supposed to be sleeping like the rest of my family. The night would begin with tossing and turning. It would then progress to pacing back and forth in my room, as silently as possible so I didn't wake anyone up. From there, I would go downstairs and sprint up and down the main hallway, again as silently as possible. But most nights, the only thing that brought me any sort of peace was being outside, gazing at the stars and wondering what it would be like to fly among them in the chill night air. 

So I had invented my oldest charade. On the rare occasion that my family caught me anywhere other than snugly in bed, I had learned to carry on whatever I was doing as if they weren't there, keeping my eyes open but unfocused and occasionally mumbling gibberish in response to something they said.

It was the only secret I kept from Cedric. My father loved to tell his colleagues about my late night escapades. My mother liked to tuck me into bed and pull the blankets to my chin after I allowed them to coax me back to bed. It was my favorite secret and my proudest secret. It was a link to sanity despite the monster within pushing me further and further to the edge with each passing night until the full moon.

And that night, with my stomach still queasy and my hands still shaking, I knew it was time to sleepwalk around Hogwarts. 

It was a familiar dance. I bumped into the door frame lightly with my shoulder as I left in case anybody was awake and watching. My gait was an uneasy shuffle, and I swayed back and forth slightly with each step. I stumbled down the stairs to the deserted common room and eventually made it out of the portrait hole.

"What's the matter with you?" the Fat Lady asked. "It must be two in the morning!"

I rose slowly from the ground and stumbled down the staircase, letting my hand run over the railing.

"Hello? Girl!" she shouted after me.

"Looks like a sleepwalker!" another painting called, which drew a round of laughter. I halted awkwardly on the steps and swiveled my head from side to side.

"Ha. Ha, ha ha ha," I said, keeping my face perfectly straight and my eyes still wide open. "What's so funny about a muffin anyway?"

Another bout of laughter told me that they were convinced, so I continued down the stairs. Word traveled rapidly through the paintings; I heard whispers of "sleepwalking girl" spread from painting to painting as I made my way down the many, many stairs. After what felt like an eternity, I found myself outside, once again under the beautiful stars. I staggered forward and sat down clumsily on the ledge of the fountain.

Time slowed to a stop beneath that brilliant glittering sky, and for a while, the turmoil within slowed to a stop, too. 

After quite a long time, I was calm enough to try to sleep. I stumbled and bumbled my way up the stairs back to the portrait hole.

"Password, sleepwalker?"

I froze. I hadn't thought about the password to get back in.

"Password?" I asked, trying to keep my face blank. "No, I've never met her."

A couple of portraits laughed, but the Fat Lady rolled her eyes. "It's not a person. It's a password."

"Rainbow?"

"No."

I furrowed my brow, as if thinking hard. I knew the real password of course, but would a real sleepwalker know it? 

"Leprechaun?"

"No!"

"Oh." I sat down hard on the ground. "No more guesses."

The Fat Lady sighed. "I think I remember you leaving, so you can come in. You're too deeply asleep to be expected to know it anyway."

"I can come in through the window?"

Even the Fat Lady laughed this time. "Sure, kid, whatever floats your boat. Come on in."

I awkwardly climbed through the hole and shuffled back up to my dormitory. I collapsed onto my bed and managed a couple of hours of sleep before my Thursday began.

* * *

Madam Hooch began the class like no one else ever did: straight and to the point. "So none of you get any bright ideas based on rumors you've heard, this is what happened this morning. A couple of Ravenclaw students decided it would be funny to try to execute a Parkin's Pincer against an unsuspecting Hufflepuff student. All of them ended up in the Hospital Wing with various injuries. Therefore, from here on out, experienced and inexperienced flyers will learn at the same pace. Anybody caught trying to advance before everyone is ready will spend their detention polishing every broom you see before you for the rest of this year. Have I made myself clear?"

I nodded along with everyone else, but my heart sank. Flying class had just lost a significant deal of its luster for me.

Since Hermione was no longer speaking to me and Harry and Ron were already each other's partners, I found myself paired with Archie, the kind Slytherin boy from last week's lesson. 

"Nothing to correct," he said matter-of-factly. "Your grip is perfect, your posture is perfect. It's like you were made to fly."

I managed a smile. "I hope you don't mistake me for arrogant, but I feel the same way."

"If arrogance can be justified with fact, is it truly arrogance?" he replied. "Is there anything you'd like to fix about my form? I was definitely not made to fly. Running laps is more of my idea of fun."

I studied his face to see if he was being sarcastic, but his eyes were completely serious. I snapped out of it and examined his form, offering the three main suggestions I had. 

"Isn't this insulting?" came a voice from behind. None other than Draco Malfoy flew over to Archie. "We've been on brooms all our lives, now we're confined to the same snail's pace as the Mudbloods."

"That's not a very kind word, Draco," Archie snapped. "I recommend you choose another."

"Make me, half-blood," he sneered back. "Slytherin is for pure-bloods only."

"Whoa, stop," I said, flying in between them. I turned to Draco. "I want to fly as badly as you do, but we can't change, or break, the rules."

"Or can we?" He leaned closer. "The rules were designed for idiots who can't really fly, but us? We can."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not doing it, whatever you're thinking." I turned back to Archie, who was still fuming. "Which parent is magical?"

"My dad," he answered. "My mum is American, actually. I think the whole blood system is rubbish, and I'm going to tear it down one day. Just you wait."

"I'd like to see you try, half-blood," Draco chuckled, swinging back around to try to keep the conversation alive. "People like my father would never stand for it."

"People like your father won't have much of a say from their Azkaban cells, will they?" he replied coolly.

Draco's face darkened. "Shut up!"

"Make me."

Archie and Draco locked eyes, Draco's gaze fiery against Archie's cool and emotionless exterior. With a growl, Draco spun on his broom and returned to Crabbe and Goyle. 

"Does that happen often?" I asked.

"That was the first time," Archie said with a shrug, "but mark my words, Lucy Diggory, that won't be the last."

* * *

Thursday night, I only managed to eat a couple of pieces of meat, the only thing I had the stomach to eat so close to the full moon. Friday night, I sleepwalked again all the way to the Quidditch Pitch, where I remained until nearly sunrise. I returned to the dorm just as Hermione was waking for her shower.

"Where were you?" she hissed. "Out losing Gryffindor points?"

I kept my face a careful blank. "The griffin lost the race?" I crawled back into bed and immediately starting breathing deeply.

"Oh," Hermione whispered. "She sleepwalks."

Saturday night, my hands were shaking so badly I couldn't lift the goblet to my lips myself. Cedric supported the base of it, tipping it slowly. 

"I'm sorry," I whispered once every drop was gone. "I don't know why it's making me so sick."

"I'm sure it's just the additional stress of it being the first time here," he said reassuringly. "Do you maybe want to go to the Hospital Wing until the transformation?"

I shook my head. "I'll be fine."

I was wrong. Sunday night, I burned with fever. Cedric would have dragged me to the Hospital Wing himself if I hadn't pointed out that the Gryffindor common room was closer and promised to go right to bed instead of going to dinner. All night long, I watched dreams dance across my vision whether my eyes were open or closed. Hermione looking at me with concern in her eyes. Lavender tucking my sheets tight under my chin. Parvati whispering to me that she had a goblet of water by my bed if I needed it.

When Monday morning came, I managed to rise from my bed and change my robes. Parvati cast a braiding charm from across the room when Hermione wasn't looking. She was still angry. Her concern must have been imagined. 

"You should go to the Hospital Wing," Cedric said the second he saw me in the Great Hall for breakfast. "You look as if you'll collapse."

I shook my head. "I'm fine."

But after lunch, I staggered to the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey knew there was nothing she could do to save me from the storm coming that night, but she allowed me to stay there and rest anyway. When the time came, she guided me through the castle and to the edge of the forest, goblet of wolfsbane in hand.

"I'll be back for you first thing in the morning, dear," she said sweetly. "Drink your potion when the sun has set. Stay close to the edge of the forest. And oh, do be safe."

I accepted the goblet and nodded. "Thank you, Madam Pomfrey. I'll see you in the morning."

Before I had to endure another second of her sympathetic gaze, I staggered into the forest, still feverish and jittery. I found a comfortably cool rock to lean against, and waited. When the time came, I downed the potion as fast as I could and curled up on the ground. I shut my eyes, and bit my lip to try to contain my howls of pain as the transformation began. It didn't work. The last conscious thing I heard that night was the echo of my own screams.


	5. I've Got You

CEDRIC:

I felt guilty drinking the dreamless sleep potion Madam Pomfrey had given me, knowing what my sister was going through that night, but I drank it all anyway as soon as I returned from dinner. I knew it was the only way I would get any sleep at all, and I had a Herbology test the next morning. I needed to be awake for that, even if it was one of my best subjects.

I slept clear through the night until the sun was up. I rushed to get ready and practically ran to the Great Hall, anxious to see Lucy. Anxious to see that she had made it through the night too. 

She wasn't there yet. Very few people were, really. Fred and George waved at me, so I waved back and made my way to the Hufflepuff table, striking up a conversation with my favorite roommate and the Hufflepuff Keeper, Henry, while constantly looking over my shoulder for any sign of my sister. 

"You alright, mate?" he asked at one point. "You look like you're about to bolt."

I nodded. "Yes, I'm fine, sorry."

"Nervous for the Herbology test?"

I nodded emphatically. "Must be."

As I walked from the Great Hall to the greenhouses without seeing Lucy, I tried to offer myself what consolation I could. Maybe she was just tired and resting in her dormitory. Or maybe she was in the Hospital Wing, and she was genuinely sick. The wolfsbane potion had never made her so physically ill before, so maybe she merely had the stomach flu or something along those lines. She was fine, I kept telling myself. She had to be. 

I stumbled through the test. Despite my attempts to reassure myself, my hands were shaking so badly my writing was more or less illegible even to myself. When it came to the practical portion of the test, I nearly overwatered my puffapod, saving myself at the last possible second. I was about to begin to trim it when the greenhouse door opened and Professor McGonagall walked in. My heart dropped to my toes. Lucy's Head of House. Something had happened.

"Professor Sprout?" she called, her eyes flicking to me then back to the front of the room where Professor Sprout was helping a student. "Professor Sprout?"

She turned around the second time, beaming. "Why hello, Minerva! What brings you here this beautiful September morning?"

"May I borrow Mr. Diggory, please? It's quite urgent."

"Yes, of course!" Professor Sprout replied. She turned to me, and I could see in her eyes she was thinking the same thing I was. "See me later about finishing your test, will you, please?"

I smiled and nodded before turning to follow Professor McGonagall. My mouth was too dry to speak.

"Your sister has not returned from the forest," she said as soon as the door was safely closed behind us. "I didn't want to have to bring you out of class, but Professor Dumbledore insisted that you should go into the forest with Hagrid to find her. We're quite sure she's fine, perhaps more tired than we expected, but just the same, Professor Dumbledore wanted you to know. Hagrid is already in there searching. Poppy, I mean Madam Pomfrey, will be waiting near Hagrid's hut for you when you return. I must return to my class, though I am sure the headmaster is having a fair bit of fun teaching Transfiguration again."

I nodded. "May I run?"

"Of course, go."

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall," I said as I sprinted ahead in the direction of the forest. I burst into the trees and immediately began screaming my sister's name. The forest quickly grew dark and cold. I tried not to run through the list of the dangerous creatures in the forest, but I couldn't help it.

Trolls. Acromantulas. I had even heard whispers of dragons. 

I kept shouting for Lucy, but no reply came. I stumbled deeper and deeper into the forest, past spider webs and dark holes in the ground. I drew my wand for the first time, feeling more and more afraid, for both my sister and myself.

I spied a massive figure in the distance and froze. I wanted to run and hide, but I couldn't. I couldn't risk letting it find Lucy first, whatever it was.

"Hello?" I called instead, which perhaps was not the best idea.

The figure turned its head.

"Lumos maxima!" In the glow of my wand, I could see it was Hagrid. "Thank goodness," I said softly, extinguishing the light and walking towards the massive man. "Hagrid, have you seen my sister yet? By any chance?"

"I'm sorry ter say I haven't," he replied. "Fang's out here lookin', too."

"Fang?" I wasn't quite convinced that I wanted Fang, whatever creature it was, to find my sister before I did.

"My puppy," he elaborated. "Great tracker, that Fang."

"Oh. Oh, alright. Shall we keep looking, then, together?" 

Hagrid nodded, and I recast the light spell. 

Ahead of us in the gloom, I spied a tangle of robes on the ground. 

"No, no, no," I whimpered as I rushed toward it. I pulled the hood back from Lucy's face to find that it was covered in blood. I dropped to the ground and scrambled for her wrist, which was covered all the way around in the thinnest lacerations I had ever seen. 

Her pulse raced wildly under my fingers, and her breath was coming in pants. Hagrid was at my side in an instant. 

"She's alive," I gasped, "but barely." I lifted my wand and swirled it in a circle above her. "Episkey."

A shower of golden sparks fell around her, but her eyes did not open. 

"We need to take her to Madam Pomfrey," Hagrid grunted, scooping her in his gigantic arms. "Let's go."

I had to jog to keep up with Hagrid, but I kept sending various healing spells to Lucy, who still did not stir. Her hood fell from her head completely, and revealing that every square inch of her skin as far as I could see was covered in thin cuts, almost as if someone had taken a razor to her skin over and over and over. I had never seen anything like it in my two years of helping in the Hospital Wing. 

When we emerged from the forest, Madam Pomfrey immediately rushed over, looking near hysterics at first but taking a deep breath to calm herself as she looked for Lucy's pulse. 

"She's alive," I panted. "She's alive."

"We need to take her to the Hospital Wing immediately," she said, casting a healing spell of her own. Still Lucy's eyes remained closed. 

"I can carry her." I held my arms out and accepted her body weight. She instinctively burrowed her head against my chest, her first movement since we had found her, and my heart managed to break even more. 

As I trudged to the castle, Madam Pomfrey right behind me, I whispered to her and prayed she could hear me. "You'll be okay. You'll be alright. I've got you. Cedric's got you." 

"Put her in the furthest bed and pull the curtain around her, please, Cedric," Madam Pomfrey said right before we entered the Hospital Wing. "We need time to think of a story."

I nodded and entered the room, shifting her body to hide her face from the other patients, who were very much intrigued. I gently laid her on the last bed at the end of the row and pulled the curtain around her. Madam Pomfrey rushed over with a set of clean white pajamas.

"I know you'd love to help, Cedric, but will you please go get Professor Dumbledore while I see the extent of these cuts and get her fully out of those filthy robes?"

"I will," I replied, understanding immediately what she meant. I ducked quickly from the room, avoiding eye contact with everyone else there, and was nearly to his office when I heard his voice from behind me.

"Mr. Diggory, are you looking for me?"

I whirled around. "Yes, sir. We found Lucy."

He came to me and placed a hand on my shoulder, leading us in the direction of the Hospital Wing. "How is she?"

"Alive. She's alive."

"That is always a good place to start. Do you have any idea what happened?"

"No. She was unconscious when I found her, and covered in cuts. You will see soon." 

"Do forgive me, Mr. Diggory, but I believe I've disrupted enough of your learning today. Professor McGonagall would not want you to miss her class, and your sister is in good hands now."

I wanted so desperately to argue, to fight to stay by her side, but I didn't. "Yes sir," I said instead, turning to go. "Thank you for letting me help find her."

"Of course. And one more thing?"

I turned back, and he flicked his wand in my direction before stepping into the Hospital Wing. I hadn't even noticed the blood stains on my robes.

* * *

"Allergic to dittany?" I asked incredulously. Lucy lay motionless in the bed, everything except for her face wrapped in delicate white bandages. What little skin was exposed was splotchy and red from fever. "I didn't even know that was possible."

"It's incredibly rare," Madam Pomfrey replied. "It was the first thing I tried, seeing the extent of her injuries, but it only worsened the situation. The healing spells I performed in lieu of dittany seem to have stopped the bleeding, but the healing with be slower."

I nodded slowly, trying to wrap my head around everything she had just told me. I had practically sprinted to the Hospital Wing as soon as Transfiguration was over, to see how Lucy was doing. I had seen firsthand the powerful healing magic of Madam Pomfrey many times and did not doubt that she would be able to help my sister, but just knowing it was my sister and not just my schoolmate lying in the Hospital Wing filled me with new fear and uncertainty. I swallowed past the lump in my throat. "Do you know how long it will be before she's alright again?"

"Oh, it shouldn't be more than a couple of days, now that I know to use spells rather than physical remedies."

Before I could reply, the curtain behind me parted slightly. I turned to see Professor McGonagall.

"Has she awakened yet?" Professor McGonagall asked. She spun her wand in a circle around the curtain, mumbling a soundproof charm so we could speak freely.

"Not yet," Madam Pomfrey answered. "There were some... difficulties. It turns out she's allergic to dittany."

"That would explain why she seemed so ill in class this past week. Isn't that allergy rather rare?"

"Extremely! Oh, Cedric, I meant to ask you. Has the wolfsbane potion made her so ill every time?"

I shook my head. "Never quite this ill. I have been trying to figure out why this whole week. I suppose being allergic to dittany would explain it in this instance, but it fails to explain why she was better in the past. I told her at first it was likely just the added anxiety of transforming here for the first time, but now I'm not quite so sure." I fell silent, crouching by her bedside and gently resting my shaking hand atop her bandaged one. 

"The most important thing now is protecting her secret," Professor McGonagall said after a moment. "Would you happen to have any ideas, Cedric? For protecting her?"

"Stories, you mean?"

"Precisely. You know her better than any of us, after all. The easiest option, of course, would be to refuse to answer any questions about what happened, but I'm afraid we all know far too well how rapidly rumors spread here. I would like the rumors to at least be as far from the truth as possible in such a sensitive instance."

"I understand. Well... she does sleepwalk."

Both Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall were at a loss for a moment.

"She does?" Madam Pomfrey asked, a hint of humor in her voice. 

"Oh yes. It's quite remarkable, really. She's wandered kilometers away from home before, completely and utterly asleep. I know that wandering into the Forbidden Forest while asleep seems ridiculous, but I honestly believe that if anyone would, it would be Lucy."

Professor McGonagall laughed. It was quite strange, truthfully, to hear my most serious professor laugh at the thought of Lucy sleepwalking into the forest. I cracked a smile as well. 

"A first-year sleepwalking into the Forbidden Forest," she chuckled. "Well, that seems like a rumor plausible enough to be believed and crazy enough to spread like wildfire."

"And far enough from the truth that Lucy is safe from the flames," I added.

"It's settled, then," Madam Pomfrey said, opening the curtain and gesturing for us to leave. "Now you two run along and eat lunch. Lucy could use some peace and quiet."

"I'll be back as soon as possible," I whispered to my sister, brushing back a piece of hair from her face. Her forehead was fire to the touch. Before I left, though, I had one more question. "Has anybody else been by to visit her yet, Madam Pomfrey?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. No visitors outside of family, prefects, or professors until at least tomorrow."

The thought of family made my heart sink. What would Mum and Dad say? "Do our parents know yet?"

"Professor Dumbledore said he would send them an owl. I'm sure he will let at least one of us know when he receives a reply."

I stole one last glance of my sleeping sister before I left for the Great Hall.

I recalled what Professor Dumbledore had told me after the meeting we had concerning this whole plan. He had pulled me aside, away from everyone, and looked into my eyes.

"Cedric, I'd like to share a bit of hard-earned and well-learned wisdom. Your parents' love for your sister often manifests itself as fear-driven control. No matter what happens to her as each full moon comes and goes, let your love for her manifest itself as just that: love." 

I had been confused at the time. But now, as I found myself wondering what my parents would say, praying that they would let Lucy stay at Hogwarts and not take her home, I think I began to understand. 

* * *

Once again, as soon as my last class was over, I hurried to the Hospital Wing, but this time, Madam Pomfrey shooed me away before I even got to my sister's bed.

"She isn't awake yet, go eat first!" she insisted. I obliged, though my worry had drained my appetite. I ate quickly and was about to leave when I felt a small tap on my shoulder. I turned to see a bushy-haired girl in Gryffindor robes who looked like she was trying to be brave though her face was pale with the same worry I felt deep in my bones.

"Hi, my name is Hermione Granger, and I'm Lucy's best friend. Are you her brother?"

 _Ah, so this is the famous Hermione._ I nodded. "I am. It's nice to meet you, Hermione, I've heard a lot about you from my sister."

"Oh, I hope nothing too recent," she said, bringing her hands to her face. "I... well, I made a mistake and... well, that's not important now. I wanted to ask you if you knew what happened to her. I tried to visit her in the Hospital Wing earlier, because that's where she was yesterday afternoon and she never came back to our dormitory because she was quite ill, you know, and then she wasn't in any of our morning classes, or our afternoon class, but when I went to see her just now Madam Pomfrey said I wasn't allowed to see her and oh, I'm dreadfully worried something horrible happened!"

I reached forward and laid a comforting hand on her arm. "Lucy will be okay." I took a deep breath. It was time to lie better than I ever had before. "She somehow managed to sleepwalk into the Forbidden Forest last night."

Hermione gasped. "I knew she sleepwalked, she did just a few days ago, but I didn't know she went so far!"

"She does at home as well. Something attacked her, but we don't know what exactly yet because she's been asleep so far today. I was actually just about to go see her."

"Can I come with you? Please?"

"I'm sorry, but Madam Pomfrey is only allowing family today. Have you eaten dinner yet, Hermione?"

She shook her head. "I went to try to see her first."

"How about you eat dinner, then, and try to take your mind off of it? Madam Pomfrey is a brilliant healer, I'm sure Lucy will be back in no time."

"I sure hope so," she said, biting her lower lip. "Thank you for talking to me."

"Thank you for being such a good friend to her. I'm glad she has someone who has her back in her own house."

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but she closed it instead and nodded before finding a place to sit. I left the Great Hall and headed immediately to the Hospital Wing, this time heading straight for Lucy's bed. I pulled the curtain back just wide enough for me to slide through, and pulled up a chair at her bedside. I reached again for her bandaged hand and just rested mine there, rubbing my thumb in small circles. With my other hand, I practiced for the week's charms test, shooting small streams of red sparks into the air.

"Those are pretty." I whirled around to see Lucy's eyes opened a crack, a small smile on her face.

"Hi there, Lucy," I said as casually as possible, squeezing her hand gently. "How are you?"

"Do it again."

I obliged, sending another stream of red sparks into the air with a quiet "Vermillious!"

"Will you teach me how to do that before the next full moon?"

I nodded. "Absolutely."

She smiled a little wider and closed her eyes again. "I knew you'd find me. You always do."

"I always will," I replied, trying not to let myself get choked up. "I promise. No matter what happens."

"I was hoping you would say that." With those words, her smile faded and she slipped away into sleep.

Rising softly from my chair, I spun my wand in a circle over her. "Episkey," I whispered, extinguishing the candle by her bedside as golden sparks fell around her.

* * *

Wednesday and Thursday were much of the same for us as Lucy slowly healed. I checked in on her after every meal, and every time, she was a little more alert and a little more mobile. After lunch on Friday, when I parted the curtain, she was fully sitting up and reading. She glanced up and immediately slammed the book shut; I could see now it was her potions textbook.

"I missed a whole week?" she asked indignantly.

I nodded, smiling in spite of her annoyance. It was the most lively she had been in a week and a half. "You see, you weren't doing very well, Lucy."

"How will I ever catch up?" she groaned.

"I'm sure your classmates will help you. They've been asking me all week how you were doing, since Madam Pomfrey hasn't allowed visitors outside of me."

"And Percy. He came after you left last night. Good thinking on the sleepwalking story, by the way. He had already heard from the Fat Lady about my sleepwalking, so he was an easy sell."

"I'm glad Percy was able to come see you."

"Yeah. Who's been asking about me?" 

"Hermione, Harry, Ron. Your other two roommates. Once the twins heard the sleepwalking story, they wouldn't stop asking me when you were going to be released."

"Tonight, I believe. But wait, Hermione asked about me?"

I nodded. "She told me that she made a mistake. Did something happen?"

Lucy sighed, sinking into her pillows. "I wasn't feeling well on... Wednesday or Thursday of last week, I can't remember which, but I told Hermione I couldn't study with her because I was going to bed. But Ron was lonely when I got to the common room, so I sat down to play chess with him, but I got carried away and played for nearly an hour. She hasn't spoken to me since."

"Is this about the argument you told me about last week?"

"You have good memory," she remarked with a smile. "Yes, it was."

I nodded thoughtfully. "Well, as soon as you're back, I'm sure all will be well again. Hermione sure has missed you terribly."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Well, that's a relief," she replied, picking up her book again. "If anyone can help me get caught up with all I missed, it would be her. You can go, Cedric, I have some studying to do."

I chuckled to myself as I closed the curtain behind me. Lucy was almost back to herself.

Before she could be released, however, one more thing needed to be done. Shortly before dinner, I found myself around her bed again with Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and Madam Pomfrey. It was time to ask Lucy what had happened.

"The potion worked," she said, her brow furrowed with concentration as she tried to recall Monday's events. "The wolfsbane, I mean. I know that for certain. I was aware of myself, but I was so sick it was almost as if I were in a dream. I settled down to find a place to sleep for the night, on the edge of the forest, but at some point in the middle of the night, I saw someone coming toward the forest, directly at me. I know the potion worked because I didn't try to attack them, I ran away from them instead. But they saw me and chased me." She shuddered. "I thought I lost them, but I had become quite lost myself. I started to go back the way I came, trying to hide in the shadows, but whoever it was caught me again and cast a spell."

"Do you happen to know what that spell was?" Professor Dumbledore asked. 

Lucy shook her head. "I didn't hear any words spoken. All of a sudden, it felt like I was transforming again, but when I looked, I was still a wolf. Before I fell asleep, I saw the figure running away. The next thing I knew, Cedric was carrying me and telling me it would be okay. I fell asleep again, then I woke up to see Cedric making pretty red sparks with his wand. He said he'd teach me before the next full moon. Didn't you, Ced?"

I nodded and managed a smile. I knew transformations were painful, but the fact that Lucy could mistake her entire body being covered in cuts for transforming hurt my heart. Everything about her story, really, shook me to the core. I knew what lingered in the forest. I had known someone my first year who had died there. I thought the forest was safer now, but standing there, I was suddenly aware that it was perhaps more dangerous than ever.

My sister couldn't go back. I had to find another way. And I had less than a month to find it.


	6. Take to the Sky

_Birds-eye view, awake the stars 'cause they're all around you  
Wide eyes will always brighten the blue  
Chase your dreams, and remember me, sweet bravery  
'Cause after all those wings will take you, up so high  
So bid the forest floor goodbye as you race the wind  
And take to the sky_

_"To the Sky"  
Owl City_

* * *

LUCY:

I had never been so excited to put on Gryffindor robes. Sure, it was horrifically painful trying to slip them on over my head without tugging my cuts too much, but I managed. Cedric helped me tie my shoes before he headed to dinner, and when he left, I made my way to the Gryffindor common room, though I had to walk much slower than I would have liked.

I felt better, of course, but being covered in thin, deep cuts from head to toe was unlike any pain I had ever known. Every little movement sent pain shooting through my body, and while I had gotten somewhat used to it, I knew it would be a while before the pain went away completely. I hadn't looked in a mirror, so I had no idea what my face looked like. I could only imagine it was a nightmare, but I didn't want to wear bandages or a mask, so I supposed everyone would just have to deal with it.

I had barely entered our dormitory when Hermione started sprinting towards me.

 _Oh, this is gonna hurt,_ I thought to myself, but I opened my arms to accept her hug anyway.

She burrowed her head into my shoulder, half-crying. "You're back, you're back, you're okay!"

"I am, I am," I assured her. She pulled away, wiping a solitary tear from her cheek. I looked up to survey the room. Hermione was the only one back from dinner, it seemed. "It's good to be back."

"Are the rumors true?" she asked. "Did you actually sleepwalk all the way to the Forbidden Forest from the Hospital Wing?"

I nodded. "Does everybody already know?"

"You've become something of a celebrity," she giggled. "The fact that only your brother and your prefects were allowed to visit you made the mystery all the more intriguing. I imagine you'll be swarmed tomorrow. I heard you were being released tonight so I figured I'd come up to wait for you."

"Thank you, that means a lot to me." I sighed. "I don't want to be a celebrity, I just want to catch up on my lessons."

"I'll help with that," she said immediately. "I wrote down all of the work. You didn't miss any tests. We can start first thing in the morning. You look tired."

I nodded. "My face probably looks like a nightmare. I haven't looked in a mirror yet."

She didn't confirm it, but she didn't deny it either, only offering a sympathetic look. Lavender and Parvati entered then, and I was once again hugged enthusiastically.

"You're back!" Parvati exclaimed.

"You look awful," Lavender said sympathetically, reaching forward and lightly touching my cheek. "Does it still hurt?"

I nodded. "I feel better, but..." I held up my bandaged hands for emphasis, which drew gasps from all three girls.

"What _happened_ to you?" Parvati asked.

"I managed to sleepwalk into the Forbidden Forest. I don't remember much else." It was easier to lie with each repetition; it was far nicer than the truth.

"Well, I guess now we need to tie you down to your bed!" Lavender exclaimed.

I laughed, my face reddening. "I should be fine when I'm here. I did have a bit of a head start, beginning in the Hospital Wing."

"Oh, that's right," Parvati said. "You were sick even before... well, before all of this."

I nodded and sat on the edge of my bed. Hermione studied my face, and didn't miss the way I winced in pain. "Do you want to try to sleep, Lucy? I know you probably still don't feel very well."

"I probably should, even though sleep is practically all I've done for the better part of the week."

"That's perfectly alright," Parvati said. "Lavender and I will head to the common room so it's quiet for you."

"You don't have to, really," I protested, but they exchanged a humored glance. 

"Don't worry about it," Lavender said. "I'm sure we'll be very entertained down there."

They dissolved into a fit of giggles and disappeared. I cocked an eyebrow (as best I could, anyway) at Hermione. "Do they like a boy or something?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Do you need help with anything before I head to the library to study?"

"Study? On a Friday night?"

"What else is there to do?"

I shrugged after a moment. Bitterness dripped from her words, but I was too tired to work through whatever her emotions were that night. I bent down to start untying my shoes, but my breath hitched in my throat in pain. Moving my hands that way pinched some cuts and stretched others. I swallowed my tears and forced my fingers to loosen the knots Cedric had tied for me. 

I finally managed to kick my shoes off, then peel off my socks. Hermione gasped when she saw the extent of my bandages. 

"Lucy," she breathed. "What happened? What _really_ happened?"

"Nothing," I snapped. "I was sleepwalking and ended up in the Forbidden Forest."

"Did something attack you?"

I didn't answer as I began to peel the bandages off to let the wounds breathe a bit. 

"Did some _one_ attack you?"

"I don't know," I lied through gritted teeth.

"How did... how did you get so badly injured?"

"I don't _know_. I wish I did." It was the first scrap of truth I had offered. I rose on shaky legs and grabbed my pajamas and a fresh roll of bandages from my trunk.

"Do you want help, Lucy?" Hermione asked gently as she followed me into the bathroom.

I swallowed hard. "I got it, but thanks. You can go study."

She hesitated a moment. I made my way over to the mirror, looking at myself for the first time since the accident.

Jagged lines covered every square inch of my face and neck and... well, everything. Hermione came up behind me in the mirror, but I couldn't hold her gaze. I started unwinding the bandages from my hands, then my wrists. 

"Do you remember what I said that night Lavender and Parvati gave us makeovers?" 

I blinked. "Beauty comes from within?"

Hermione nodded. "Don't forget that, okay?"

"Thank you," I replied with a small nod. I cleared my throat. "You can go study now. I don't want to keep you."

"If you're sure you're okay," she said slowly.

"I can do it myself," I replied, my voice coming out harsher than I intended. "Just go study. I know that's your favorite thing to do."

She started to say something, but apparently decided against it. "See you in the morning," she said instead, leaving me alone in the bathroom.

I sighed. Everything hurt. I didn't have the emotional energy to process anything that had just happened. Hermione still seemed upset with me about something, but she was really, really trying to be kind to me anyway, so I appreciated her for that. I stepped into a shower stall and stripped down to my bandages as carefully as I could, then I peeled the bandages off. My dittany allergy meant I had to rely on Muggle methods of healing like bandages to continue healing after the first spells were cast. Cedric promised to teach me basic healing spells once I was caught up on the schoolwork I had missed; I hoped they would be enough.

When I turned the water on, I couldn't bite back the shriek of pain that escaped my lips. I burst into pathetic tears as a million needles pierced my skin from my head to my toes.

I cried through the entire shower, and not even necessarily just because of the pain. My first transformation at Hogwarts had been a nightmare, worse than I had ever imagined even _in_ my nightmares. I had been attacked by a mysterious cloaked figure with an unknown spell. I could never unsee the haunted look in Cedric's eyes every time he glanced my direction now. It frightened me to see him so unnerved, and it frightened me even more when he tried to be brave for me.

I was the Gryffindor. I was the werewolf. Cedric didn't need to be brave for me --- I needed to be brave for him. I needed to figure out how to make everything alright. If not for myself, for Cedric.

When I emerged from the bathroom, finally managing to reapply all of my bandages and slip into my loosest pajamas, Lavender and Parvati were already back and playing Exploding Snap near the fireplace.

"Hi, Lucy!" Lavender said brightly. She looked up and met my eyes. "Oh Merlin, what happened?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, my voice cracking on the last word. I cleared my throat, embarrassed, and tossed my robes into my trunk before carefully climbing into bed.

"You've been crying," she replied, setting her wand down and coming to sit next to me on the bed, Parvati close behind. "What's wrong?"

"Showering just hurt more than I was expecting," I lied. "I'm fine, honestly."

She and Parvati nodded understandingly.

"Where's Hermione?"

Parvati rolled her eyes. "All she does anymore is study. She stays in the library until Pince leaves every night, and she's there right when Pince arrives every morning."

"It's not the worst thing ever," Lavender added in a softer voice. "She tried to hang out with us the first day you were gone, but all she wanted to talk about was the books she was reading. She's nice, but she's _such_ a know-it-all."

"Not to mention the weird feud she has going with Harry and Ron." Parvati rolled her eyes. "Ron asked her for help in Herbology by accident, forgetting you were gone, and she nearly murdered him with a single look."

"Oh, and she and Harry were paired together in flying class because I stole Ron as my partner," Lavender said with a giggle. "I think I fancy him."

"Is that why you headed to the common room?" I asked.

They exchanged a glance and giggled again. 

"Yeah," Lavender admitted. "He said hi to me!"

"Well, kind of," Parvati corrected her.

Lavender sighed. "He said something more like 'Hey Lavender, is Lucy back yet?' But I think it counts!"

"Ron asked about me?"

"Whoa, slow down, don't start catching feelings," Lavender scolded jokingly. "Harry asked me if you were back too. You can have Harry, as long as I get Ron."

I giggled. "I didn't realize we were assigning husbands out of the Gryffindor boys. Who's yours, Parvati? Seamus? Dean? Neville?"

Parvati and Lavender laughed out loud. Lavender pointed at Parvati. " _She_ doesn't want a Gryffindor boy. She wants one in yellow and black."

Parvati blushed. "Shut up."

"Who is it?" I asked, which only made her blush deeper.

"She thinks your brother is gorgeous," Lavender answered on her behalf, laughing loudly. "She asked him about you every day just to get to talk to him!"

I laughed too, as Parvati's blush darkened and darkened. "Do you want me to go back just so you can keep asking?"

"No!" she squeaked. "No, don't, I'm happy to have you back! It's just... he's just..."

"It's okay," I chuckled, "I've seen the way girls look at him. I understand."

Hermione walked in then, taking in the scene quickly. An unreadable emotion cross her face. Parvati and Lavender immediately grew serious. I chose to ignore the shift in mood and kept smiling.

"While we're talking about boys, has anyone caught your eye yet, Hermione?" I asked.

"No." She tossed her books into her trunk and disappeared into the bathroom.

Lavender, Parvati, and I exchanged a look.

"What did we do wrong?" I whispered.

Lavender shook her head. "Nothing. Don't worry about it, Lucy. You should sleep. Enough talk about boys."

"Never thought I'd hear those words leave your mouth, Lav," Parvati teased. "You could talk about boys all day every day." The three of us laughed half-heartedly, and the two of them returned to their game. Hermione emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, stone-faced. She marched to her trunk and rifled through it until she came to a blue magazine. 

"For you, from Cedric," she said, her voice surprisingly softer than her expression, placing it on the nightstand between our beds. "He said he forgot to give it to you before you left the Hospital Wing."

"Oh, thank you!" I exclaimed, scanning the headlines on the cover. "I can't wait for our flying lesson on Thursday," I sighed. "I'm so disappointed I missed it this week."

A funny smile crossed Hermione's face. "Trust me, I was disappointed you missed it too. Do you want to be partners this week, by any chance?"

I bit back a laugh, remembering what Lavender said about Hermione and Harry having to be partners. "Sure thing, Hermione."

Her smile the second time was genuine. "Sounds good. Good night, Lucy."

"Good night," I replied.

* * *

I slept for an incredibly long time, and likely would have slept longer if someone hadn't dumped a goblet of cold water on my face.

I sat up, wiping the water from my eyes to see who it was. "Hermione?" I spluttered.

"Sorry," she said, cringing. "Cedric was worried when you weren't at breakfast or at lunch, so I said I'd come wake you up and make sure you were okay."

"Yeah," I said, still stunned but slowly waking up, "yeah, I'm alright. Just tired, I guess."

"Okay. Good."

I cracked a grin. "Water? Really?"

"I didn't want to touch you. You really are covered head to toe in bandages, aren't you?"

"Yeah. Thanks for thinking of that." I pushed myself into a sitting position, drying my face on my blanket. "Wait, breakfast _and_ lunch? What time _is_ it?"

She checked her wristwatch. "A little after 2."

I groaned. "I've practically slept the whole day away, and I have so much work to catch up on!"

"Do you want to come with me to the library? After you get dressed, I mean?"

I nodded and swung my legs around the side of the bed, but when I tried to stand, I was overcome with dizziness and had to sit back down. "Is it hot in here, or just me?"

Hermione laid a gentle hand on my forehead. "Just you." She bit her lip. "Maybe you should go back to the Hospital Wing."

"No," I moaned. "I can't. I have so much work to do."

"You really do. You missed practically an entire week." Her brow furrowed in deep thought. "I'll tell you what. You go take a cool shower to hopefully break the fever. If nothing else, it will be refreshing. In the meantime, I'll make a list of everything you missed, and you can work through it at your own pace, since you said you work best on your own."

"You don't mind?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I don't mind. And I'll study in the common room for the rest of the weekend, so if you need help, you can just come get me."

"Okay." I took a deep breath. "Thank you, Hermione."

"Of course," she said with a small smile. "I really did miss you, you know. You're my closest friend."

I smiled back. "And I'm glad to be." I took another deep breath forced myself into a standing position. Hermione held her hands out in front of her in case I needed them, but I was more stable the second time. I grabbed a cooler set of pajamas and another roll of bandages from my trunk and staggered into the bathroom. Hermione was right; the cool shower was refreshing. I gently pulled Cedric's old Montrose Magpies t-shirt and a pair of soft Muggle shorts on and pulled my hair back into a ponytail before stepping into the empty dormitory. I tossed the bandages into the trunk alongside my other pajamas; since no one else was around to see, I could afford to let the wounds breathe.

Hermione's list was waiting on my pillow. I scanned it quickly.

  * _Read up to page 47 in The Standard Book of Spells_
  * _Read up to page 56 in A History of Magic_
  * _Write an essay on Chapter 3 of Magical Theory _
  * _Write two essays, one on Chapter 4 and one on Chapter 5, for A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_
  * _Write out the definitions of all of the plants in Chapter 4 of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_
  * _Read up to page 53 in Magical Drafts and Potions_
  * _Read up to page 38 in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_
  * _Read up to page 44 in The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_



I had approximately 40 hours to complete everything on the list if I didn't sleep and didn't eat. I sighed and pulled all of my books out, plopping them on my bed dramatically. I reread the list. I had already read the assigned parts for Potions and DADA since Hermione had given Cedric my books for those subjects while I was still in the Hospital Wing, so I grabbed a quill and crossed those out. I scribbled numbers next to the remaining assignments, with 1 being the hardest and 6 being the easiest. I still wasn't feeling very good, so I started with #2, which was the _Magical Theory_ essay. Hermione hadn't included required essay lengths, so I hoped that two feet would be enough.

I managed to get through the first essay in a fairly timely manner. Magical theory came quite naturally to me; I had pestered my parents as a kid, always asking why magic worked the way it did. After so many years of questions, I had a decent grasp on the concept. I moved on to #3 and cracked open _History of Magic_. I had to reread multiple sections multiple times, but I reached page 56 as the sun was setting outside. Hermione came in as I was reaching for _The Standard Book of Spells_.

"How's it going?" she asked, surveying with wide eyes the mess of parchment and books and quills on my bed.

"I have one essay and three assigned readings finished," I answered with a sigh. "Should I do Charms or Transfiguration next?"

"Well, maybe you should eat first. Do you want to come down with me for dinner? How are you feeling?"

I shook my head. "I'm not hungry. I just want to get through all of this work."

"I understand. It sounds like you've made a good start, though." She crossed the room and laid a hand on my forehead. "Your fever's mostly gone." Her eyes wandered, landing on my exposed limbs. "Oh, Lucy..."

"I know." I sighed again. "It looks worse than it is," I lied.

"I sure hope so," she said, her brown eyes soft with sympathy. "It looks awful."

I shrugged. "I'll put the bandages back on before the other two come up. I just thought some air might help."

"You don't have to hide it, Lucy. It'll be part of who you are for a while."

I absorbed her words in silence. I knew in the back of my mind that the cuts would scar, probably permanently, but more than that, I realized, I would be known for a while as the girl who sleepwalked all the way to the Forbidden Forest and escaped looking like... well, looking like a monster.

"Well, I'll head down to dinner now," she said, heading toward the door. "Any messages you want me to pass along?"

"If Cedric asks about me, you can just say I'm up here studying. He'll understand."

She nodded. "Got it."

"Thank you, Hermione. You're the best."

She smiled. "I try to be."

When the door closed behind her, I sighed and reached for Transfiguration, which was #1 on my list. My hand was cramping by the end of the first essay, and a couple of the cuts on the back of my hand and my knuckles were beginning to tear open. I rushed to my trunk before I spilled blood on the parchment and wrapped a bandage around the opened wounds. The second essay could wait until morning.

I took the list in my hands again and crossed out what I had finished.

  * _4\. Read up to page 47 in The Standard Book of Spells_
  * ~~_3\. Read up to page 56 in A History of Magic_~~
  * ~~_2\. Write an essay on Chapter 3 of Magical Theory _~~
  * _1\. Write two essays, ~~one on Chapter 4~~ and one on Chapter 5, for A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_
  * _5\. Write out the definitions of all of the plants in Chapter 4 of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_
  * ~~_Read up to page 53 in Magical Drafts and Potions_~~
  * _6\. Read up to page 38 in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_
  * ~~_Read up to page 44 in The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_~~



"Alright," I whispered to myself. "I have one essay, one assignment, and two readings left for tomorrow. That's achievable, right?" I sighed and reached for _The Standard Book of Spells_. "No. I should keep going."

Lavender and Parvati came in when I was almost halfway through.

"You poor thing, you _have_ been working all day, haven't you?" Lavender asked.

I nodded. "I _did_ sleep until around 2 in the afternoon, but I've been working ever since, yeah."

"Do you want to play Exploding Snap with us?" Parvati inquired. "You know how to play, right?"

"Yeah, I do. I'd love to play, but I really should keep working."

"Don't let Hermione get to you," she replied. "The professors would probably understand if you need more time, you know."

I nodded. "I know. I just don't want to have to ask for favors less than one month into school."

"Yeah, whatever, I'm just saying."

The two of them set up the game in front of the fireplace again, and the sound of popping and giggling permeated my studying. Hermione came in a few minutes later and scolded the other two for distracting me; I tried to interject and say I had said it was okay, but they just got huffy and left for the common room. To my surprise, I actually was tired when the other three were going to bed, so I skimmed through the last pages of the reading and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

The next morning, I awoke at a much more reasonable time, but I still wasn't hungry enough to head down for breakfast. Instead, I fought through the pain in my hand and managed to write the second Transfiguration essay. I groaned when I realized I had one last writing assignment for Herbology.

I considered Parvati's words from the night before. Professor Sprout would understand if I needed more time, right? I mean, I was Cedric's sister, and Herbology was my best class by miles.

My dad's voice echoed in my mind. Words spoken not to me, but to Cedric, rose to the surface, spoken on the steps of King's Cross Station.

_"Remember, Cedric. Bear the name of Diggory with pride, but never be too proud to do all of your work on time and do it perfectly. Glory comes from perfection."_

_"But Dad, I don't want glory," eleven-year-old Cedric had said. "I don't want to disappoint you, of course, but I don't want-"_

_"If you really don't want to disappoint me, do what I say, son."_

_Cedric had bowed his head, understanding even then that it was an impossible battle to fight. "Okay. I will."_

_Dad's face had softened, and he had tipped Cedric's face to meet his own. "Besides," he had said, looking directly at me, "think of your sister. You want to set a good example for her, no?"_

_Cedric followed my dad's gaze and met mine, finding a smile just for me. "Of course."_

_I broke free from my mother's hand and sprinted toward Cedric for a last hug._

_"You will write, won't you, Ced?" I had asked, near tears at the thought of not seeing him until Christmas._

_He nodded. "Of course, Lu, every week. I'll make you proud."_

_"I already am," I had assured him. "You're the bestest big brother I could ask for."_

I bit back a sigh and tightened the bandages on my hand before reaching for _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_. I was a Diggory. I would do my work and do it well and do it on time. Well, as close as I could, at least.

With each definition, I unwound and rewound the bandages, careful not to let any blood drip onto the assignment. When one bandage was soaked through, I replaced it with another and kept writing. Hermione came in just as I finished the final definition, and her face instantly grew pale when she saw the pile of bloodied bandages now in the rubbish bin.

"What happened?"

"Too much writing," I said dismissively. "Not that big of a deal."

"Lucy, that's horrible!"

"I'm done now." I shrugged. "I think I'm going to shower before I keep working. I should change bandages anyway."

"Well, I was just about to ask if you were coming to lunch today. You probably should, you haven't eaten in nearly two days."

"I'll be fine."

She looked unconvinced, but relented. Once she left, I grabbed my Gryffindor robes and showered, careful to cover every possible cut in bandages. I was more stable on my feet than I had been the day before, so I was hoping to go to dinner that night for the first time in a week. 

I read through the assigned portion of _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ as quickly as I could. It was all review to me anyway. My dad was a magical creature specialist after all, so I had grown up reading Newt Scamander's every scrap of writing.

I was done. Finally done. My aching limbs longed to move again. I was restless. The sun was shining through the dormitory windows, beckoning to me. I double-checked my bandages to make sure no cuts were peeking through, then headed down the stairs to the common room, beaming.

I don't know what exactly I was expecting, but an excited greeting would have been nice. Instead, I walked in on a yelling match between Ron and Hermione. 

"Why can't I just go up and show her my Chocolate Frog cards? Cedric said she collects them too, and that she'd love to see them!"

"Well, Cedric told _me_ she was worried about getting caught up on her work, so I can't let you go up there and distract her! It will only make her more anxious!"

"She's not as boring as you, so I'm sure she'd appreciate the break from studying! It would make her less anxious if she did something fun!"

"You can show her your stupid cards when she's done, if that's really your idea of fun."

"Or I can show her my 'stupid cards' right now and hopefully make her smile, because they _are_ fun. Besides, I'm her friend too! Who made you the boss?"

I couldn't take it anymore. I walked around them and climbed straight through the portrait hole. I had made it down the first flight of stairs when I heard my name, and it wasn't Ron or Hermione who had said it. I turned to see Harry hurrying after me.

"Hi Harry," I said. 

He grinned. He didn't seem at all fazed by my face or my bandages. He was the first person to react that way. I smiled back.

"Hi. How are you?" he asked.

My smile faltered. "I'm guessing you heard the argument?" 

He nodded, growing serious. "Are you alright?"

I sighed. "I was hoping everyone would have made up in my absence, but I guess not."

"Well, for what it's worth, I'm glad you're back."

"Thank you. You can go back to them if you'd like. Or, well, back to Ron at least."

"I was heading down to Quidditch practice anyway when they started going at it, actually. Would you like to walk with me?"

"I'd love to, but I don't want to slow you down," I said apologetically. "It still hurts to move, and walk, and write, and breathe, and... well, you get the point."

"I'll go as slow as you need."

"Are you sure? I don't want you to be late."

"I'm positive."

We set off down the stairs for the Quidditch Pitch. I kept waiting for him to ask about the Hospital Wing, or the Forbidden Forest, but he didn't. He just wanted to talk about flying, so, obviously, I was all in.

"Did you hear that I got a broom?" he asked.

"No! Did they make an exception for you with the broom rule?"

He nodded. "Don't tell anyone, but Professor McGonagall got it for me."

"Wow! What model?"

"A Nimbus 2000."

"No way! I just read an article about it in _Seeker_ _Weekly_ last night! It's supposed to be the best broom ever made!"

"It's incredible," he agreed. "I don't know as much about brooms as you probably do, though."

I launched into an enthusiastic explanation of the way the broom was charmed. Harry seemed to be hanging on every word I said; his brilliant green eyes shone with wonder and excitement.

We were nearly to the Pitch when he stopped and turned to face me. "Do you want to stay and watch practice? You can ride my broom after, if you'd like."

"Really? You'd let me?" Riding a Nimbus 2000 seemed too good to be true.

"If you want to, I mean," he said shyly. "If you'd rather head back to the castle, I underst-"

"Harry, I'd love to!" I interrupted. "But are you sure you don't mind me riding it?"

He nodded. "I watched you snatch Neville's broom, before the Malfoy incident, I mean. I know you're a fantastic flyer."

I blushed. "Please, you're the youngest Seeker in a century. If anyone's a fantastic flyer, it's you. But if you really wouldn't mind, I'd love to stay and watch practice and fly your broom. Besides," I added with a smile, "I'm sick of being cooped up in bed. This will be great."

We parted ways, and I made my way up to the top of the stands, sitting down just as the team shot into the sky and practice began.

I was particularly excited to get to see Skye Parkin practicing. Skye was a seventh-year, and arguably one of the best Chasers Gryffindor had ever had. She no doubt had inherited much of her father's talent --- Ethan Parkin had invented the Parkin's Pincer after all. Even more so than that, one of her ancestors had founded the Wigtown Wanderers. Though a Magpies fan myself, it was undeniable that Quidditch was in Skye's blood.

Fred and George were entertaining to watch as well. Every time Skye shouted a suggestion or a play call, they shouted "Aye aye, Captain!" right back, sometimes even offering a salute. For all of their joking, though, they were brilliant Beaters. They functioned as a unit, knocking Bludgers left and right. 

Hours passed, yet I was never once bored, or aware of the time passing. Quite the contrary, I was surprised when the sun began to set. Skye called everyone down for a brief pep talk, and once it was over, Harry flew up to where I was sitting.

"You're sure you don't mind?" I asked one last time as I unwound the bandages from my hands. Brooms were always most responsive to bare skin.

"It's all yours," Harry said, climbing off and handing it to me. 

My pain practically evaporated as I gripped the handle in my hands. I ascended into the sky faster than I had ever moved in my life. And yet, I was unafraid. I was completely in control.

I zipped left and right and up and down, weaving through imaginary opponents and dodging --- _wait, was that a real Bludger?_

"Look out, kid!" a distant voice called. The Bludger came rushing back at me, but I swerved out of the way just in time. There was no time to panic when in the sky, so I thought to keep my cool.

When I looked down, I saw that Fred and George were coming up to help. But the Bludger was coming faster. I knew I couldn't dodge it this time, it was coming too quickly. So I decided to see how fast the Nimbus 2000 could truly go.

I shot straight up into the sky, holding on for dear life as gravity like I had never known tried to pull me off. I didn't dare look down. I rose above the stands, above the Pitch. I had become one with the sky.

"We got it!" came a cry from below. 

"You can come down!" came the other twin's voice.

I spun around and started descending, returning to Harry. He looked rather dumbfounded. 

"Thank you for letting me do that, Harry," I said, dismounting and handing him the broom. I couldn't keep a smile from my face even though it hurt. "That was incredible."

"You do realize you could have died, right?" 

I shrugged. "But I didn't." 

Before Harry could reply, the twins shot up to where we were standing. 

"You're Lucy Diggory, right?"

When I nodded, they exchanged a glance.

"Do you want to walk with us to dinner?" the other one asked. "We think we have quite a bit to talk about."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note:
> 
> Hi there, readers! I figured it was about time I tell you all a little about me.
> 
> First of all, thank you so much for sticking with me six chapters into this story! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. If you are enjoying it, and even if you aren't, please never be too shy to leave a comment! I love feedback. More importantly, I love writing stories that people enjoy reading, but if you never comment to tell me what you like and what you don't like, I'll never know what's working and what's not. So please, comment away! I seriously love feedback, as an aspiring author.
> 
> Second of all, if you recognize names like Skye Parkin and the Haywood sisters, I love you! If you don't, don't worry. They're characters from the game Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery, and I plan to incorporate them when possible to add depth to the story. As a word of warning, I'm on Year 6, Chapter 28 at the moment, so some spoilers may be present if you are behind me in the gameplay. I will try to prevent any major, major spoilers, but if something becomes relevant later in the story, especially concerning Bea and Penny, I won't necessarily dance around the truth. The name of my character in the game is Adalyn Benson, so if/when she shows up in this story, just know that she's Jacob's sibling. 
> 
> Lastly, a little bit about me. I'll admit that I'm a Hufflepuff, so trying to write a Gryffindor character in first person has been a unique challenge. But that being said, I am definitely a Gryffinpuff when it comes to hybrid houses, so I'm not at a complete loss. My favorite character in the series is Remus Lupin, followed closely by Harry Potter himself, Rubeus Hagrid, Cedric Diggory, and Neville Longbottom. But honestly, I love so many characters that it's difficult even just choosing five favorites.
> 
> Again, thank you to everyone who has read this far, and I hope you continue to stick with me over the course of this story! 


	7. Us, a Distraction?

LUCY:

The twins never stopped talking the whole walk to the castle. 

"Harry and Ron told us you stood up to Professor Snape in your very first lesson-"

"And that he told you that you don't belong in Gryffindor-"

"Which is obviously the biggest load of dragon dung we had ever heard-"

"If Neville is in Gryffindor, bless his fragile and easily frightened soul-"

"Then you definitely belong here too!"

"And then we heard from Percy that you had sleepwalked into the Forbidden Forest-"

"And honestly, we were surprised at first-"

"I mean, your brother is so perfect-"

"Never gets in trouble, never does anything unexpected-"

"Honestly, we feel guilty ever pranking him because he's just such a good chap-"

"We almost couldn't believe it was actually you, a Diggory, who wandered into the Forbidden Forest-"

"But then, we remembered! Lucy Diggory, the one who stood up to Snape!"

"We kept trying to visit you in the Hospital Wing, but only Percy and Cedric were allowed in."

"Then we heard you were in your dormitory-"

"And tried to get Hermione to convince you to come down so we could congratulate you on not dying and all that-"

"But she said you were busy studying and told us we would be a distraction! The nerve! Us, a distraction?"

"We had about given up hope of ever getting to talk to the elusive Lucy Diggory, Sleepwalker Extraordinaire-"

"Then all of a sudden, there you were, watching our practice!"

"And then there you were, shooting up into the sky!"

"Oliver didn't strap one of the Bludgers properly, so when it realized someone was still on a broom-"

"Off it went! Chasing you!"

"The two of us jumped on our brooms and started chasing it-"

"But we were so surprised we almost didn't catch it!"

"But then we did, and we looked up, and there you were-"

"Doing a Wronski Feint in reverse!" they finished in perfect unison.

I laughed. "Now that you mention it, that was pretty similar to a reversed Wronski. I've always been too afraid to attempt a real one. Have you tried yet, Harry?"

"What's a Wronski Feint?" he asked, looking equal parts baffled and amused by the rapid-fire conversation.

"It's one of the boldest Quidditch plays there is," I explained, gesturing with my hands to illustrate my point. "If you remind me, I'll show you the edition of _Seeker Weekly_ where they did a whole feature on it. Basically, the Seeker of one team pretends to see the Snitch waaaaay down here, then he or she dives straight downward, hoping the other Seeker follows them. Then, right before they would hit the ground, the Seeker shoots back up into the air... at least hypothetically. If you're not fast enough, you faceplant into the ground."

He winced. "Has anyone ever died doing that?"

"Probably!"

At that point, we had reached the Great Hall. Harry and I exchanged a look when we saw that Ron was sitting by himself, glaring daggers at Hermione, who was sitting between Lavender and Parvati, who were glaring daggers at Ron. 

"I think I'm going to sit with Ron," Harry said, "but you three have fun."

"Yeah, good luck with that," I replied, assessing the situation. "I think I'll stay out of this one."

I found myself wedged between the twins. They sure did have a lot to say, and often at the same time. Harry and Ron came to sit with us after a couple of minutes.

"Got tired of the glaring," Ron grumbled. "But welcome back, Lucy," he added in a much happier tone, consoling himself with a massive bite of mashed potatoes. 

"Fair enough," I said with a shrug, downing a rather large spoonful of my own. "And thanks! Good to be here."

"You do know the best way to eat mashed potatoes, right, Lucy?" the twin on my right asked. I still couldn't quite tell them apart, but I was trying.

I glanced over at his plate and sighed. "Don't tell me that's pumpkin juice."

"It is!" the twin on my left exclaimed. He had done the same to his mashed potatoes. "Fred and I swear by it. Try it!"

"No, don't," Ron moaned. "Spare yourself."

I hesitated. 

"You know you're curious now," Fred said, waggling his eyebrows at me. "You gotta try it."

I screwed up my face. "Do I really have to?"

"Well, no." George shrugged, trying to look innocent and passive. "But you really should. It's revolutionary."

I glanced toward Harry, who merely laughed at my predicament.

"Alright, alright, fine," I relented, reaching for my goblet and drizzling a small amount of pumpkin juice over my mashed potatoes. It was at this moment Percy Weasley glanced over.

"Are you two poisoning the minds of the first years?" he asked in his best prefect voice, but I detected a hint of amusement lying beneath it.

"Only one way to find out!" Fred crowed. "Try it, Little Diggs!"

"Little Diggs?" I asked.

"We'll figure out a better nickname," George said dismissively. "Just try it!"

I did. I swallowed and laughed. "That's actually really good!"

Percy smiled and rolled his eyes, returning to his conversation as Fred and George cheered. 

The next morning at breakfast, I wedged myself between them again. "I couldn't sleep because I had a super important question for you two."

"Shoot!"

"Yeah, what is it?"

I wiped the smile from my face, assuming my best serious expression. "Do you pour pumpkin juice over pancakes, too?"

"Oh heavens no!" Fred (the one with the rounder face and wider smile, I had realized) exclaimed. 

"You see, Lucy," George said, "pumpkin juice just makes the pancakes soggy. At that point, you may as well have pumpkin pancakes."

"Ah yes, of course, silly me," I replied. "How could I be so stupid? Enlighten me, though. What _do_ you put on pancakes?"

"Butterbeer, of course!" they said in unison. 

I furrowed my brow. "You lost me. Explain how it's better than pumpkin juice."

"You have to pour very small amounts of it, mind-"

"But a little bit goes a long way."

"It's best if it still has the foam on top, too."

I laughed. "Noted. I'll have to try that sometime."

"We couldn't sleep because we had questions for you, too."

"Oh? Humor me. It's about the Forest, isn't it?"

They nodded excitedly. "We've only managed to sneak there a couple of times. What was it like?"

"I don't remember much, to be honest," I lied with a shrug. "But wait... you've gotten there? More than once? And lived to tell the tale?"

"We weren't there a terribly long time." Fred almost sounded disappointed. "One time, we had to waste a perfectly good Dungbomb to escape a Red Cap's hole."

"Dungbomb? What's a Dungbomb?"

Their jaws dropped in unison.

George was the first to recover from his shock. "That's a dangerous question to ask."

"Yeah," Fred agreed. "Now we have to demonstrate when you're least expecting it."

I cringed. "Sounds great. Is it something from Zonko's?"

"You bet! Best store out there!"

"Sounds like I need to go there someday."

George threw an arm around my shoulders. "Oh, Lucy, we have so much to teach you."

I giggled. "Might as well start now."

The two of them launched into an enthusiastic discussion of the many, many joke items sold at Zonko's. 

"Sorry to cut you off, boys, but I should probably head off to History of Magic," I said as I rose. "But talk to you more later?"

"Sounds like a plan," George said with a nod. "We have a lot more to teach you."

"And be careful," Fred warned, glancing at his twin brother. "We haven't forgotten about that demonstration."

I smirked. "Neither have I. Don't you worry."

I slid into my seat next to Hermione at the last second, stepping over the game of Exploding Snap already happening in one of the aisles.

"Where have you been?" she hissed. "You were almost late!"

"But I wasn't," I replied with a smile. "I was just talking to Fred and George."

She sighed heavily and focused her attention on Professor Binns, who was sound asleep on his desk. I glanced over my shoulder at Harry and Ron to see if they had overheard our interaction. Harry offered a sympathetic shrug, while Ron shuffled through his bag for something.

"Hey, Lucy, do you want to see my Chocolate Frog cards?" the redhead asked. "I heard you collect them."

I nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I do and I do! Who's your best card?"

"I've got two Artemesia Lufkins," he said, flashing one for emphasis. "How about you?"

"My best is probably Ptolemy," I replied with a shrug. "Got that one on Christmas last year."

"Lucky," he groaned. "I've never gotten that one, or Agrippa."

"I don't have Agrippa either," I sighed. "Cedric does, though. I hope he stops collecting them soon so I can have his."

"I wouldn't bet on it," Ron said with a smile. "Charlie still brags about his collection, and he's already graduated."

"Darn! Well, we'll have to just keep trying, I guess."

"Yeah, for sure. We need to help Harry start his collection, too!"

I nodded emphatically. "Definitely. I have plenty of duplicates I can give you to help you get started, Harry," I offered. 

"Will you shut up?" Hermione snapped, whirling around in her seat. "I'm trying to pay attention."

Surely enough, Professor Binns had started teaching while we were talking, in such a monotone drone I had mistaken it as just a part of the general sounds of conversation already filling the classroom. Nobody took the class very seriously --- Binns was too boring. Hermione and I generally did, however, so I offered an apologetic look to Harry and Ron.

"We'll talk later," I said softly before turning around and dipping my quill into my inkwell. But Hermione wasn't done.

"Honestly, Lucy, I expected better from you," she whispered. "You know, I've heard your brother is a stellar student who always pays attention and never gets in trouble. But look at you! You're behind on notes and talking while a professor is trying to teach. About stupid cards, no less! What would Cedric say?"

She had struck a nerve, perhaps unknowingly, but it smarted nonetheless. I bit my lip and scrambled to catch up on the notes. She wasn't wrong. What was I doing?

As soon as lunch came, I grabbed my bag and quickly made my way outside. I walked until I found a tree large enough to hide me from the castle and settled down with my transfiguration textbook. It was my worst subject, and one of Cedric's best. If I wanted to be like Cedric, really wanted to be like him as I had always said, Hermione was right. I needed to act like it.

It was nearly time to head to class when two upside-down heads popped into my field of vision.

"Hi, Lucy!" Fred said.

"Want to hang out with us tonight?" George asked.

"Hopefully not literally?" I asked with a laugh, noticing that they were in fact hanging from the tree with their legs looped around a branch.

They shrugged. 

"If that's what you want," George said nonchalantly. "But that's not exactly what we had in mind."

"What did you have in mind, may I ask?"

"Well, Skye wanted to ask you this question during lunch today, but since you weren't there, we volunteered to find you and ask ourselves. Alright, I'm getting down, this is uncomfortable." Fred swung down onto his feet, and George soon followed suit. "Anyway! Skye said she wanted you to come down to the Pitch tonight after Hufflepuff practices. You see, we don't have any reserve players, and she wants to see how you'd hold up with different positions."

"Really?" I fought to keep my voice even, but my excitement was skyrocketing. 

They nodded excitedly.

"We weren't the only ones impressed last night," George said.

I bit my lip. "Only problem is that I don't have my own broom since I'm a first-year, Harry's the only exception. I'd have to borrow someone's."

"That won't be a problem," Fred said. "You can just have the broom of whoever you're subbing in for, if you even ever have to sub in."

"And for tonight, you can borrow one of ours," George offered. "Or your brother's, since Hufflepuff will be practicing. His is probably better anyway."

I nodded. "I'll ask him during dinner." I couldn't hold back a giggle. "Merlin! All this just because Oliver Wood didn't strap the Bludger in properly."

"Just between us, mate, he might have done it on purpose," Fred muttered. "He's fixing to be Quidditch captain next year, and he's as competitive as Skye Parkin herself. He knew you were a Diggory, so I reckon it was an impromptu test."

I felt my face growing hot. "Well then, let's hope I don't disappoint tonight."

* * *

Skye had a rigorous set of drills for me. The whole team had come out, so I transitioned back and forth between the different positions during the scrimmage. My weakest position by far was Beater, since Cedric and I had never owned bats or Bludgers, but since Fred and George were such strong players, nobody was too concerned. Seeker wasn't the best, either, but since even Harry had been struggling to find the Snitch, nobody was too concerned about that either. 

Chaser was my favorite, and my best. It had always been the position I dreamed of playing. 

"Stop going easy on me!" I shouted at one point to Fred as he intentionally sent a Bludger far over my head. "Nobody else will! Especially not Slytherin!"

"You asked for it, then!" he laughed, chasing the Bludger and winding up for round two.

Angelina Johnson passed me the Quaffle as soon as Fred let the Bludger rip. I rolled out of its way, clutching the Quaffle tight to my body, and made my way to the goal hoops, sending the ball flying clean through.

"Nice one!" Skye called. "Take his spot as Keeper now!"

I nodded, swinging my broom around and tightening Cedric's borrowed helmet under my chin. I had borrowed everything from him, from the broom to the pads to the helmet, so everything was rather large on me. Just the same, I shot him a grin --- he had insisted upon watching it all from the stands. He flashed a thumbs-up in response, beaming with pride. I hunched myself over my broom and watched the play unfolding before me.

George tried to be sneaky and hit a Bludger my way, but I caught it squarely and chucked it back at him. He grinned and beat it away toward the Chasers, who were closing in on the goal hoops.

Skye. Angelina. Skye. Alicia. Angelina. Skye.

Skye wound up and sent the Quaffle flying towards me. I reached out and kicked it away, right back at her. She smiled, somewhat stunned, as she caught it.

"Not bad, kid," she called. "You're done. Everyone, fly down!"

We congregated in the center of the Pitch, breathless at first. I took my helmet off, and my sweat-soaked braids flopped against my neck. 

Skye surveyed the team, smirking. "What do you think? Have we got ourselves a reserve player?"

When everyone nodded, I smiled so hard I thought my face would tear open. 

"It's settled, then." She turned to me, grinning. "Welcome to the team, kid. We'll need you to come to every other practice, and we'll do what we did just now, swapping you out for different positions. But," she said, her voice growing serious as she addressed the group again, "we need to keep this hush, unlike what happened with Harry. The whole bloody school knows about him. But Lucy? She has to be our secret weapon. She won't see any action this year anyway, unless someone is stupid enough to get hurt, or die, or anything like that. Any questions?"

Nobody asked any, so she dismissed us. Cedric was waiting outside the changing rooms, and I practically jumped into his arms in my excitement. 

"I'm the reserve player! I did it, Cedric, I did it!"

"I knew you could, Lu!" he replied, picking me up easily, gear and all, and swinging me in a circle. He set me down, smiling. His smile was genuine, but I noticed something empty in his eyes. He looked troubled. "I'm so proud!"

"Thanks for loaning me all of your stuff on such short notice," I said, handing him the broom. "Give me two minutes to change, then you can have it back."

"Just put it in my locker. We can share a locker until you get your own broom. Are you going to talk to Professor McGonagall about it?"

I shook my head. "If I end up playing, I'll borrow the broom of whoever's missing, as long as you don't mind if I borrow your broom for practices with everyone."

"I don't mind at all. I'm just proud of you, Lu, I know you love Quidditch more than just about anything else."

I nodded emphatically. "This is the best thing to happen here so far."

"Hey, Lucy!" a voice called from behind me. I turned to see the twins coming toward us. "Want to head up to the castle with us?"

"In a minute!" I shouted back. "Aren't you two changing?"

They exchanged a glance and shrugged. 

I wrinkled my nose. "Ew. Well, I'm going to! I'll be right there." I turned back to my brother. "See you tomorrow, Ced."

"See you, Gryffindor Reserve!"

"Oh, and Skye wants it to be a secret," I said as he walked away. 

"My lips are sealed!" he called over his shoulder.

I giggled and disappeared into the tent to change before heading back to the castle with the twins, who never once stopped chattering about how fun that practice had been.

"But remember I'm a secret," I said softly as we climbed the stairs.

"Oh, of course," they said in unison.

I laughed. "You two do that a lot, don't you?"

They shrugged in sync, smirking. "Sometimes," they said, once again in unison.

That night, I was just about the happiest I had been since arriving at Hogwarts. Hermione's comment had been forgotten in the euphoric adrenaline of the evening.

The next morning, however, that euphoria was replaced in an instant when an owl dropped a letter on my empty plate at breakfast. Fred and George weren't there yet, and Hermione was still upset with me, so I was sitting by myself. I scanned it quickly, my heart sinking lower with every word.

_"Dear Lucy,  
Now that you have recovered, your mother and I will be coming to Hogwarts tomorrow to speak with the Headmaster about the most recent incident. We are afraid it is as we have feared since your very first transformation as a child --- it seems Hogwarts is simply too dangerous for you, and you are too dangerous for Hogwarts. Cedric will be in attendance as well. We have decided that the meeting will take place after your last class tomorrow.   
Best regards, Dad"_

I struggled to keep my composure. What did my parents have in mind?

It wasn't my fault. I had been attacked. I hadn't done anything wrong. 

"What's that, Lucy?" 

"Fan mail already?"

I crumpled the letter in my hands in panic, offering a false smile to the twins as they sat on either side of me. "It's nothing. Sorry, I need to go talk to my brother."

I jumped up and walked to the Hufflepuff table before they could ask any questions. I tapped Cedric on the shoulder, and the second he saw my face, he seemed to understand.

"Did you get a letter?" he asked. I nodded, involuntary tears swelling in my eyes. He grabbed a piece of toast off of his plate and took me by the shoulder. "Let's go talk in private."

I didn't say a word until we had reached the bench where I had my wolfsbane potion. There, I let a tear spill down my cheek. "Are they mad, Cedric?"

"What? No, no, of course not, Lucy."

"Then why are they coming?" I was crying at that point. "What do they intend to accomplish?"

"I don't know, I'm sorry, but I'm sure it will all work out."

"Will I need to leave?"

He shook his head firmly. "I won't let that happen."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

I trusted Cedric, but I still couldn't shake the dark clouds of anxiety that hovered over my head all day. I dismissed Fred and George's concerns by simply saying that my parents were coming to talk about the Forbidden Forest incident and laughed in all of the right places in the conversation, but my heart wasn't in it. It wasn't surprising when I couldn't fall asleep that night. Sometime after midnight, I gave up and wandered out to the common room. It still hurt somewhat to walk, so I opted for a window instead of trying to get all the way to the courtyard. The sky was somewhat overcast, but a couple of patches of stars still shone through. I let my mind wander, wondering what it would be like to walk on top of the clouds and see nothing but sky and clouds for forever.

"Lucy?"

I turned to see the twins halfway to the portait hole. "What are you doing awake?"

"What are _you_ doing awake?" George asked.

"I asked first."

"I asked second."

"And I'll ask third," Fred interjected. "What are _you_ doing awake? There, two questions beats one, so now you have to answer first."

"I couldn't sleep," I said, smirking because I knew they wanted a more interesting answer. "Your turn!"

"We were, uh, just... going for a walk?"

I gasped. "You were on your way to prank someone, weren't you?"

They exchanged a glance.

"I knew it!" I jumped up from the window seat. "Who were you pranking? Can I come?"

"Oh, uh, well," George stammered. "Maybe we shouldn't head out after all, seeing as you're troubled by something. Why couldn't you sleep?"

"Who cares?" I smiled. "This will be much more fun than stargazing. Where are we going?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Fred said, holding his hands up. "There is no 'we.' George and I will just do this tomorrow night. For now, want to talk about why you can't sleep?"

"No, why would I want to talk about that? Who were you planning to prank?"

"Nobody."

"Oh, so you were just scouting for a place to set up a prank?"

George nodded after a moment's hesitation. "But that can wait until tomorrow, honestly, I don't even really feel like sneaking out anymore. I'd hate to get you in trouble if you got caught with us."

"Yeah," Fred piped up. "You see, we're experts when it comes to sneaking around, and we would hate to get you in trouble the night before your parents come. Or the morning of, as is probably the case."

I rolled my eyes. "Please, I'm the perfect person to bring along with you. I got out to the Forbidden Forest, didn't I?"

"You mean, you didn't sleepwalk?"

I hesitated. That was enough of an answer for them.

The twins exchanged a look I couldn't read. "Wicked."

"No! It's not- I didn't-"

"Don't worry, Lucy, your secret's safe with us," Fred said, winking.

George nodded. "Trust us, of all people; we'd never snitch."

"Do you want to come with us? We're trying to think of a good corridor to plant a Dungbomb in."

I struggled to find words to say. But I really did want to go out with them. I figured it would be a good distraction from whatever tomorrow held. I smiled. "I'd love to go with you. But maybe you two should follow me."

They cocked their heads. "Why?"

I smirked. "If I'm sleepwalking through the corridors and you happened to see me leave, wouldn't it be the decent thing to do if you followed me and tried to bring me back to the common room?"

Slow grins spread across their faces. 

"You know, Lucy," Fred said. "For someone who's never been to Zonko's, you sure do have a brilliant mind for things like this. Let's go."

It was another hour before I finally fell asleep that night, but when I passed into my dream world, the meeting with Professor Dumbledore was the furthest thing from my mind.

* * *

The second Professor Dumbledore said Cedric and I were free to go, I barely made it to the door before I began to sprint away from everything and everyone.

"Lucy, where are you going?" Cedric called after me.

"Please don't follow me!" I called back, running faster.

I ran all the way to the Quidditch stands and hid in the stairwell, finally letting all of my emotions manifest in the form of tears. Fragments of the meeting replayed in my mind, like Quidditch plays through a pair of Omnioculars.

_My father's angry voice. "If the potions brewed here are ineffective, why should she stay? She belongs at home with her mother and myself!"_

_"Mr. Diggory, Professor Snape is the most careful man I have ever met, and he worked alongside one of the most brilliant Potioneers to ever pass through this school, Miss Penny Haywood. She was a friend of Cedric's, I believe. Lucy said the potion had the intended effects --- she was thinking clearly and in full control. The only unfortunate side effects were as a result of her dittany allergy. If you don't mind, Mr. Diggory, I have a question of my own: why would this potion have caused such adverse effects when you claimed she had been taking it for years with better success?"_

_"I've been wondering the same thing," Cedric admitted. "I can confirm she's taken it before with success, so I'm not quite sure why we didn't know of her dittany allergy sooner."_

_Dad had grown visibly upset and looked to my mum for help, but she kept her face a careful blank._

My mind skipped ahead a couple more minutes of the meeting.

_"What about the next transformation? And the one after that, and the one after that? How can we sleep at night knowing Lucy is so far away and in such danger?"_

_"Mr. Diggory, we have all already apologized for the harm done to your daughter, but I can assure you it will not happen again. She can choose to spend her transformations in the Shrieking Shack. Madam Pomfrey will escort her to the entrance to the tunnel that leads to the Shrieking Shack, and she will meet her there again when the sun rises. The Shrieking Shack is very safe, I assure you. A previous student transformed there all seven years without incident, and we would be happy to do so again."_

_"But what if she wants to come home? You do want to come home, don't you?"_

I regretted the way I flinched under my dad's gaze as I shook my head.

_"Well, why not?"_

I regretted the way I had struggled to find my voice.

_"I'm not as afraid as you are, Dad."_

_"Not as afraid!" he spluttered. "I fear with good reason, Lucy Everlin Diggory! You were nearly killed!"_

_"Then shouldn't it be my decision to make?"_

_"Not when you're making the wrong decision! I am your father!"_

_"And I'm her brother," Cedric said, reaching for my hand, which I eagerly accepted. "And I think Lucy should make her own decision."_

_"What do you know about this?" Dad snapped, his words dripping with venom. "Are you the magical creatures expert?"_

_"No," he answered softly. "I'm not. But I do love my sister, and I've seen firsthand how happy she is here."_

_"Were you not happy at home?" Dad's gaze was back on me._

_"I was." I held tighter to Cedric's hand. "But I'm happy here, with Cedric. With my friends."_

_"Have you heard the fantastic news yet, Mr. Diggory?" Professor McGonagall inquired suddenly._

_Dad blinked and backed away from Cedric and I, turning to face her. "Pardon?"_

_"Just Monday night, Lucy was added to the Gryffindor roster as a reserve player, for any position."_

_"Oh, um..." He paused. Dad had never been that much of a Quidditch fan, but he knew Cedric was. Every professional match we had gone to was because Cedric had asked. Dad could never say no to Cedric. "I hadn't heard. That's great."_

But it wasn't enough. He kept arguing that I didn't belong at Hogwarts. When it was proven that Hogwarts was not too dangerous for me, he changed tracks and began to argue I was too dangerous for Hogwarts. 

_"Why should Lucy have to choose between poisoning herself with dittany or endangering her classmates when she can come home and have a potion that works and no one to endanger?"_

_"If you tell us how her potion at home is brewed, we will replicate it as closely as possible."_

_He had frozen in his tracks again. "I don't know how it is brewed differently."_

_"Additionally," Professor Dumbledore continued, "she will pose no danger to her classmates from the Shrieking Shack. It worked for seven years for a prior student without incident, and I have faith that the same will be true for Lucy, potion or no potion."_

_My dad had nothing to say to that._

It was eventually decided that I would not take the wolfsbane potion for the month of October since I was still recovering. Because I wasn't taking the potion, I would spend the night of the full moon in the Shrieking Shack.

_"You are free to go, Lucy and Cedric," Professor Dumbledore said when we had all agreed. "Professor McGonagall and I will see your parents off castle grounds."_

_"If one more thing goes wrong, Lucy, there will be no meeting. Your mother and I will bring you home ourselves, no questions asked and no arguments allowed."_

I was still a Hogwarts student, but for how long? I couldn't go home, not anymore. Not now that I was finally feeling, well... like I was a part of something great. Or could I?

Maybe my dad was right. Maybe I was a danger.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door to the staircase opening.

"Lucy?"

I glanced up to see two heads of red hair start climbing up the stairs. I wiped my eyes quickly and cleared my throat.

"What's wrong?" George asked the second he saw me.

"Yeah, what happened?" Fred echoed as they sat on either side of me.

I rested my chin in my hand. "Have you ever heard of a wizard being homeschooled before?"

"What? No, that won't happen."

"Yeah, we won't let that happen."

"We should brew polyjuice potion so that if anybody comes to take you away, they won't know which one of us to take!"

I raised an eyebrow. "What's polyjuice potion?"

"Oh, we've wanted to brew it for years, it would sure make a brilliant prank. Basically, if you drink the potion and it has, say, a strand of someone's hair inside it, you transform into that person temporarily."

"I mean, Fred and I cause enough confusion by there being two of us. Can you imagine how fun it would be to have seven or twelve or twenty-three of us running around? I bet you every professor would have a heart attack."

I giggled. "So if someone tried to take me home, you'd turn into me?"

They nodded emphatically.

"Besides, you can't leave now," Fred said, "we had a question for you. A proposal, really."

"A proposal? I'm listening."

"Well," George began, "Freddie and I have been wanting to turn the Gryffindor common room into a haunted house for Halloween since we were first-years, but we haven't been allowed to. But Percy said a very reluctant yes this year, and we were wondering if you'd like to help us."

"We've noticed that Hermione and Harry and Ron seem to be caught in some sort of feud," Fred added, "so if you'd like people to hang out with, we aren't the best option, but we're available."

"Oh, shut up, I've had a lot of fun with you two," I said. "You're sure you wouldn't mind a dumb little first-year helping?"

"Only if that 'dumb little first-year' is you! Lucy Diggory, the one who snuck into the Forbidden Forest and fought a... well, what _did_ you fight?"

I sighed. "It's pointless trying to keep a secret from you two. I don't understand how you keep finding me no matter where I go. Well, I don't know what I fought, exactly. Some type of cloaked figure. I tried running, but whoever it was caught up to me, and cast a nonverbal spell on me. I..." I bit my lip. "If anything like that happens again, my parents said they will just take me away on the spot, and I fear they would just hide me in the house, where nothing could ever get me again."

They absorbed my words in sympathetic silence.

"I'll tell you what, Lucy," George said after a moment. "If you help us with the haunted house, we'll help teach you some defensive spells so that if you ever, ah, sleepwalk again and get into trouble, you'll be able to stand up for yourself."

"And I know what you're probably thinking," Fred cut in quickly. "What would we know about defensive spells? Well... neither of us like talking about the circumstances surrounding it, but our first year, we joined a secret organization of sorts. Adalyn Benson started it, and we all learned defensive spells and the like from each other. And we'd love to help you learn the same things."

"What do you say, Lu?" George asked, grinning. "Do we have a deal? You help with the haunted house, we help you learn how to better defend yourself?"

I smiled back. "Deal."


	8. The One Who Keeps Me Here

_When the world's on fire, all I need is you  
I don't always think to say it, but it's true  
When I just wanna disappear  
You're the one who keeps me here _

_"World's on Fire"  
Mike Shinoda_

* * *

LUCY: 

A deal was a deal, and I soon learned that the Weasley twins took their deals seriously. The next couple of weeks passed in a whirlwind of activity. Between classes, homework, Quidditch practice, haunted house preparation, and learning defensive spells, I barely had time for Cedric's birthday present --- I was glad I had started it early that year. Just the same, I still had some finishing touches to do the night before his birthday after the twins decided we had enchanted enough masks for one night.

"Aren't you going to bed too?" Fred asked when it didn't look like I was following suit.

I shook my head. "Cedric's birthday is tomorrow, and I'm not quite done with his gift yet."

"Oh, can we see?"

I shrugged and reached into my bookbag, pulling out the scarf I was nearly finished knitting. "It's not the best, I know, but I hope he likes it anyway. See, I have the maroon for Gryffindor, the black for Hufflepuff, and the yellow that's more or less a part of both." I reached into my bag and grabbed the Golden Snitch patch that had just arrived that morning. "Once I sew this on, I'm going to try to figure out how to make the wings flap." I showed them the other end of the scarf, that already had a large white C patch sewn onto it. "I'm debating whether or not I should enchant this patch too. I was thinking about making it flash between red and gold as a joke, but I kind of just like the white."

"That's brilliant," the twins said in unison, kneeling to see the scarf. "How long have you been working on this?"

"I started over summer," I admitted, "but I had to redo most of it because it was just in Hufflepuff colors. I really thought I was going to be a Hufflepuff, you know."

"Well, thank Merlin you weren't," Fred laughed. "Then we'd have no reserve Quidditch player and we'd be all on our lonesome trying to put Halloween together."

"You two are the ones doing all of the work anyway," I pointed out.

"Not true," George protested. "Whose idea was it to make all of the masks scream at the end?"

"Mine," I sighed. "Fine, you two are doing _most_ of the work."

"Well, next year, don't expect a free ride to glory," Fred teased. "You'll be a second-year. We'll even put you in charge if you want."

"Oh Merlin, no," I giggled. "I'll still help, but that's a lot of responsibility. Besides, nobody can keep you two in check anyway, me least of all. I'm a bad influence."

"You seem to be the only one who thinks that," George retorted. "Our mum's written half a dozen glowing letters about how we've barely gotten in trouble this past month, and Percy blames it all on you. Horrible influence, indeed."

"Yeah, little does she know that it's all because we're too overworked for mischief," Fred said with a dramatic sigh.

"They think you've managed to force us to clean up our act," George added, mock-scowling. "Our mum and Perfect Prefect Percy worship the ground upon which you walk."

I laughed. "Do they actually?"

They nodded emphatically.

"They think you're an angel come straight from heaven, sent to show us the error of our tomfoolery."

"Well, I happen to love your tomfoolery," I said. "As soon as Halloween is over, we still need to set off that Dungbomb."

"Rest assured, young one, the haunted house is merely a brief pause in our pranking performance. Dungbombs are top of our Hogsmeade shopping list!" Fred declared.

"Well, don't stay up too late," George warned. "We have Quidditch practice tomorrow and we can't have you falling asleep on your broom and breaking your neck until after Halloween, alright?"

I laughed. "Alright, alright. Good night, you two."

"G'night, Cub!" they said before heading up the stairs to their dormitory and leaving me alone in the common room. They had finally settled on a nickname after nearly three weeks of consideration --- since the Gryffindor animal was a lion, they thought it appropriate that they call me Cub, as in a lion cub. Either that, or they would say "Lulululululululululu" as quickly as they could until they had my undivided attention. Sometimes I ignored them on purpose, just to see how long they would go before giving up. They hadn't given up yet, and once I pretended not to hear them for a full minute and a half.

I rose from the ground on stiff legs and flopped on the couch to continue knitting. I had spent several hours on my hands and knees with Fred and George the past few weeks, poring over books of decorating charms and sketches of the maze we would construct and whatever other scraps of information we deemed useful.

We had become quite the team, the three of us. I did all of my homework for the week while they were at the Quidditch practices that I didn't have to attend, and they took turns teaching me defensive spells while the other did his homework on Saturday mornings. Nearly every other waking minute not spent in class or at Quidditch practice was reserved for the haunted house. We worked feverishly, often tuning the rest of the world out as we discussed singing charms and color-changing enchantments and whether or not it would be worth it to cast a general flame-freezing charm around the whole common room beforehand.

Cedric's birthday was little different, but he didn't mind. He loved the scarf, and he ended up spending the day with his friends rather than me anyway. He understood that the full moon was coming, so I was under more pressure than usual to stay on top of my work. 

Since it had been decided that I would try a transformation without the wolfsbane, I was a different kind of ill leading up to the full moon as I had been in September.

The full moon was on a Wednesday that month, October 23. After Sunday's Quidditch practice, my hands couldn't stop shaking. I accidentally turned a pumpkin ink black instead of blood red, and it took five minutes for the twins to fix it. After that incident, they called it a night, and I headed up to my dormitory, but I couldn't sleep. I stayed up way too late into the night reading my textbooks by the light of my wand because I knew trying to sleep would be hopeless. I awoke the next morning with a crick in my neck because I had fallen asleep hunched over my textbook, but Cedric was able to fix it with a flick of his wand. What few notes I managed to take in class were practically illegible, and I often found myself doodling on the margins of the parchment the majority of the time. As the day wore on, I felt the familiar flush of fever creep into my body, and when I walked into the common room that night, Fred and George confirmed what I already suspected.

"Merlin, Cub, you look like you just took a sunburn jinx to the face," Fred said.

"I thought your flying lessons were Thursdays," George remarked. "You shouldn't be so sunburned just from walking to the greenhouses."

"They are. And do sunburn jinxes exist? I've never heard of that before."

"We invented one last year. Tried it on your brother, actually. He was able to reverse it immediately, of course, but his whole club of adoring fangirls wouldn't speak to us for weeks because we dared to mess with his perfect face."

I laughed. My stomach growled loudly. "Blimey, I'm starving."

"You would give Ron a run for his money with how much you've been eating lately."

"Either of you want to go to the kitchens with me?"

"I have a better idea," Fred said, grabbing a blank mask. "We shouldn't be needing this anyway."

With a flick of his wand, the mask became a loaf of bread. 

"Wicked," I said as he placed it in the middle of our workspace and tore a chunk off the corner. "Will you teach me that spell after the defensive ones?"

"Sure!"

"When will I get to test those anyway?"

They each cocked an eyebrow. "Test?"

I nodded. "You know, use them on something other than training dummies."

"You want to attack us?" George asked with a mock hurt expression.

"No can do, Cub, our handsome faces are far too precious," Fred sighed, running a hand down his freckled cheek. "Try them on your brother, maybe."

"Oh, shove off," I laughed, swatting his arm. "I'm talking about the Forest. When are we going to actually put the spells to the test?"

"Not for a while," George said, and I could tell from his demeanor that, for once, he was being serious. "You got lucky once, Lucy, but you can't expect to get that lucky again."

"You two have snuck off loads of times!" I protested.

"We're stupid," Fred said simply. "We've taken risks we really shouldn't have, and we got lucky too. I can't even begin to tell you how many times Bill and Charlie and Adalyn had to bail us out our first year. We've learned a lot of lessons the hard way, and we're not going to let you have to learn those lessons the hard way, too."

"Alright," I relented, flipping my wand. "I'm just bored, I guess. I want a real test."

"Well, for now, we have the haunted house, so try to focus on that. After Halloween, we'll see what kind of real test we can rig up for you."

I smiled at that. "Sounds great."

I kept working long after Fred and George had gone to bed. I considered going sleepwalking, but their words had resonated with me. I had gotten lucky, I couldn't deny that. And the thought of the Forbidden Forest made my skin crawl; it was just the reckless adrenaline of the approaching full moon talking. But at the same time, I _was_ restless. Sighing, I reached for a mask and tapped it, watching as orange paint blossomed across it in the shape of angry, flickering flames. I tapped it again, and a pair of bloodshot eyes appeared, darting back and forth. I grinned to myself and reached for a mirror as I placed it over my face. It was delightfully terrifying.

Later that night, I jumped up and began to pace. I had tried to convince myself I could make it through the night enchanting and planning until I fell asleep, but I couldn't contain myself any longer. The fire in the fireplace was dying, so I pointed my wand at the flames, whisper-shouting, "Incendio!"

It burst to life accordingly, just the way the training dummy had a few days prior. I continued my pacing, waiting for the fire to die again so I could re-ignite it. When I got bored of pacing, I started jumping in place, casting a silencing charm so no one could hear me.

_"It's not a defensive spell," George had explained at our first unofficial lesson, "but it's our best friend, and I suppose it could save your life in a true pinch."_

_"Yeah," Fred had agreed. "Silencio is the reason we get out of as much as we do. Of course, it's not foolproof-"_

_"You really have to know when to use it and when to not-"_

_"But it sure does help with sneaking around and the like."_

_"And it's going to be the only way the three of us get any sense of privacy, a lot of what we teach you will be loud."_

_"So for today, let's put silencing charms all around here so we can come back without issue in the future."_

I grew impatient, so I gave up and retired to my dormitory, slipping away into nonsensical dreams of talking masks and singing gnomes. The morning light hitting my red sheets hurt my eyes when I opened them, so I stumbled through my morning routine squinting. I was glad Parvati had taught me the braiding charm; trying to braid my own hair with such shaky hands would have been a nightmare.

After her cutting comments in History of Magic, Hermione had stopped going out of her way to talk to me, which was honestly just as well with how busy the twins and I were. But that day, after the bell rang, she handed me my book after I had dropped it, her sharp brown eyes studying me. 

"Are you alright, Lucy? You seem tense."

"Do I?" I asked, shoving my book into my bag and jumping to my feet. "Because I'm fine, really, not tense at all."

We exited the classroom together and headed up the stairs. The echoes of dozens of feet climbing the stairs all around me made my head spin.

"Where have you been the past few weeks?" she asked. "It seems that we never really talk anymore."

"I've been awfully busy with the twins." 

"I've noticed. But why don't you talk to me anymore?"

I was grateful to have Hermione by my side, interrogation and all. I would have been easily overwhelmed without her right next to me, leading the way.

"It's nothing personal, Hermione, honest," I managed. The sun streaming through a window hit my eyes at just the wrong angle, and I hissed in pain before continuing. "It's just... well, ever since you and Ron and Harry had your row-"

"We had a 'row' because they nearly killed me!"

"Not on purpose-"

"Intentions don't matter when lives are at stake!"

"Anyway," I cut in, determined to have my say now that we were finally talking. "To answer your question, I've been spending my time with Fred and George because it's what's best for me right now. When I talk to Harry and Ron, you get upset with me. I love being your friend, Hermione, but I'd like to be friends with Harry and Ron too. But since you three aren't exactly speaking with each other at the moment, I'm going to spend my time with people who don't make me feel like I need to choose sides."

She didn't have anything to say to that. 

I sighed. "I'm sorry if that came across as harsh. I hope I didn't hurt your feelings. I just got tired of feeling like I have to choose between you or them, so I decided I would choose to spend time with people who made me feel better and not worse, and for now, that's the twins."

We entered our next class at that moment and took our typical seats next to each other. She didn't say a word to me the entire period, but it seemed that at least some of my words had gotten to her. But by then, I didn't care. Everything was too loud, too bright, too strong. At lunch, the food was too hot, too cold, too crunchy, too soft, but I ate everything I could anyway. I would need it.

That night, I went to my dormitory when Fred and George went to theirs, but I laid in bed for no more than five minutes before I knew I needed to sleepwalk. The sheets were too scratchy, the breathing of my roommates was too loud, even the dying fire in the corner was too bright. I didn't even bother to throw a cloak over my shoulders as I left the room and made my way out to the courtyard. The night was clear, and the stars were the only thing in the world at the moment that didn't overwhelm me. I curled into a small ball on the ground and tipped my head to the sky, some of my agitation finally slipping away. 

I don't know how long I was there, but once I had finally settled myself down somewhat, I rose and made my way back to bed, getting a fitful couple of hours before finally giving up and changing into my clothes for the day when Hermione woke for her sunrise shower. I made my way down to the common room and cracked open my Herbology book, trying to ignore the throbbing headache already beginning.

"You're up early," Hermione commented a couple minutes later when she came down the stairs a few minutes later.

"Couldn't sleep," I replied. The sound of my own voice in my ears made me want to scream, even though I knew that would make my head split apart altogether.

As she sat next to me on the couch, the scent of Hermione hit me all at once. Though the lavender soap from her shower was the strongest scent, I could smell the leather on her hands from the books she had skimmed that night, and the ink beneath her fingernails from essays. It was strange, really, because the only people I had ever truly noticed in that way were my parents and Cedric, as they had been the only people ever around on the day of a transformation. I found myself wondering how everyone else would smell, but before I could, she asked what I was reading.

Preferring not to have to speak again, I lifted the cover for her.

"That's a good idea," she said, reaching for her own copy. "Is it your favorite class?"

I shrugged, hoping I didn't come off as rude.

"Well, I'd say it's probably your best. I think my favorite class is Transfiguration, but it might be Charms."

"Cool," I replied, offering a smile her direction. She smiled back hesitantly before returning to her book. We read together in silence for about an hour before our fellow sleepy Gryffindors stumbled down the stairs. Even the sounds of shoes on floorboards was too loud, much too loud. And even worse were the overwhelming smells, of th e common room fireplace and the worn books that littered the corners and the fur of many cats and rats that had roamed the room recently.

Ron smelled of Chocolate Frogs and wooden chess pieces. Harry smelled of Chocolate Frogs, as well, and of broom polish and the metal of the Golden Snitch. Lavender and Parvati smelled of books and flowers and cosmetic powder. 

When I found myself wedged between the twins at breakfast, they both smelled of smoke and paint and wood. I imagined I smelled quite similar, considering we had spent so much time together the past few weeks. As more and more people entered the Great Hall, I felt myself getting more and more overwhelmed. I bounced my leg up and down violently as my senses reached a crescendo. Too bright, too loud, too strong, too bright, too loud, too strong.

A firm hand on my shaking leg brought me back to reality.

"Lucy, are you alright?" George asked.

I managed a nod. 

"What's wrong?" Fred pressed, clearly not believing me.

"Nothing!" I squeaked. "I'm fine!"

"Lucy," they warned in unison.

I sighed shakily. "It's just... it's just... my parents want me to meet them in Hogsmeade after classes today and I don't want to."

"Oh," George said, his face and voice softened. "Why didn't you just say so?"

"I just feel so bad because I wanted to help tonight but I don't know how long they want me to be there or why they even want to see me and I-"

"Hey, hey, hey." Fred set his fork down and turned to face me fully. "Don't you worry about that. You've been working really hard, and you deserve a night off. Even if it's, er, less than ideal."

"Exactly," George echoed. "We have Quidditch tonight anyway. Lucky your parents didn't come on a night where you had to be at practice too, eh?"

I nodded. "Yeah." _A day will come, though, when a full moon clashes with Quidditch. What a nightmare that'll be._ "Definitely lucky."

I struggled to make it through the day. Every little sound or burst of light or slight touch made me jump, or flinch, or wince. After my final class of the day, I slipped away to the Hospital Wing, where Madam Pomfrey was tending to a student with a mysterious green welt growing on his hand. My stomach turned at the sight of it, but Madam Pomfrey seemed less than concerned.

"Just a moment, Lucy," she called to me. "Once I tend to Archie here, I'll be happy to speak with you."

I made my way over to the bed as Madam Pomfrey walked away to a large cabinet filled with vials of colorful potions. "Archie? What happened?"

He laughed humorlessly. "Hey, Diggory. Well, remember what I said a few weeks ago about how my little talk with that smug blond prick was the first but not the last?"

I nodded. "Please don't tell me he-"

"Oh no, it wasn't Draco who did this," he said. "But some fifth-year overheard what I was saying and didn't like it, so all of a sudden I had this lovely specimen growing on my hand."

I grimaced. "You should be more careful, I don't want you getting hurt."

He cocked an eyebrow.

" _More_ hurt," I corrected with a sigh.

"It's worth it to me," he said with a shrug. "I'm not saying anything wrong, so I'm not going to stop just because it makes some people upset."

I opened my mouth to reply, but Madam Pomfrey arrived then with a vial of red liquid, which she applied liberally over his hand before bandaging it. She ushered me away, telling Archie she would re-examine his hand when she was back. Archie didn't ask any questions as I left; I hoped he couldn't see how tense I was, but I had the feeling that those blue eyes didn't miss much.

The Whomping Willow was even larger up close. Madam Pomfrey showed me how to safely enter the tunnel as the sun began to set, reminding me kindly that she would be there waiting for me at sunrise. I thanked her, managing my best smile, and disappeared down the hole, landing in the tunnel. My breath hitched in my throat. With my senses as heightened as they were, the scent was nearly unbearable. Still, I drew a deep breath and gathered my courage, placing one foot in front of the other until I reached the Shrieking Shack.

I had seen it a handful of times before from the outside. I learned that the inside was just as dilapidated. Every surface was covered with dust and mold, and it seemed there wasn't a piece of furniture left intact. I parked myself under a hole in the ceiling, studying the sky and waiting for the moment the transformation would occur. My final thought before the searing pain of transformation wracked my body was of how the next year's Gryffindor haunted house should be modeled after this hellhole.

* * *

_The girl's shrieks brought the inhabitants of Hogsmeade outside._

_"Those poor tortured souls," a patron of The Three Broomsticks commented._

_"They've been quiet for so long now," another agreed. "I wonder what stirred them again."_

_"I just hope they find peace soon," the first said with a shudder. "They do sound like they're in terrible pain."_

_Inside the Shrieking Shack, the transformation was complete. The girl was gone; a werewolf remained in her place._

_It panted and snarled in confusion, taking in its surroundings. It shook its head a couple of times, then began to sprint around the room, sniffing in every crevice for something to eat, because it was hungry. Very hungry. Yet there was nothing to eat._

_With a howl, the wolf launched itself down the stairs, nose high in search of something, anything. Alas, all it could find was dusty furniture and broken windows. It howled again in mourning, darting back upstairs. Down and up and down and up and down and up the wolf flew for hours._

_As midnight came and went, the werewolf began to realize it was rather pointless to keep looking for anything to eat. It slammed its head into a doorframe in frustration, releasing a yelp of pain. It hadn't meant to do it so hard, yet at the same time, it felt right, so it did it again. It slumped to the floor, defeated. Across the room, the bed squeaked in response. The werewolf was suddenly on its feet again, snuffling all around the bed, hoping for some rodent it could use to entertain itself. The night was long, the moon was high, and the werewolf was hungry._

_It was rather lean, really, as far as werewolves go, much like the girl it had replaced. Neither the wolf nor the girl ever seemed to get enough to eat for one reason or another. But both were stronger than their thin frames would suggest. After all, a certain amount of strength was required to undergo such a destructive transformation month after month after month after month._

_Finding nothing, the wolf howled again. It was hungry, so hungry, yet there was nothing and no one. The werewolf kept howling, mourning, biting its own paw in despair, running up and down the stairs. The moon made its way across the sky. Slowly, but surely. When the first rays of the sun dared to rise above the horizon, the wolf gave one last ear-splitting howl before it gave way to a scream, the wolf becoming girl once again._

* * *

I opened my eyes to find myself curled in a ball on the floor. It took a couple of moments to register where I was. Who I was.

I rose to my feet, though everything within me wanted to lay on the ground forever. I was exhausted.

I glanced down at myself. My right ankle was bleeding profusely. My fingers and hands were bloodied and bruised. I couldn't even begin to imagine how my face looked. I made my way back down the tunnel and crawled up through the hole.

"Lucy," Cedric breathed, sprinting forward and hugging me tightly.

I hugged him back as best I was able before he held me away at arms-length, studying me and leading me over to the castle. "You can sit here. You look so tired. I'll do what I can, it doesn't look like you need to go to the Hospital Wing."

"Where's Madam Pomfrey?" I asked as Cedric removed my shoe to examine my ankle closer.

He snorted. "Well, after the Gryffindor Quidditch practice yesterday, Ravenclaw and Slytherin showed up at the same time. Ravenclaw normally practices after your team, but the Slytherins got Professor Snape to sign a piece of paper saying they could have the Pitch last night. Things got... a little out of hand, and the Hospital Wing is a little overwhelmed right now, so I offered to come down to collect you myself."

"I'm glad Gryffindor stayed out of that one. The twins have told me stories about Skye Parkin's temper, and if Slytherin had tried to take the field from us, I probably would have been filling in for her at our first match."

"Speaking of, your first match might be easier than expected. Half of the team got hexed to oblivion, by the looks of it." He gently peeled my socks off, keeping his face a careful blank when he saw the gruesome bite mark. "Don't worry, I can fix it."

He drew his wand and pointed it at the wound. "Episkey."

The skin slowly started to knit back together. I stared, fascinated. "Will you teach me that spell sometime?"

"Of course," he replied, cleaning my sock with a muttered "Scourgify." "How was it last night? You know, comparatively?"

I closed my eyes and sorted through the mental images I still retained from the night. "Dusty."

Cedric laughed then, an easy and genuine laugh. "I'm not surprised. I've heard stories about the Shrieking Shack from older kids who snuck in during Hogsmeade visits."

"Will you ever try to sneak in?" I asked with a smirk.

"No, of course not. Why would I, when I could be spending time at Honeyduke's?"

"You got me there," I giggled. "Isn't the Hogsmeade trip this weekend?"

He nodded. "It'll be my first. I'm quite excited. Now, about that bump on your forehead..."

I reached up to touch it gingerly. "That's mighty impressive, I'd say. I've heard of Swelling Solution, but I don't suppose there's an Anti-Swelling Solution?"

He shook his head and pointed his wand at my forehead. "Episkey will have to do."

I held still as he finished casting healing charms on the various parts of my body still bleeding. When he was finished, I tugged my sock on and slipped my foot into my shoe. We walked together to the castle and went our separate ways, him to the Hospital Wing to report to Madam Pomfrey and me up to the common room to take a quick shower before classes began.

Classes. I could barely keep my eyes open as I stumbled up the stairs. I had been awake for more than 24 hours straight. The thought of classes was nearly unbearable. I crept up to my dormitory, opening the door just as Hermione was leaving the bathroom, her hair still in a towel.

"Lucy!" she gasped. "Where were you? What happened?"

"I was in Hogsmeade with my parents," I lied. "It got late so I stayed overnight." My face fell. "Merlin, I missed Astronomy, didn't I?"

Hermione nodded. "You can borrow my notes."

"You look like you didn't sleep a wink," a half-asleep Parvati mumbled from across the room.

"You look like you didn't shower either," Lavender commented with a yawn.

"I didn't and I didn't, so I'll do you all a favor and shower so I stop smelling like a dead animal."

This prompted giggles from the other girls. I grabbed a clean change of robes and showered quickly. It did little to wake me up, but little was better than nothing. I brushed my teeth and braided my hair, resisting the urge to collapse into bed and heading down to the Great Hall instead.

"Well, _there_ she bloody is!" 

I blinked and looked up. "Me?"

"Yes, you," George said as I slid in between the twins. "Where were you, Cub?"

"It got late and they didn't want me coming back after dark," I lied. "I stayed the night."

"We would have come to get you," Fred sighed. "We know a way to get there and back really quick. Next time that happens, just owl us or something, okay?"

I nodded, yawning. I stared at my empty plate, trying to will myself to grab something, but I was anything but hungry. I was tired, and sore, and queasy, and cold. I shivered. 

"I'm going to go grab a sweater," I said, yawning again. "It's cold in here. I'll see you two later."

"Aren't you going to eat?" Fred called after me.

"I'm not hungry," I replied over my shoulder, making my way through the tables and back up to the common room. I pulled a sweater over my head and promptly fell asleep on the couch in front of the fire. If the twins hadn't come up to check on me, confused by my utter lifelessness, I would have likely missed all of my classes that day. They didn't ask any questions, but I could sense their concern. They blamed my complete change in behavior on the stress finally getting to me, and I let them. It was better than the ugly, ugly truth. 

Whereas the days prior to the full moon were filled with manic energy and complete restlessness, the days afterward were foggy and lethargic. It was all I could do to keep from falling asleep in class; any time I was back in the common room or my dormitory, it was only a matter of minutes before I would nod off. I had learned it took about thirty hours of sleep to fully recover, almost as if I was making up for the sleep I lost before the full moon. I tried and I tried to fight the exhaustion and keep working, but on Friday night, I fell asleep with a pumpkin for a pillow and didn't wake until dawn, finding myself snuggled in a blanket on the couch. It seems Fred and George were feeling the strain, too; Fred was lying on his back next to the fireplace, a mask haphazardly draped on his face and his wand still in his hand, and George was slumped against the wall holding a skeleton tight to his body. I barely had time to chuckle to myself before I drifted off to sleep again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hello again, readers! Here I am again, with just a short note this week. 
> 
> First of all, a little clarification. If the first 2/3 of the chapter or so seems a little bit rushed time-wise, that's because it's supposed to be! I wanted readers to feel the same rising tension Lucy experiences, so if you're a little unnerved by my frantic pacing, I hope you can forgive me for stressing you out. I promise it was like that on purpose.
> 
> Thank you so much to everyone who's read up to this point! Please feel free to comment! Tell me what you love, what you hate, how the story makes you feel, who your favorite character is, who your least favorite character is, anything and everything. Feedback makes the writing process so worthwhile to me because it's a lifeline directly to my lovely readers! (Psst, that's you.)
> 
> I hope everybody is doing well in these crazy times, and that my story provides something of an escape for you. Stay safe and healthy, everyone!


	9. Wingardium Leviosa!

LUCY: 

The days leading up to Halloween passed in a hazy blur. I slept whenever I had the chance, but between catching up on the work from the full moon and wrapping up haunted house preparations, the only chance I truly had to catch my breath was Quidditch practice.

Fortunately for all of us, Skye Parkin was not what you would call a morning person. Our practices always started when the sun was high in the sky, and after learning about the Slytherin-Ravenclaw incident, Skye worked us as hard as ever.

"Half their team will barely be recovered by the time of the match," she explained, "so this will be a great game for offense. We have to be careful, though, because grumpy Slytherins take the most cheap shots out of all of the house teams, and since they're already starting at a disadvantage with the practice they've missed, they're going to be desperate. To prepare for this, we're going to practice with four Bludgers. Sorry, Weasleys," she added when they groaned, "but you can never be too careful. Besides, Little Diggs is here today, so she'll be subbing in and out for you two especially."

When it came to subbing in and out, we had settled into a fairly comfortable routine. I always started and ended as Chaser, because Skye had recognized by then that Chaser was where I belonged. Just the same, the other positions might be needed at any time, so after playing as Chaser for a bit, I would play Keeper until someone scored on me. From there, Fred would toss me his bat, and I'd play Beater until George tossed me his bat. Harry was a solid Seeker, so after Beater, I went back to Chaser until Skye called practice off. 

Skye and I had finally managed to convince the twins to stop going easy on me, and as a result, I had taken quite a few Bludgers to the head. And back, and arm, and leg, and... well, you get the point. They always felt sorry for hitting me, but Beaters were Beaters and they understood that they had a job to do to prepare me for real matches. On this particular day, with four Bludgers zooming around and one very, very tired "Little Diggs," I knew I had to be on top of my game to leave practice with all of my bones intact.

As Skye had explained, Slytherin alternated between two primary strategies. They either kept to their half of the field and tried to use their players other than the Seeker as additional Keepers to try to stop the other team from scoring altogether, or they had all hands on deck on the other end of the field to get their Chasers to rack up as many points as possible. With a weakened team, Skye reckoned they would use the first strategy. Every team member would become more or less a human Bludger, so everyone's roles changed slightly. The goal of the Chasers was to weave through them as effectively as possible and wait until a goal was a certainty to throw the Quaffle, and to only pass when absolutely necessary because of how densely we would be packed. The job of the Beaters was to try to clear a path for the Chasers by picking off as many players as possible, while being careful not to take one of us out by accident. The Keeper was to watch for the Snitch along with the Seeker until the play moved to the other side of the field, and the goal of the Seeker was to catch the Snitch as soon as possible.

Skye pulled me aside while everyone else took to the sky. "Well, Little Diggs, I may have lied to the twins. Today, you're subbing in for me for the whole practice. I'll be flying above practice watching everyone and making sure nobody gets taken out by a Bludger, if the twins happen to miss one."

I grinned. "Excellent."

"Make me proud, kid. You'll be replacing me next year."

"I'll do my best!" I promised, joining the team in the sky. Once she was directly above us, Skye dropped the Quaffle into the field and the practice began.

My head was on a swivel. Four Bludgers trying to attack seven players was unheard of, but Skye certainly had a point. Slytherin would stop at nothing to try to win, and based on the stories I had already heard about past games, nobody was safe. 

It was the most physical practice I had yet experienced. Fred and George tried to emulate the Slytherin strategy without actually hurting or fouling any of us, forcing us to weave around them while still dodging Bludgers and catching the Quaffle.

"Blatching!" Skye called from above after Fred collided with Angelina.

"Hooch wouldn't have called that against Slytherin!" he called back.

"You have a point, but still! Gotta be careful!"

"Careful?" I chuckled to myself as a Bludger whizzed over my head. "Word of the day."

Angelina chuckled and tossed me the Quaffle. "Fred definitely did that on purpose. Why don't you take the foul shot?"

"Alright, thanks!"

I soared up to the hoops and launched the Quaffle as hard as I could, but Oliver managed to kick it away at the last second. I wrinkled my nose in disappointment.

"Thimblerig time!" Skye called from above. "It'll confuse the Bludgers. Come on, Chasers, give it a shot!"

"Oh Merlin," I muttered, my heart sinking. I had watched it several times in practice, of course, but Skye had never actually let me try it. 

It wasn't complicated, necessarily, but it required the complete concentration and cooperation of all three Chasers. Angelina started with the Quaffle, and the three of us moved in a figure-eight motion, passing it back and forth until we were close enough to score. Fortunately, when we were close enough, I was not the one with the Quaffle --- Angelina sent it at the hoop, but Oliver caught it.

"I want all three of you to try to score!" Skye shouted. I groaned. I was running out of steam quickly. All I could think about was the soft red couch waiting for me in the common room after a nice hot shower...

The Quaffle was in play again, dropping into my hands. I shook the thoughts of rest from my mind, focusing as best I could as we twisted and turned. Just before I could take a shot, though, a Bludger slammed into my shoulder, sending the Quaffle flying from my grasp. But I refused to let anyone else snatch it up. I darted forward and reached with my left hand, tucking it securely under my arm and plummeting downward, pretending to have lost my balance.

"Someone catch her!" Fred shouted from above.

"Watch out!" Alicia screamed. "There's a Bludger chasing you!"

But they didn't need to worry. I shot straight up into the sky, switching the Quaffle to my right hand and launching it at the hoops from an angle. Oliver didn't even see it --- it sailed clean through. There was no time to celebrate, though, because the Bludger was catching up. I zigzagged away, but it got closer and closer until George beat it away.

"Thanks!" I called over my shoulder before returning to do the Thimblerig for Alicia to score. After Oliver caught the Quaffle she launched at him, Skye called us up to her and gave a quick pep talk before releasing us.

I made my way to the changing room and started peeling my pads off, wincing slightly as I twisted my shoulder.

"You good, Diggory?" Angelina asked. "You need someone to walk you to the Hospital Wing?"

"I'm alright, but thanks. I'll go find Cedric. He can fix it up in a jiffy."

"You need someone to walk with you?" Alicia asked with a giggle.

I smiled and rolled my eyes. "If you'd really like to come with me, be my guest. Would you like me to tell him about how you _almost_ got one past Oliver?"

"I'd really like it if you told him I did get one past Oliver, but maybe I should wait until I actually do make it past Oliver to go with you to meet your brother."

"That's what I thought," I chuckled, slamming the locker closed and pressing my hand to my shoulder. "Good practice! See you later!"

"Bye!" they chorused after me.

I made my way toward the castle, wondering where I'd find Cedric just before lunch on a Saturday morning. Thankfully, I didn't have to look very long; he and Henry were studying together under a tree.

"Hi, Cedric! Hi, Henry!" I called. Their heads snapped up in perfect unison, and I smiled in amusement.

"Hey, Lu," Cedric replied with an easy grin. "How's it going?"

"I hurt my shoulder. Would you mind fixing it up? It's not worth going to the Hospital Wing," I added quickly, noting his look of concern, "but it sure is uncomfortable."

"Of course, not a problem," he said. "What happened?"

"Skye wouldn't want me telling the enemy." I assumed my best mock serious expression. "But she's worried about Slytherin, and had me in the whole practice today." I glanced at Henry. "Please don't tell anyone I said that. Nobody's supposed to know I'm even on the team."

"Your secret's safe with me," he replied with a smile. "Not that I'm terribly surprised, anyway. You're _his_ sister, after all. Quidditch is in your blood."

"Which shoulder?" Cedric asked, setting his book down and drawing his wand.

"My right one," I replied, grimacing when he reached forward to touch it. "I was about to take a shot at Wood when a Bludger pelted me from behind."

Cedric and Henry both groaned in empathy. They knew the feeling too well.

"You didn't do any major damage," Cedric said. "This should help. Episkey!"

And just like that, half the pain vanished. 

"Thanks, Cedric, that helped a lot," I said, turning my arm in a couple of circles.

"Yeah, happy to help," he replied. "Do you want me to teach you how to use it?"

I nodded emphatically. "Fred and George can wait!"

Cedric rolled his eyes. "They won't stop talking about your haunted house."

"It sounds great," Henry chuckled. "I might have to sneak up to the Gryffindor common room to see it for myself."

"We've been working really hard on it, but we still have a ways to go," I admitted. "But I'd like to learn this, at least as best as I can right now."

And so we passed the time until lunch. Henry returned his attention to his book and just listened; it was nice having my brother more or less to myself for a while.

* * *

"Cub!" a voice whispered. "Cub, wake up!"

I opened my eyes to see the twins hovered over me, grinning from ear to ear.

"Did we fall asleep in the common room again?" I mumbled, sitting up and rubbing my eyes.

"Yep!" Fred said, tossing me a pumpkin, which I managed to catch. "But it's Halloween, so we've got lots of work to do!"

George helped me to my feet. "We only just woke up. We reckon it's around four in the morning, but if we start now, we might be able to attend part of the feast tonight!"

I shook my head back and forth to wake myself up. "Alright. I'm on board. So what's the plan?"

We immediately set to work, and had already decorated the walls and had just started rearranging the furniture when the first Gryffindor stumbled down the stairs.

"Happy Halloween, Dom!" Fred called.

"Happy Halloween," the boy replied, gawking at the room. "This is crazy."

"Dom is the resident DJ at our Quidditch parties," George explained, as Fred gave him a grand tour of the room so far. "He found a Muggle contraption in the common room his first year called a record player. He's one of the only ones who can make it work, and the Muggle-born kids always have fun bringing their vinyl records to play for everyone when we win. He's roommates with Percy and Oliver, unfortunate soul."

"What's wrong with Oliver and Percy? Do they not like each other?"

"Oh, no, they love each other. They're best pals, believe it or not. But, well, they both tend to be very intense, and Dom is just about one of the most laid-back fellows you'll ever come across. He's in the Frog Choir and in the band, and he considers most academia to be an utter waste of time because all he truly cares about is music."

I giggled. "Sounds like the type of personality that would drive the others bonkers."

"It does, I assure you. But Dom's a good chap, and he's always up for helping Fred and I prank our dearest prefect brother. Says it lightens the mood from time to time, believe it or not."

More Gryffindors began to come down the stairs, and we greeted each with a chipper "Happy Halloween!" They often replied in kind, their eyes wide as they looked around. 

"You should head off to class, Cub," Fred said. "Halloween's Charms lesson is one you don't want to miss as a first-year."

"Aren't you two going to class, too?" I asked, slinging my bookbag over my shoulder.

"We have double History of Magic," George replied.

I laughed. "Oh, okay, I get it. Alright, I'll be back up here come lunchtime."

"Bye!" they called after me as I slipped through the portrait hole.

Fred and George were right --- we were making objects fly in Charms for the first time, and I was sure glad I was there. Professor Flitwick divided us into partners, and I found myself paired with Neville Longbottom. I hadn't gotten much chance to talk to him given how busy I had been with the twins, but he struck me as a sweet boy, even if he struggled academically. I bit back a giggle when I realized Hermione and Ron were partnered together; I couldn't tell who was more upset about it. Harry looked relieved to be paired with Seamus instead of Hermione... until Seamus lit his feather on fire out of frustration, that is. 

I couldn't even touch my wand because I was so busy trying to help Neville with his spell. We both got distracted, however, when Hermione started raising her voice at Ron. 

"Stop, stop, stop," she snapped. "You're doing it wrong."

"I'm saying the words and waving my wand the right way," he retorted. "What more can I do?"

"It’s Wing- _gar_ -dium Levi- _o_ -sa. Make the 'gar' nice and long, and put more emphasis on the 'o.'"

"You do it, then, if you're so clever!"

"Alright, I will." She rolled up her sleeves, and with a very confident wand movement, said, "Wingardium leviosa!"

The feather immediately began to rise from the table, earning Professor Flitwick's praise.

"Neville, do you mind if I try?" I asked, grabbing my wand. "I want to make sure I know what I'm doing before I accidentally teach you the wrong thing."

He nodded, setting his wand down in relief.

"Wingardium leviosa!" I said, careful to make my wand movement as perfect as possible. My feather, too, began to rise.

"Miss Diggory has done it as well!" Professor Flitwick cheered. "Well done!"

"Thank you!" I replied with a smile, feeling my face grow hot as the class turned to me to see for themselves.

Neville seemed particularly impressed. "I'm glad you're my partner today, Lucy, because I'm sure hopeless."

"Nonsense, Neville," I said with a dismissive wave of my hand. "Let's keep trying!"

By the end of class, Neville had managed to make half of the feather lift off the desk. He was absolutely ecstatic.

"I'm going to go ask Professor Flitwick if we can be partners in every Charms class! You're the best, Lucy!" He hugged me quickly before running over to Professor Flitwick's desk. I chuckled to myself and made my way to DADA. I hoped for another fun lesson, but Professor Quirrell spent the whole period talking about a basic protective ward that I had already learned from Fred and George. We didn't even get to practice it, he merely told us about it. I wished I had ditched.

As soon as that class was over, I hurried back up to the Gryffindor common room, where the twins were spinning skeletons in circles.

"What in the name of Godric Gryffindor's great-grandmother are you two doing?" I asked, unable to stop myself from laughing.

"Merely testing out the dancing charms!" Fred called, tossing the skeleton aside and grabbing my hands. We danced around the room a couple of times before he passed me on to George and stole George's bony partner. We laughed until our sides hurt as we dodged the skeletons dancing all around us. After a couple of minutes, we decided we had to get back to work, so work we did, assembling walls and dimming candles.

George even managed to transfigure a quill into a live bat, which seemed like a great idea until it flew straight into my face. I screamed and swatted it away, sending it zooming straight into Fred's chest.

"Sorry!" I squeaked, keeping my hands up around my face. "I wasn't expecting it to hit me!"

"No worries," he chuckled, grabbing it by the foot and holding it out in front of him. "What's the matter, you don't like bats?"

"I hate them!"

"Oh, how unfortunate," he teased, stepping closer to me.

"Don't you dare, Fred Weasley!" I squealed, taking a couple steps backward and drawing my wand.

"I'm not Fred, I'm George!"

"No, you're definitely Fred!" I said as I ducked behind his twin. "George, help!"

He merely laughed. "A lion cub, afraid of a little bat? Give me a break!"

"Bats are creepy!" I whined. George jumped out of the way, leaving me wide open. I pointed my wand straight at Fred's abdomen. "Rictumsempra!"

Fred dropped the bat as he doubled over in laughter. The bat shook its head and flew up toward the ceiling, as far away from the redheaded menaces as it could get. 

"Lucy!" he managed between bouts of laughter. "Make it- stop! HAHAHAHAHA!"

"Fair is fair," I said with a shrug. "Just a couple more seconds, then I'll be satisfied."

George smiled. "A couple more minutes works, too."

"I wouldn't look so smug, George Weasley, you were the one who left me vulnerable _and_ transfigured it to begin with!" I pointed my wand back at Fred and undid the tickling charm. 

He was panting as he rose to his feet, clutching his sides. "Where did you... learn that one... Cub? We didn't... teach you... the tickling charm."

I smirked. "Don't underestimate my hatred of bats." I pointed my wand at George. "Rictumsempra!"

"Protego!" he countered. "Rictumsempra!"

"Protego!"

The twins smiled at each other, then at me when I successfully shielded myself. "It seems we've done well so far."

I grinned sheepishly. "I try." Above our heads, the bat screeched. "I guess that's our cue to keep working."

"And what do you know," George said. "Another quill! Now our new friend won't be lonely!"

I rolled my eyes and tucked my wand away. "Fine, have it your way. I won't forget this."

George transfigured the second quill, and both twins howled with laughter when it, too, flew directly into my face. 

"Don't worry," Fred cackled. "We won't forget this, either."

* * *

The rest of the day's classes were cancelled in honor of the holiday, so the twins and I worked clear through the afternoon. Thankfully, it was a beautiful sunny day outside, so we didn't end up having to shoo anybody away from the common room. We could see from the window many students playing Gobstones in the Courtyard or zipping around on brooms. 

By the time the feast rolled around, our haunted house was complete.

"I can't wait to see the looks on everyone's faces after the feast," I said as we climbed through the portrait hole and started down the stairs. "I sure hope they like it."

"They will," Fred assured me. "In fact, I'd bet you five Sickles we get everyone to scream at least once. That mummy mask that opens its eyes at the end should get even Percy."

"I'm not the gambling type, Fred, but if I were, I'd bet that everything will make Percy scream. He strikes me as jumpy."

"I've got to agree with Lucy on this one," George said. "Percy tries to be cool, calm, and collected, but I think he'll scream at the very first mask."

We all laughed at the thought of that and entered the Great Hall.

"Look, Lucy, more bats!" Fred crowed.

"Your favorite!" George teased, elbowing my in the ribs.

"Shut up," I muttered, glaring at the ceiling, which was in fact swarming with hundreds of live bats. 

As we took our seats across from Harry and Ron, I scanned the table. "Where's Hermione?" I asked.

Ron looked mildly uncomfortable, and Harry opened his mouth to answer, but Parvati beat him to it. "Still crying in the bathroom. She's been there all afternoon."

"What? Why?"

"I don't know," Lavender said in a passive-aggressive tone that seemed to suggest she in fact knew exactly why. "She said she wanted to be left alone."

"I'm going to go find her," I declared, rising from the table. "She can't miss her first Halloween feast!"

"Neither can you," Fred protested. 

"I'll be right back," I said. "Don't worry. I'm sure I can coax her out."

Without waiting for a response, I set off in search of Hermione. I found her on the third-floor bathroom, crying in a stall.

"Hermione?" I asked. "It's Lucy."

"Go away," came a muffled voice. "I said I wanted to be left alone."

"Rubbish, nobody ever wants to be left alone."

"Well, I do."

I sighed. "If you really want to be left alone, then you can be left alone later, when there's not a spectacular Halloween feast happening in the Great Hall. Besides, why feel sorry for yourself on an empty stomach?"

She sniffled. "It's not like I have any friends anyway, according to Ron."

"Who cares what Ron thinks? I came up here because I care about you, Hermione, and I'm not going back without you."

She sniffled again. I wiggled beneath the stall door so I could talk to her face-to-face. 

"Do you want to tell me what's wrong?"

She took a shaky breath. "A-After Charms, I heard Ron call me a nightmare, and he said it was no wonder I didn't have any f-friends."

"Well, here I am," I replied with a smile and a shrug. "Do you still consider me a friend?"

She nodded. "I just... I wanted to just let Ron struggle at first, but I thought about what you said last week and tried to help him."

"It came across as rather harsh," I admitted, "but I'm proud of you for trying, honest I am."

"It didn't do me any good," she said bitterly. "He just called me a nightmare."

"I'm sure that deep down, he didn't mean it, just the way you didn't mean to come across as harsh. But he took what you said the wrong way instead of recognizing it for what it was, an attempt to help. He's not a mean person, and neither are you. Today was just a misunderstanding, and if you want, I'll help you talk to him about it tomorrow."

"I'll think about it," she said after a moment. "Thank you, Lucy."

"No need to thank me. That's just what friends are for."

At that moment, our stomachs growled in unison. We burst into giggles. 

"Now, what do you say we head down to the feast?"

Hermione nodded. "I'm starving."

But before I could open the stall, the whole bathroom shook. We exchanged a quick panicked glance. 

"What was that?"

Another loud thud shook the bathroom, followed by the sound of the click of a lock.

"What was _that_?" she whimpered. 

I pressed a finger to my lips frantically and drew my wand before peeking through the crack in the door. "I don't see anything," I whispered as softly as I could, turning back to Hermione. But her eyes weren't on me; she was looking almost straight up, her mouth open with terror. I followed her gaze just as she let loose a bloodcurdling scream. A troll loomed above us.

I grabbed her by the neck and pulled her to the ground just as the troll swung its massive club across the stalls, trapping us beneath the rubble. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't think. 

As it lifted its club for round two, I suddenly remembered who I was. I wrenched my wand hand free and circled it above both myself and Hermione.

"Protego!" I screamed. The club came down, but bounced off of the temporary shield. I yanked Hermione out from the debris and tried to run toward the door, but Hermione cowered against the wall instead. The troll stepped toward her, knocking sinks clean off the walls as it went. I rushed to protect her, holding my wand out in front of us. Before I could cast a spell, however, Harry and Ron burst into the room.

"Get Hermione out of here!" I shouted. "And fast!" Harry and Ron exchanged a nod before Harry launched a piece of broken pipe at the troll. It turned its head toward Harry, which allowed Ron to run around it and grab Hermione by the hand.

The troll raised its club to strike Harry as Ron and Hermione started to crawl toward the door. I pointed my wand at the troll's club.

"Bombarda!" I yelled. The club exploded into pieces before it could take a swing. Surprised, the troll spun around with more speed than I was expecting, and smacked me with its massive hand. I hit the wall and fell to the ground, all of the wind knocked out of me.

"Lucy!" the other three cried. I curled myself into a protective ball, trying to catch my breath.

"Oy, pea-brain!" Ron shouted, shoving Hermione toward the door and running to the opposite corner of the room from where I had landed. He chucked a metal pipe at the troll, which bounced harmlessly off its shoulder. But the yell effectively distracted it, and it turned its focus toward Ron.

"Run, run!" Harry urged Hermione, but she remained frozen in place, her eyes darting between me and the troll. The troll lurched toward Ron, balling its hands into fists. Harry squatted into an athletic stance and launched himself at the troll, managing to lock his arms around its neck.

"No," I gasped, pushing myself to my knees. I lifted my wand to try to send another spell at the troll, but I didn't trust myself to hit it without hitting Harry by accident. But as it turned out, Harry didn't need my help yet. He shoved his wand up the troll's nose, and the troll bellowed in pain accordingly.

"Wingardium leviosa!" Ron shouted suddenly, his wand pointed at a broken sink. The sink hovered above the troll's head. "Jump, Harry! Jump!"

He leapt to the ground just as Ron's sink fell onto the troll's head with a sickening crack. The troll dropped to the ground with a thunderous boom. Harry got to his feet, breathing heavily. 

"Is it dead?" Hermione squeaked.

"I don't think so," Harry replied. "I think it's just knocked out." I pushed myself to my feet and approached the troll slowly. I bent down and picked up a fragment of the club about the size of a Golden Snitch and pocketed it. Fred and George would never believe this, let alone Cedric.

"Are you alright, Lucy?" Ron asked, coming to take a closer look as well.

I nodded, but before I could say anything, Professor McGonagall burst into the room, followed closely by Professor Snape and Professor Quirrell. Fred and George, somehow, were behind them. Their eyes were wide, and they started to smile before Professor McGonagall spoke.

"What on earth were you thinking of?" she hissed, her face drawn and white with fury. "Why aren't you all in your dormitory? You could have been killed!"

"They came to save me, Professor," Hermione said, her voice very small. "I went looking for the troll because I thought I could deal with it on my own, you know, because I’ve read all about them. Lucy destroyed the club, Harry shoved his wand up its nose, and Ron knocked it out with one of the broken sinks. If they hadn’t found me, I’d be dead now. They didn’t have time to come and fetch anyone. It was about to finish me off when they arrived."

Hermione? Lying? I opened my mouth to protest, but nothing would come out.

"Well... in that case..." Professor McGonagall's face lost some of its anger. "Miss Granger, I have not the slightest idea what possessed you to do such a thing. As for you three, I still say you were lucky. Not many first-years could have taken on a full-grown mountain troll. You each win Gryffindor five points. Professor Dumbledore will be informed of this. Fred, George, will you walk with Harry, Ron, and Hermione to the common room?"

"Sure thing, Professor McGonagall!" they said in unison, taking one last glance at the form of the troll and flashing me a thumbs-up as they left.

"The Weasley twins told us the real reason you were here to begin with," Professor McGonagall said. "As for why Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley were here, I was hoping you could tell me the truth."

"I think they heard us," I said, my voice scarcely above a whisper. The bathroom had grown colder and colder, it seemed, as the reality of what had just happened began to sink in. "Hermione screamed rather loudly, and, well, you can see the damage it caused."

My eyes wandered back to the troll, a horrible thought occurring to me.

"Professor McGonagall?" I squeaked. "Could this troll have come from the Forbidden Forest?"

"It's possible," she replied after a moment's hesitation. "But don't worry yourself over how this happened, Miss Diggory. What's important is that nobody was hurt. We are all safe now."

I nodded, wrenching my eyes away from the troll. I noticed that both Professor Snape and Professor Quirrell looked distinctly uncomfortable after my question. Did Professor Snape share my suspicion? What did Professor Quirrell know? I was jerked from my thoughts by Professor McGonagall.

"I will admit, though," she said, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips, "I am disappointed the troll had to come tonight, of all nights. I was quite looking forward to seeing what you and the twins had put together in the common room."

I managed a half-hearted smile. "I doubt we would have garnered any fear remotely close to what he caused," I said, gesturing toward the troll with my chin. "But we certainly had fun trying."

"Would you mind fetching the Headmaster? I suspect he would be near the Hufflepuff common room, since the troll came from the dungeons."

I nodded. "Do you think, maybe, he would let me be with Cedric?" I asked shyly.

"I'm sure of it," she replied with a nod. "Severus, Quirinus, your assistance please."

As I left, I heard the unmistakable sound of a stunning spell. I hoped the twins would teach me that one next. Professor McGonagall was correct; Professor Dumbledore was climbing the stairs when I found him.

"Professor McGonagall sent me to fetch you," I said. "The troll is on the third floor, in the girls' bathroom."

"Thank you, Lucy, I will head there immediately. It seems as if there is something else you'd like to ask me first, however."

I felt my face grow hot. "It's not as important as the troll," I stammered. "But if you would allow it, may I go to the Hufflepuff common room? To be with Cedric?"

"Of course, Miss Diggory. I expect you need to know how to get in?"

I nodded, embarrassed, the familiar feeling of longing to be in Hufflepuff flooding back. 

"Take the same hallway that leads to the kitchens; I have no doubt that your friends the twins have already taken you there, so you should find it without issue. When you come across a large stack of barrels, tap the one in the middle of the second row up from the bottom to the rhythm of Helga Hufflepuff. I'm sure your brother will be relieved to see that you are alright. He nearly chased after you himself, you know, but the Weasley twins assured him they'd find you faster."

I shook my head. "They never cease to amaze me. Thank you, Professor, I'll go find Cedric."

"One more thing, Miss Diggory?"

"Yes?"

His eyes twinkled. "Don't tell the twins how to get in. It's been quite entertaining watching them try to figure it out for years now without success."

I managed a small smile. "Hufflepuff's secret is safe with me."

I was able to get in, the way Professor Dumbledore had said. I barely had time to look around the room before Cedric jumped from one of the couches with a start and threw his arms around me.

"Oh, Lucy," he murmured, holding me so tightly it was hard to breathe. "I was so worried."

I hugged him back, burying my face in his robes, embarrassed by the sudden tears that spilled down my cheeks. I sniffled, and he pulled away. 

"C'mere," he said gently, leading me to the couch and wrapping a soft yellow blanket around my shoulders.

"Where's everybody else?" I asked.

"Finishing the feast in their dorms. I was waiting to make sure you were okay. Professor Sprout she would tell me as soon as she heard, since I saw you leave the feast and not come back, but you came through first."

"I found Professor Dumbledore," I explained. "He told me how to get in." I sniffled again, and a few more tears leaked down my cheeks.

"You're safe," Cedric assured me, pulling me close against him. "You're safe. I'm sure the professors have taken care of it by now, if they let you come find me."

"It's been knocked out," I said. "Ron dropped a sink on its head, which finished the job."

"Wait, Ron? Ron Weasley?"

I nodded. "I destroyed its club, then Harry shoved his wand up its nose, then Ron dropped a sink on its head."

"Oh Merlin!" His grip around my shoulders tightened. " _You_ took care of the troll!"

"It was scary, Cedric," I said in a small voice. "Professor McGonagall said we might have died. I wasn't really thinking about it in the moment, but now-" I let out a choking sob, unable to stomach the thought of Harry or Hermione or Ron or even myself dying. "Cedric, what if it's my fault?"

"What? How would it be your fault, Lu?"

"What if I woke it up somehow, when I was in the Forbidden Forest? What if the person in the cloak let it out because of me? What if-"

"Shhh, Lucy, it's not your fault." He rubbed his hand up and down my arm. Mum always did that when we were little. Cedric and I would snuggle up on either side of her, and she would have a hand for each of us. It was comforting. "You did nothing wrong, Lu. You're safe now."

After a couple more minutes of silence by the fire, my stomach growled loudly. I glanced up sheepishly at Cedric, who smiled.

"Sounds like you should head up to your dormitory and eat."

I nodded, lifting the blanket from my shoulders and accepting one last hug. I crawled through the barrel and made my way up to the common room.

Two red heads of hair whipped around. "Cub!"

"Hi," I said, smiling. "I'm guessing no one was really up for the haunted house, huh?"

They shrugged.

"A couple of people were. We were just starting to tear down."

"You don't have to help if you don't want to, though, we understand if you're too good for us now that you've dueled a troll."

I snorted. "Almost got killed by a troll is more like it. Of course I'll help tear down. But I've been wondering. How did you find us so quickly?"

They exchanged a glance. 

"We'll fill you in one day," Fred said, "but-"

He was interrupted by a white substance landing in his hair. He glanced upward at the bats as George and I howled with laughter. George laughed too soon, however, because he, too, soon had white goo in his hair.

"On second thought," I gasped between bursts of laughter, "maybe we should all shower and leave this for the morning."

"I don't know, I think bat poop is a nice look, don't you think, Georgie?"

"Of course, Freddie," he replied, pointing his wand at the ceiling and holding his hand out as two quills dropped into his palm. "But they were beginning to annoy me anyway."


	10. Let's Hear It for the Boy

_Because what he does he does so well  
Makes me wanna yell  
Let's hear it for the boy  
Let's give the boy a hand_

_"Let's Hear It for the Boy"  
Deniece Williams_

* * *

HARRY:

The morning of my first Quidditch match was freezing. I had barely slept I was so nervous, and I struggled to eat, too.

"You've got to eat some breakfast," Ron said, just before eating half of a slice of bacon in a single bite.

"I'm not hungry," I mumbled.

"Just a bit of toast, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"I'm not hungry."

Seamus had heard the conversation, and added his two cents as he drowned his sausages in ketchup. "Harry, you need your strength. Seekers are always the ones who get nobbled by the other team."

"Thanks, Seamus." I waited for Lucy's concerned input, but none came. 

"I can't eat when I'm nervous either," she said, shrugging. 

Lucy had started spending more time with us now that Hermione had decided to talk to Ron and me again after the troll incident. She still largely kept to herself, more often than not just sitting silently with us as we all worked on homework and offering help whenever Hermione couldn't answer a question. When Skye asked her to start coming to every practice instead of just every other practice, we walked there and back together, and she would talk a little then. 

One day, we were walking to the Pitch together when we heard a high-pitched scream. Lucy and I both jumped, but we relaxed when we saw Katie Bell sprinting away from the twins, fingers held to her nose as she squawked profanities at them.

"I had lots of fun planning the haunted house with those two," Lucy had said, "and after Halloween, they offered to 'show me the ropes' of pranking. I almost said yes, but, holy Helga Hufflepuff, if I got into as much trouble as they do, my parents would be furious. As Cedric Diggory's little sister, I don't have much room for making mistakes."

"I understand," I found myself saying. 

"I had a feeling you might." She sighed. "I guess we'll have to come up with our own ways of finding adventure, huh?"

"Like fighting a troll in the bathroom?"

She flashed a rare smile. "Something like that."

Now that I was mere hours away from my Quidditch debut, I understood what she said better than ever. Even as I stared at my empty plate, I felt dozens of stares as people gestured subtly at me and whispered behind their hands. I was Harry Potter, after all.

"Harry Potter!" the twins chorused in unison as if they'd read my mind, sitting across from me on either side of Lucy and immediately beginning to fill their plates with whatever food they could reach.

"How's our star Seeker feeling about today?" Fred asked.

I shrugged, not wanting to admit just how nervous I was.

"You're going to be great, Harry, you really are," George assured me.

"After all those hours of practice Parkin put us through-"

"Blimey, she must have dueled every single Quidditch captain to get all that time on the Pitch uninterrupted-"

"Actually, George, Skye strikes me as more of an arm wrestler," Fred chuckled. "Anyway, Harry, you've got nothing to worry about. Just keep looking for the flying golden thing with wings and get it before the bloke in green does, and you'll be set!"

"Oh, and," George added in a wink, "try not to die."

"But other than that, nothing to worry about!"

I managed a fake smile. "Thanks. I guess when you put it like that, it doesn't seem quite so bad."

"Like we said, nothing to worry about! Stay on your broom until you catch the Snitch, and we're golden. Ha! Get it? Golden? Golden Snitch?"

"We get it," Ron and Hermione groaned in unison.

A few minutes before eleven, Fred and George walked with me to the changing room. After Skye gave a short but spirited pep talk, we stepped into the stadium and surrounded Madam Hooch. Up in the distance, I spotted a brightly flashing sign that read "POTTER FOR PRESIDENT" with a Gryffindor lion below the words. I smiled, feeling less worried. Even if we lost, I'd have my friends. Right?

"Mount your brooms, please," Madam Hooch said. I obeyed immediately, feeling better with a broom beneath my hands. When she blew her whistle, I soared out of the fray and waited, trying to tune out Lee Jordan's colorful commentary but failing.

"And she’s really belting along up there, a neat pass to Alicia Spinnet, a good find of Oliver Wood’s, last year only a reserve – back to Johnson and – no, Slytherin have taken the Quaffle, Slytherin captain Marcus Flint gains the Quaffle and off he goes – Flint flying like an eagle up there – he’s going to sc– no, stopped by an excellent move by Gryffindor Keeper Wood and Gryffindor take the Quaffle – that’s Chaser Skye Parkin of Gryffindor there, nice dive around Flint, off up the field and – OUCH – that must have hurt, hit in the back of the head by a Bludger – Quaffle taken by Slytherin – that’s Adrian Pucey speeding off towards the goalposts, but he’s blocked by a second Bludger – sent his way by Fred or George Weasley, can’t tell which – nice play by the Gryffindor Beater, anyway, and Johnson back in possession of the Quaffle, a clear field ahead and off she goes – she’s really flying – dodges a speeding Bludger – the goalposts are ahead – come on, now, Angelina – Keeper Bletchley dives – misses – GRYFFINDOR SCORE!"

A cacophony of conflicting emotions rose from the crowd. Everyone in red cheered, whereas everyone in green groaned. I hazarded a glance toward the "POTTER FOR PRESIDENT" sign. I saw Hermione, and Ron, and Lucy, and Seamus, and Dean, and Neville, and even Hagrid. Lucy was the only one to notice that I was looking their way. She smiled and waved, and I waved back quickly before returning my attention to the game. 

Just in time, too. A rogue Bludger had decided to target me, but I managed to dodge it before Fred beat it away.

"Alright there, Harry?" he asked, not waiting for a reply before sending it flying toward a Slytherin player and rejoining the main game.

"You're small," Skye had said bluntly. "You need to stay out of the way, especially in this game. Don't want you getting attacked before you even have a chance at the Snitch. But as soon as you see it, you better haul arse and catch it. The faster this game, the better. I don't want anyone getting hurt."

Suddenly, a glimmer of gold. The Snitch! I immediately headed towards it. To my disappointment, the Slytherin Seeker had spotted it too. He snarled when he saw me, and he looked downright murderous when he realized I was on the faster broom. I started to extend a hand to the Snitch when I was struck from the side and nearly knocked off my broom.

I quickly regained my composure, cheering when Skye easily sent the Quaffle through the hoop on the penalty shot. I headed back upward to get out of the fray, and I had narrowly missed another Bludger when my broom bucked beneath me, nearly sending me off. I clutched it as tightly as I could with my hands and knees, but it was completely out of my control. I looked for Skye, considering asking her to call time-out, but another lurch made my heart drop. I had to focus on holding on.

"Harry!" came a piercing scream. Soon, the whole stadium turned to watch as my broom tried to throw me off. I held on as tightly as I could, but after one particularly harsh jolt, I was left hanging on with a single hand. I strained to pull myself up, but I couldn't. It was moving too violently, and my fingers were slick with sweat.

"We're coming!" one of the twins called, zooming up to me. But every time they got closer, my broom inched higher and higher. They dropped lower and began circling, hoping to catch me if or when I fell. But after a couple of minutes, it stopped, and I clambered back on my broom. As soon as I did, I saw the Snitch again, far below me. I dove towards it, hand extended. But I misjudged the distance and the angle, and suddenly, I felt something cold and metallic and feathery all at once in my mouth. I flew off my broom, rolling a couple of times on the grass. I stumbled to my feet, spitting into my hands. 

"I got the Snitch," I said to myself, staring at it in disbelief. I held it firmly in my hand and raised it high above my head. "I got the Snitch!" I announced for everyone else.

While the Slytherins headed off to argue with Madam Hooch, the twins hoisted me on their shoulders and carried me to the changing room as all of the Gryffindors in the stadium (as well as most of the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs) screamed.

Each of my teammates came by to clap me on the shoulder or ruffle my hair before they headed up to the common room. Fred and George were the first to leave, promising me some sort of surprise at the party --- I hoped it was a pleasant one, and not just a Dungbomb. I was on my way out when I nearly bumped into Lucy.

"Sorry!" she squeaked. "I thought I had missed you leaving and that it was empty so I could go in and change."

"It's alright," I said, smiling when I saw she was in her Quidditch robes for the first time. "Thought you might get some action after my broom spazzed out?"

Her face flushed a brilliant red as she pulled a small Golden Snitch from her pocket. "Skye gave this to me, and I have to keep it in my hand at every match. She has an identical one that she keeps in her shoe. If she needs me to suit up and be ready to come in, she moves her foot in a certain way so that mine vibrates. The second she saw you, this one started vibrating like crazy so I came down and changed. But I'm dreadfully claustrophobic, so I was waiting until everyone had left."

"I'll wait outside, if you want to head up to the castle together."

"You don't have to wait unless you'd like the company."

"Fred and George promised me a surprise, and I'd rather not face whatever it is alone."

She laughed. "I understand completely. I'll be out in a minute."

* * *

"Cub! Harry!" the twins called as we headed up the stairs. We turned around to see that the twins were struggling under the weight of several bags of food. "Would you mind lending a hand, or two, or three?"

Lucy and I exchanged an amused look before going to help.

"How did you get all of this?" I asked, grunting as Fred plopped a heavy bag into my waiting arms. 

"The kitchens, of course. Getting the food is easy, but getting it all the way up here without getting caught is a struggle."

"Have you ever considered a shrinking charm?" Lucy inquired, also sounding like she was struggling slightly with her massive bag. "Would it work on food?"

"Bloody hell, Fred, she's done it again," George chuckled. "Our little Cub, outsmarting the both of us."

"This is why we need you to help us out with pranks!" Fred declared.

"I want to," she said softly, her face growing red, "but I can't. My parents would be livid if they ever found out. Cedric would never."

Just then, we arrived to the common room. George panted the password, and we climbed through the portrait hole. Everyone there cheered, though if it was for me or for the food, I couldn't tell. I had never seen the common room so crowded. The twins dragged Lucy away, and she promised me she'd be back in a minute.

Ron found me as she left and immediately began gushing about how well I had played. Hermione was more reserved, keeping her voice low as she told me about the Snape situation.

"But let's not worry about that for now," Ron said quickly. Just as the words left his mouth, Lucy and the twins cast a spell on the candles all at once, making the flames flicker red and gold and grow until they nearly touched the ceiling.

"Let's party!" the twins shouted. "Take it away, Dom!"

A boy standing in the corner flicked his wand, and the record player in the middle of the room burst to life. Soon, the room was about to explode. Ron dragged me off to the food table, Hermione walking over to Dom to take a closer look at the record player.

"What happened with your broom, mate?" Skye asked.

"Hagrid said it was some sort of powerful Dark magic," Ron answered for me. "He said no student would have been capable of doing something like that."

Skye scowled. "Bet you it was Snape. He never has liked Gryffindor. Never thought he'd care so much about Quidditch, though."

"Er, maybe," I stammered. "We were kind of thinking the same thing. But you won't tell anyone will you?"

"As long as it doesn't happen again, I'll keep my mouth shut. I once turned half the school inside out when my mate's broom disappeared, so I'm trying to learn to control my impulsiveness. But if Snape messes with us again, all bets are off." Just then, a very tall seventh-year girl named Isabelle took Skye by the shoulders and led her away, whispering something in her ear that made Skye giggle and blush.

Hermione soon took her place, her eyes wide. "Harry, what was your mother's maiden name?"

"Um... Evans," I said after a moment. "Why?"

Without answering, she grabbed my hand and dragged me over to the record player. 

"Dom! Dom! That belonged to Harry's mum!"

The boy smiled. "That's wicked. Your mum was Lily Evans?"

I nodded, staring at the record player with new fascination. Surely enough, the name "Lily Evans" was engraved in neat cursive on the arm of the record player.

"I found it in the corner of the common room as a first-year. An older kid told me she had left it behind for other Muggle-borns to use after she graduated. The charmwork on this is bloody brilliant. I could explain it, if you'd like, but I understand if you'd rather not listen to me go on and on about it."

"No, it's okay," I said, excited to get to learn more about her, however little it may be. Dom's face lit up, and he launched into an enthusiastic discussion of what my mum had done to it. Ron and Hermione left to go talk to Seamus and Dean, but I reckon I stood there twenty minutes listening to him talk before a couple of girls came forward with a vinyl and handing it to him.

"The _Footloose_ soundtrack?" he asked. "Didn't this movie come out, like, ten years ago?"

"Just play it!" one of them begged, giggling.

"Nobody's dancing yet," another pointed out. "This will get the party really started!"

"Alright, alright," he relented with a shrug. I took this as my cue to leave, and found Ron and Hermione laughing at the "SLYTHERIN STINKS" sign Dean was helping a couple of older kids paint. After we had watched for a while, Hermione turned to me, suddenly serious.

"Do you want to go with me to tell Hagrid what we think happened to your broom?"

"Er... if you're going to go, sure, I'll go with you."

"I think an adult should know until we can prove it for sure. Do you want to come, Ronald?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

"Wait, where's Lucy?" Hermione asked, looking around. "We should see if she wants to come."

"I don't see her," I said after a moment, "but she said earlier she's claustrophobic. Maybe the party was too much for her."

"Oh, alright. Yeah, probably. If I'm being honest, the party is getting to be a little too much for me too."

"Let's go, then," Ron said, leading the way out the portrait hole and down to Hagrid's hut. When we knocked, we found the answer to our question. Lucy was already there, cup of tea in hand.

"Where'd you go, Lucy?" Ron asked as we joined her around the table.

She blushed. "The party was too overwhelming. I was only there for about ten minutes."

"I found her lookin' spooked under a tree an' asked if she'd want to come have tea with me," Hagrid added, setting three more cups of tea on the table. "We've just been talkin' about dragons. Say, Ron, yer brother is a dragonologist now, isn't he?"

Ron nodded. "He studies them in Romania."

Lucy's whole face lit up. "I didn't know he worked in the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary!"

"Anyway," Hermione interjected, "we can talk about dragons later. Hagrid, we think we know --- well, actually, we do know --- what happened to Harry's broom. It was Professor Snape!"

"Rubbish," Hagrid replied. "Why would he do somethin' like that?"

I exchanged a glance with everyone else at the table. They knew what I had seen the night before. I cleared my throat. "I found out something about him, when I tried to ask for my book back yesterday. He tried to get past that three-headed dog at Halloween. It bit him. We think he was trying to steal whatever it’s guarding."

Hagrid's jaw dropped. "How do you know about Fluffy?"

"Fluffy?" Ron asked incredulously. "That monster is named _Fluffy_?"

"Yeah, he’s mine. Bought him off a Greek chappie I met in the pub las’ year. I lent him to Dumbledore to guard the..."

He hesitated.

"Yes?" I urged, trying to look as innocent as possible.

"Now, don’t ask me any more. That’s top secret, that is."

"But Snape's trying to steal it," I insisted.

"Rubbish. Snape’s a Hogwarts teacher, he’d do nothin’ of the sort."

"Then why would he try to kill Harry?" Hermione demanded. "I know a jinx when I see one, Hagrid, I’ve read all about them! You’ve got to keep eye contact, and Snape wasn’t blinking at all, I saw him!"

"I’m tellin’ yeh, yer wrong! I don’ know why Harry’s broom acted like that, but Snape wouldn’ try an’ kill a student! Now, listen to me, all of yeh: yer meddlin’ in things that don’ concern yeh. It’s dangerous. You forget that dog, an’ you forget what it’s guardin’, that’s between Professor Dumbledore an’ Nicolas Flamel-"

I jumped in my seat. "Oh! So there's someone named Nicolas Flamel!"

Hagrid grew very red in the face, and to my surprise, so did Lucy.

"Was that supposed to be a secret, Hagrid?" she asked, looking down at her hands.

He grunted in response. "Not anymore, I s'pose."

A couple of seconds passed in tense silence before Hermione straightened up in her seat. "Does anybody want to go to the library with me?"

"I'll go," I said immediately. "Ron? Lucy?"

Ron shrugged. "I guess. But honestly, Hermione, the library on a Saturday!"

Lucy shook her head, glancing up shyly. "I'd rather stay here, if that's alright. Hagrid was just about to show me his favorite book about dragons when you arrived."

* * *

A couple of weeks later, we were in the library after our flying lesson looking for information about Nicolas Flamel when Fred and George entered. 

"Hi Fred, hi George," Lucy said. "I didn't know you two even knew where the library was."

"We know Hogwarts like the back of our hands!" George protested.

"What, do your freckles make a map?" she teased.

"Pfft, no. Since when do you study here?" Fred retorted. "We thought you preferred to study in the stairwells of the Quidditch Pitch by yourself."

Lucy's face, which had already been more red than usual the past couple of days, turned an even darker shade of red. "I'm helping with extra research." She smirked. "Are you two here to set off a Dungbomb? Maybe set a flock of birds loose in the Restricted Section?"

Ron and I snickered, but the twins' faces were unusually serious. "Actually, Lucy, we came up here to find you. Cedric's in the Hospital Wing."

Lucy's smirk vanished as all of the blood drained from her face. "What happened?"

"It was strange, honestly," Fred said. "We were working with boggarts today, in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Everyone was really excited, because it's the most practical thing we've done all year."

"Then when it was Cedric's turn, it turned into a werewolf, and he just completely froze up. Henry was right behind him, and cast the spell to get rid of it, but Cedric was still pale as a ghost and nearly fainted. Quirrell told Henry to take him to the Hospital Wing, and Henry told us to get you as soon as class was over."

"Thanks for coming to get me." Lucy trembled violently as she rose from her chair. "I'll see you later," she said to us as she practically ran from the library.

"Should we follow her?" I asked. 

Hermione shook her head. "Lucy likes to be alone when she's upset. She'll come back when she's ready."

"If she's not back by dinner tonight, we'll check on her, mate," George said, "but Hermione's right. When she got an A on that last potions test, not even Cedric could find her, and he must have been looking half an hour."

"Fortunately, we're Lucy-finding experts," Fred added, "so we eventually found her sitting in a tree -- yeah, really, _in_ a tree --- but we got the feeling she didn't really want to be found."

"Anyway, she'll be alright, and so will her brother. Cedric wasn't doing all that badly, but considering he's normally Mr. Confident, we were all taken by surprise when the boggart was so debilitating."

With that, the twins left, and the three of us remaining got back to reading, but it was hard to focus as more time passed without Lucy coming back. She wasn't at dinner either, so, as promised, the twins went to the Hospital Wing to see if she was there. When they returned with confused expressions and no Lucy, we knew something was wrong. Hermione checked their dormitory after dinner, but she wasn't there either. The twins disappeared, saying they would definitely find her this time, but when they came back an hour later, there was still no sign of her.

"So much for Lucy-finding experts," Ron sighed as they headed up to their dorm, thoroughly discouraged. "I'm sure she's fine, though, right?"

Hermione echoed his sigh. "I'm sure she is. About a month ago, her parents came to visit her in Hogsmeade, and she ended up staying there overnight. Maybe they came to visit Cedric, and the same thing happened."

But even as the words left her mouth, I could tell she was unconvinced. We shared the unspoken fear that she had wound up in the Forbidden Forest again, unreasonable though it was.

"You don't suppose she could have gone to see Fluffy for herself, do you?" Ron asked softly after a moment. "I mean, she wasn't with us the first time. Maybe she wanted to see for herself."

"She's not stupid," Hermione snapped. "She wouldn't do that. I think there's something she's not telling us. Remember how red she got when Hagrid told us about Nicolas Flamel? I think she has a secret, and Hagrid somehow knows about it."

"I wouldn't go quite that far," I said slowly, "but I'm worried for her too. If she's not here in the morning, we'll go straight to Professor McGonagall."

Hermione closed her book with a snap. "I have half a mind to go right now. I don't want her getting hurt again."

"Me neither," Ron and I said in unison.

We sat in silence for a moment. Hermione checked her watch and sighed. "It's getting late. I don't want to bother her, or wake her up."

I nodded. "Morning it is, then."

"Staying up waiting and worrying won't make her come any sooner," Ron said slowly.

"You're right, Ron." Hermione sighed. "See you two in the morning."

With that, Ron and I headed up the stairs to our dormitory in silence.

The next morning, Lucy was one of the only Gryffindors in the Great Hall when Ron and I entered. We hurried over and sat down across from her.

"What happened last night? Is everything okay?" I asked.

She nodded, pulling her Gryffindor scarf tighter around her neck. "I'm fine, nothing happened, why do you ask?"

"Well... you never came back," Ron said. "Fred and George checked the Hospital Wing and said you weren't there. We were afraid something happened to you."

"Oh, they must have checked the Hospital Wing right after Henry came in. I figured I'd let them be alone for a bit. When Henry left, I went back and spent the night with him."

Before we could reply, Hermione ran over and tapped Lucy on the shoulder. "Can I talk to you? In private?"

She nodded slowly, looking straight at me. I noted with sympathy how utterly exhausted she looked. It must have been a long night for her, too. "If Fred and George ask about me, would you mind telling them what I told you?"

"Of course," I replied.

Hermione grabbed Lucy by the arm and practically dragged her from the Great Hall. The twins entered as they were leaving, and apparently tried to talk to Lucy, but Hermione glared at them and continued to march Lucy away.

"What was that all about?" Fred asked as they sat across from us.

"Is Lucy alright?"

I nodded. "She said she spent the night with Cedric, and that you must have been in there while Henry was there with Cedric."

"Henry was there," George confirmed. "Madam Pomfrey wasn't, which was thought was odd, but Henry was there."

"Why did Hermione need to talk to her so badly?" Fred asked.

I shrugged.

"Guess we'll find out later," Ron said, diving into his eggs. "In the meantime, I'm starving."

"When are you not?" the three of us exclaimed in amused unison.


	11. You're a Good Detective

LUCY:

"What is it, Hermione?"

"I have a question for you, but I don't want anyone else to hear it."

"Oh. Alright." My mind raced as I wondered what could possibly be this important. We had nearly reached the courtyard when I heard a muffled "Depulso!" followed by a thud. I wrenched my arm free from Hermione's grip and drew my wand, rushing toward the source of the sound without a second thought.

"Lucy, wait!" she squawked indignantly from behind me, but I rounded the bend just in time to see Archie lifting himself onto an elbow. When he heard my footsteps, he turned around and shot me a wry grin.

"Hey, Diggory. You just missed the show."

"Are you alright?" I asked, kneeling next to him.

"Yeah, nothing new," he said, grimacing as he rubbed his shoulder. "Just landed awkwardly that time."

"Nothing new? That time? Hold still, I'll fix it while you explain."

"Draco knows I can beat him in a duel now, so he's been sending older kids after me every time I say something he doesn't like."

"So pretty often," I deduced. I pointed my wand at his shoulder. "Episkey!"

"Thanks, that helps. I'm sick of going to the Hospital Wing for everything. Fortunately, this time I didn't end up with a sea urchin growing on my hand."

"How did you end up in a house with all of those bullies?"

"They're not all bad," he said as he rose to his feet. "Just most of them." 

"Sounds like you've made a friend."

He smiled, somewhat dreamily. "Something like that."

"Happy to hear it. What's she like?"

"How'd you know she's a she?"

'The look on your face."

"Her name's Cam, er, well, Cameron. Cameron Rivera. Nobody in our house really likes her either. Her mom works in the Muggle Liasion Office at the Ministry and her dad's an Auror who's busted some of the kids' parents and sent them to Azkaban."

"You sound like quite the team," I remarked wryly.

He nodded. "We got... well, adopted, for lack of a better word, by a group of Hufflepuffs. They let us hang out in their common room when things are too hostile in the dungeons. Your brother's really hard to beat at chess, by the way. He's sharp as a Knarl quill."

"Yeah, he is. I'm glad you've found a sanctuary of sorts. You know you can always come find me too, right?"

"I could, but something tells me your brethren in red wouldn't exactly want two green-clad folks in their common room."

"Well, at least with me, you're always welcome."

"Thanks, Diggory, and thanks for the help. I should probably go find Cam before I get attacked again."

"Not a problem. See you in Potions in... well, a few minutes."

He laughed as he walked away. I walked back to Hermione, who had taken in the whole interaction from a distance with her eyes wide.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing," she said after a moment, shaking her head.

"Surprised to meet a nice Slytherin?"

"I guess. Has he really been being attacked by his own house?"

I nodded. "One of the very first times we talked, he told me he wanted to dismantle the system of blood purity relating to superiority. It doesn't make him very popular, and it sounds like Cam isn't terribly popular either."

Hermione bit her lip, clearly deep in thought. 

"What did you want to ask me?"

She blinked and looked back at me. "What? Oh! Let's go outside."

Just as soon as we set foot on the grass, however, the bell rang for Potions. I was secretly relieved at first, but as Potions progressed, anxiety began to gnaw a hole in my stomach. What was she going to ask me?

I decided that double Potions after a transformation was a unique form of torture. I was always cold after a transformation, but in the dungeons, I was absolutely freezing. On top of that, I was half-asleep, and therefore especially clumsy.

"Are you alright, Lucy?" Neville asked after I had nearly dropped my stirrer into my potion a third time in ten minutes. After I had been such a great help to him in Charms, we became partners in Potions and Transfiguration as well. He was incredibly grateful for my help --- and my tendency to fix his mistakes before he even realized he had made them --- but I was completely dead on my feet. Healing Archie's shoulder had drained the last fragment of energy I possessed, and being in the dark dungeons listening to Professor Snape's monotone drawl nearly lulled me all the way to sleep.

"Yeah, I'm alright, Neville," I assured him. "Just a little tired. Oh, and turn it clockwise."

"Thanks," he said, immediately switching directions. "Well, if you're tired, maybe you should go take a kip after lunch. It might help."

I smiled. "That's a good idea. Thank you. I think I'll do that."

I glanced up to see Hermione's eyes boring into mine. She raised her eyebrows slightly, asking a silent question I couldn't answer. I looked away quickly, pretending to reread the directions even though I knew my potion was almost done. As soon as class ended, Hermione grabbed my wrist.

"We need to talk."

I winced, because she had grabbed the wrist with the still-healing sprain. I had fallen down the stairs and landed awkwardly, but I had managed to avoid using it in class. But she didn't see the look on my face because she was already pulling me out of the classroom and toward the courtyard.

"Wait, Hermione, please," I choked out. She stopped when she heard the tone of my voice and whirled around, pulling us out of the way of the stampeding Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs pouring out of the History of Magic classroom. I could tell she was impatient, but she was really trying to not be upset. "What do you need to talk to me about?" I was near tears, both from the pain and from the sheer exhaustion I felt. I hugged my wrist to my chest. "I couldn't sleep last night and I'm really, really tired, so can it wait?"

She shook her head. "It can't. It's waited long enough, it's taken me too long. But let's go up to the dormitory instead. You look awful. And what happened to your wrist?"

"Nothing," I lied, following her through the crowded corridors all the way to the common room. We eventually made our way to the dormitory, and I gingerly settled myself on the bed. We were the only ones there, and Hermione had barely shut the door before the question she had been dying to ask left her mouth.

"Lucy, are you a werewolf?"

I froze in disbelief, my throat completely dry. "W-What?" I managed to stammer.

Hermione sat on her bed so she was facing me. "You're a werewolf, aren't you?"

I couldn't formulate a response. What did I say to that? What _could_ I say?

When I made no reply, a torrent of rapid words poured from her mouth. "It's been bothering me for weeks now, I knew you had to be keeping a secret based on the way you got all red in the face when Hagrid slipped and told us about Nicolas Flamel. The story about meeting your parents in Hogsmeade never sat right with me, and last night, I stayed in the common room after Harry and Ron went to bed and I noticed that there was a full moon. I ran up here and dug through my Astronomy notes until I came to the day you missed, and that was a full moon too. Then I got out our Care of Magical Creatures textbook and read the werewolf section, and it all started to make sense. All of the symptoms lined up. Lucy... I know you're a werewolf."

I couldn't hold her gaze any longer. I dropped my eyes. "I'm sorry," I whispered.

"Sorry? Why would you be sorry?"

No words came, only tears. When the first fell onto my lap, Hermione came to sit next to me on my bed, putting an arm around my shoulders. I winced away.

"Sorry," I whispered, my voice tight. "It hurts being touched in general, but especially after a transformation."

"Don't apologize, I'm sorry for not thinking of that."

"Are you not afraid of me?" I asked after a moment, hazarding a shy glance at her.

"Lucy, no, of course not. Why would I be?"

"M-My own brother is," I sobbed. "That's why I was so upset yesterday. When I went to visit him, he told me it was okay and that it wasn't my fault, but Madam Pomfrey said it was time to go before I could say anything else so I had to leave him there without being able to say anything and... and..." I took a shaky breath in an attempt to steady myself. "Hermione, you don't understand. You're new to this whole world. I'm a monster. Nobody was ever supposed to find out. Not even Percy knows. Werewolves are hated by everyone. We can't get jobs. We aren't trusted. It's only because of Professor Dumbledore that I'm at Hogwarts in the first place, because everybody else seems to think I shouldn't be-"

"I'm glad you're here. You're my best friend. I'm not afraid of you."

"You should be," I whispered. 

"I'm not. I never will be."

"Are you sure? Do you promise?"

"I am. I do."

I sniffled and rested my head against her shoulder, letting more tears fall soundlessly. She lightly ran her fingers across my back, shoulder blade to shoulder blade. "Does that hurt you?"

"No," I replied. "Thank you for checking. I... I don't usually like being touched in general, transformation or otherwise, but... but that feels nice."

She sat patiently with me in silence, waiting for my tears to dry. When they did, I sat up and looked her in the eyes.

"Hermione, please promise me one thing."

"Anything."

"Nobody else can know. Like I said, if anybody else knows, I... I could be sent home. Nobody wants their child going to school with a werewolf."

Her face hardened in determination. "I promise that your secret is safe with me, as long as it's mine to keep."

"Thank you," I said, sighing shakily. I rubbed at my eyes with my hands. "I... I'm glad I don't have to try to keep that secret from your anymore, Hermione. It was hard lying to you. You're a good detective."

She smiled proudly. "I try to be. How about you try to get some rest? You need it."

I nodded, stifling a yawn.

"If the others ask, I'll tell them that you were awake worrying about Cedric all night so you're taking a kip. I'll come get you for dinner, if you're not already up by then."

"Thank you," I said, rising slowly from the bed and reaching for a nightgown. "You're the best, you really are."

She reached for a hug, but pulled her hands back shyly. "Sorry. Almost forgot."

"It's okay," I replied, managing a small smile. "Maybe tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow sounds good."

* * *

"Tomorrow" dawned cold and cloudy. A beautiful day for a Quidditch match.

Sure, Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw wasn't as strong a rivalry as Gryffindor-Slytherin, but the tension in the Great Hall before the match was still palpable. I made my way over to Cedric before sitting down at the Gryffindor table and rested my chin on his shoulder.

"Ready to win today, brother dearest?" I asked in my best Percy impression. "I do hope you know that your number one fan will be watching from the highest place in the stands cheering for you the entire match alongside you second and third biggest fans."

"Oh, Henry will be watching the match?" he teased. "I thought he was playing in it."

"Oh, shut up," I replied, swatting him on the back of the head and sitting next to him. 

Cedric grinned. "Alright, alright. If you're my third biggest fan-" I glared at him. "Second biggest?" I stuck my tongue out. "Biggest fan. Who are the other two?"

"Archie and Cam asked me after dinner last night if I wanted to watch with them. I've heard Hufflepuff has all but adopted them, and they speak very highly of you."

"They're fun to have around," he agreed, "though Cam is nearly as clumsy as Nymphadora Tonks and Archie gets a tad heated when I beat him at wizard's chess."

"Is Tonks the one who let a bouncing bulb loose in the kitchens and nearly burned it down in the process after the bulb caught fire and kept bouncing?"

He laughed. "I forgot that I told you about that! Yes, that was Tonks. Cam reminds me of her. She spilled ink all over someone's cat a couple of days ago, and it took four of us an hour to make the cat white again. And even then," he added in a whisper, "it's still closer to grey than white, but don't tell Cam. She felt horrible enough as it was."

I smiled. "My lips are sealed. Anyway, good luck, Cedric, not that you'll need it. I'll see you after you win!"

"I wish I had your confidence," he chuckled. "Against Leo Wilde, I'll need all the luck in the world to beat him to the Snitch."

I quivered with excitement as the teams took to the skies an hour later. A small group of us first-years had managed to secure one of the highest sets of seats. I was the only Gryffindor of the group; in addition to Archie and Cam, there were the Hufflepuffs Hannah Abbott, Susan Bones, Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, and Allie Longshore. As a Diggory, I was immediately accepted into their group, and I found myself wedged between Archie and Susan.

"I don't really understand the appeal of Quidditch, personally," Archie remarked, "but I figured I might as well support my mates in yellow."

"You'll come around eventually. Quidditch is the best!" I declared, joining the joyous shouts as Hufflepuff scored the first ten points of the game. Lee Jordan's commentary was far less biased since Gryffindor wasn't playing, but it was still colorful enough to make the stadium chuckle at his witty remarks. 

Ravenclaw's strategy proved to be similar to Slytherin's: they remained tightly packed wherever they went to try to intimidate whichever Hufflepuff Chaser had the ball. Unlike Gryffindor, however, the Hufflepuff team seemed quite rattled by their aggression. One of the Chasers attempted another goal, but it fell a foot short of the goal hoop and was immediately intercepted by a Ravenclaw Chaser. She fired the Quaffle to another Chaser in blue and swooped beneath everyone to open herself up for receiving the Quaffle on the other end of the field. The Hufflepuffs pursued valiantly, but they weren't fast enough to stop Ravenclaw from scoring their first ten points of the match.

I groaned along with everyone around me and directed my attention to Cedric, circling above the game, scanning diligently for any sign of the Snitch. Unlike Harry, he didn't make eye contact with me, but I smiled at him regardless, as if some sort of magical sibling bond would let him know I was proud of him. 

After dinner the night prior, he had pulled me aside and assured me in his softest voice that he was truly alright and that the boggart incident wasn't what it seemed.

"I didn't get the chance to finish explaining yesterday before you had to go," he had said. "Hermione told me about the conversation you two had today, and Lucy, _you_ are not my boggart. What scares me most is what I know you can do to _yourself_ during a transformation, not what you can do to _me_."

I instinctively cradled my wrist. Cedric's ever-observant eyes didn't miss it. He gently reached forward and held it in his hand. "Like this. It hurts me to know you're in so much pain once a month, Lu. Its not your fault," he added quickly, noting the sorrow that had undoubtedly crossed my face, "but I wanted you to know that I'm not afraid of you, just the way Hermione isn't afraid of you. Alright?"

"Alright," I managed before jumping into his arms. He hugged me back tightly. "Are you sure you're feeling better, Cedric? Really, really sure?"

"Positive. I love you, Lucy."

"I love you too, Ced."

"Why don't they just release the Snitch at the beginning of the game and let the Seekers duke it out to the death?" Archie asked, snapping me from my daze. "That would be far more entertaining. And then you'd only need two players."

"That's a dumb question, Archie," Cam laughed. "What would be the point of Quidditch?"

"Exactly! It wouldn't be Quidditch, but it would sure be fun to watch, especially if they were allowed go use spells. Imagine, just two Seekers and one Snitch --- oh, good Godric, Ravenclaw scored again? --- and two wands. It would be brilliant!"

"That's just a duel on brooms at that point," Ernie retorted. 

"Besides, why change Quidditch?" I added. "It's the best sport in the- HEY! THAT WAS A FOUL! THAT'S COBBING!"

It appeared that the yellow-clad students in the stadium agreed with me as I was joined by other shouts of indignance, which were eventually quelled by Hufflepuff scoring a penalty shot. 

Tied 20-20, the game revved back to life.

30-20, Hufflepuff.

40-20, Hufflepuff.

40-30, Hufflepuff.

40-40.

40-50, Ravenclaw. 

50-50.

50-60, Ravenclaw.

The scores climbed higher and higher, remaining neck-and-neck the whole way. Before I knew it, the game was tied 90-90 with no Snitch in sight. 

The stands were growing restless. The amount of offense was fun, of course, but the crowd was anxious for the Snitch. 

The Ravenclaw Seeker shared the crowd's agitation and began doing loop-de-loops above the game to keep himself entertained. But the always-patient Cedric didn't let his eyes stray from the game, so it was no surprise when he suddenly dove down to the ground, hand extended. Leo Wilde was hot on his tail, but Cedric was faster.

Half a second before he could close his fingers around it, though, a Bludger shot between him and Wilde and nearly knocked both of them from their brooms. I gasped in horror, but Cedric seemed unharmed. The Snitch had disappeared in the fray, it appeared, so Wilde took to the skies again. Cedric remained low, scanning all around him for the Snitch. He swerved out of the way of another Bludger, and in doing so, caught a glimpse of the Snitch again. This time, he shot straight upward, Bludger on his tail. He was faster than both the Bludger and Wilde, and the Snitch was his.

"CEDRIC DIGGORY ENDS THE MATCH FOR HUFFLEPUFF BY CATCHING THE SNITCH!" Lee Jordan howled into the microphone. "FINAL SCORE, HUFFLEPUFF 240, RAVENCLAW 90. HUFFLEPUFF WINS! HUFFLEPUFF WINS!"

I exchanged excited high-fives with everyone I could. Even the unimpressed Archie seemed excited by the Hufflepuff victory, sporting the brightest smile I had ever seen. The stands slowly began to empty, but instead of following the others to the Hufflepuff common room, I parked myself outside of the changing tent so I could pounce the second Cedric left. When he emerged, sweaty and grinning, I launched myself at him.

"You did it!" I squealed. "I knew you could, I knew you could, I knew you could!"

"You did indeed, Lu," he chuckled, spinning me in a circle. "Thank you for believing in me even when I didn't believe in myself."

"Duh, of course I would," I replied. "You've done it for me my whole life. I'm just happy to return the favor."

"Do you want to come to the party? I'm sure nobody would mind. Archie and Cam will probably be there."

"I should head to the library to study," I replied, "but go enjoy your party! I'm so proud of you!"

We went our separate ways. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were excited to hear my news, but I'll admit I was disappointed that they had made no headway on Nicolas Flamel. After an hour of fruitless searching, we gave up and headed to the common room. It was a Saturday, after all, and while Ron had warmed to the idea of spending time in the library even on weekends, he very eagerly accepted my offer when I challenged him to wizard's chess. I might have even won, too, if the twins hadn't finally made good on their promise to introduce me to their best friend, Mr. Dungbomb.

The second it landed in the middle of the board in its disgusting glory, causing all of the pieces to flee from the board in disgust, I whipped my wand out and whirled around. The twins were laughing so hard they never saw my spells coming.

"Rictumsempra! Rictumsempra!"

Before they knew what hit them, they were doubled over on the ground, shrieking with laughter. I stood in between them, hands on my hips.

"I was finally going to beat your brother!" I yelled in mock outrage. "I thought you were supposed to be on my side!"

Fred lifted his wand and attempted to cast a tickling charm of his own on me, but he was laughing too hard to form the word properly and the blast of pink died on the tip of his wand.

"You're going to have to try harder than that," I retorted. In response, George grabbed me around the legs and pulled me down to the ground right beside them.

"Undo it!" he panted.

"Take it back!" Fred screeched between bouts of laughter. 

"If I must," I relented, sighing dramatically. "Finite incantantem, finite incantantem."

They propped themselves up on their elbows, coughing and chuckling and panting.

"Fair's fair," George puffed. "Well played, Cub."

"Our offer still stands, you know," Fred said with a wink. "With a tickling charm like _that_ -"

"Learn the art of subtlety, then I'll consider," I replied. "Honestly, throwing a Dungbomb in the middle of a chess game and not even trying to run? It's like you _want_ to get caught."

"We've got a reputation to uphold, you see." Fred wiggled his eyebrows. "We intend to make history as the greatest mischief makers in Hogwarts history."

"Can't earn that title anonymously, Cub," George added. "If you want to share in the glory, you can't be afraid to show your face."

"You make a fair point," I said with a shrug. "In the meantime, the only glory I want is finally beating Ron at chess." 

"Good luck with that," Ron teased, offering me a hand up. "Rematch? Without, er, unpleasant interruptions?"

I accepted the help to my feet and smirked. "Only if you're ready to lose."

I wish my confidence in myself in chess paid off as well as my confidence in Cedric in Quidditch. I lost the first game within five minutes.


	12. Tidings of Comfort and Joy

_God rest ye merry gentlemen  
Let nothing you dismay  
Remember Christ our Savior  
Was born on Christmas Day  
To save us all from Satan's pow'r  
When we were gone astray  
Oh tidings of comfort and joy  
Comfort and joy  
Oh tidings of comfort and joy_

_"God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"  
Traditional English Christmas carol_

* * *

LUCY:

"Oh, you're staying here for Christmas too, Lucy?" Harry asked as I scribbled my name beneath his.

I nodded and passed the quill to Ron. "My dad will be doing work in Germany starting the 27th, so my parents decided it would just be easier for us to stay here for Christmas." 

I wasn't lying, but my dad's actions were very much intentional. The day everyone would leave school happened to be the full moon, and we all understood how disastrous a slight delay could be. If I were around other students when the sun set... yeah, it was far safer to just stay at Hogwarts. My parents had initially wanted Cedric to come home for Christmas and go to Germany with them for the rest of the break, but he adamantly refused. I tried to convince him that it was truly alright if he would rather go on holiday than stay at school with me, but he told me in no uncertain terms that he had no desire to spend Christmas with anyone but me.

"In that case, I propose an epic snowball fight!" Fred declared as he took the quill from his brother and scrawled his name. "The Diggorys and Harry against George, Ron, and myself."

"That sounds like fun!" Harry turned to me. "I've never had a snowball fight before, have you?"

I shook my head. "Cedric and I preferred building snowmen. Our mum would come out and try to enchant it so it would sing or dance, but it never went very well."

"Well, this year," George said as he wrote his name below his twin's, "Freddie and I will take a stab at it. I mean, we enchanted all of those skeletons for Halloween, so how different can a snowman be?"

"I imagine water is harder to manipulate than something more solid," Hermione posited from her spot on the couch. "I think I read that once."

"If anyone would know, it'd be you, Hermione!" Fred replied with a shrug. "Makes sense to me."

"I still want to try," George said. "I've been in need of a new challenge lately."

Fred's eyes lit up. "Oh, George, I have an idea for what we can do to practice! Come on!"

"Wait, where are you going?" Ron called after them, but it was too late. They disappeared through the portrait hole without looking back. He sighed, then grinned. "Mum and Dad knew what they were doing when they insisted we stay here for Christmas. I can't imagine how much trouble they'd get into if they found themselves in the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary."

As it turned out, their idea of "practice" was bewitching snowballs that followed Professor Quirrell around and repeatedly hit the back of his turban. After seeing that, I made them promise that our Christmas snowball fight would be magic-free. They agreed, as long as we had one round with magic on Christmas Eve.

With the full moon approaching, it was quite suffocating in the common room, where fires roared every hour of the day to combat the bitter cold outside, so I often retreated to the Quidditch stands to study. (Hermione told anyone who asked where I was that I was asking Cedric for help in the Hufflepuff common room, and no, Fred and George, she can't tell you how to get in, Professor Dumbledore made her promise not to.) It was quite nice, really, being alone. The only smells were those of wood and broom polish and whatever the biting wind carried. The weather discouraged most people from flying, so my sensitive ears were allowed a break. I tried to slip away for a few minutes between classes and dinner on Thursday, since meals were so overwhelming with so many bright lights and loud sounds and strong smells, but Hermione insisted on going with me and shooed Harry and Ron away to the common room, saying we'd catch up with them soon.

"It's warmer in the stairwells than the stands," I said as we struggled against the wind.

"Sounds good," she replied between chattering teeth. Once we were there, we looked around to ensure we were alone and settled on the staircase. She pulled her jar of blue flame and set it between us, bathing the walls in a ghostly glow. 

"You can keep it closer to you," I said, inching away. "I... I always get really hot before, well, you-know-what. That's why I've been coming out here, the common room and the Great Hall are too hot. And too loud, and too bright, and... you get the idea."

"That explains why you've been so flushed the past couple of days." She took the jar and hugged it close to her body, shivering and smiling. "I, on the other hand, have been freezing everywhere except the common room and the Great Hall. Lucy, are you going to be alright tomorrow night, without me here? I have to leave after lunch."

I nodded. "Cedric will still be here. He can help me if I need it."

She bit her lower lip. "I hate having to leave you the first time I would have been able to help you."

"Don't feel bad, Hermione, it's the holidays! I'll be okay, honest I will. I'll be the only girl in our dormitory, so it'll be easier than usual to sneak in after sunrise."

"I've already thought of the story I'll tell," she said, "and I'll still be here tomorrow morning, of course, for Potions."

I groaned. "Potions. Well, at least Slytherins and Gryffindors make Christmas colors. That's festive."

Hermione and I dissolved into a fit of giggles at that. After I assured her again that I would be okay and that I would head to the Great Hall for dinner, she hurried back to the castle, still clutching her jar. Once she was gone, I climbed the stairs until I made it to the open air, taking a deep breath of it. I dropped my bookbag onto the bench behind me and leaned my elbows against the railing, letting myself relax for the first time in weeks as I stared at the emerald grass of the Pitch. 

"Thought I might find you here," came a voice from behind me. "This is where I come when I need to be alone, too."

"Hi Cedric," I said as my brother joined me in looking over the railing. "Do you want to be alone together?"

"No one else I'd rather be alone together with," he teased. "What's on your mind that brings you here?"

I shrugged. "Nothing new. Worried about tomorrow. Worried by how worried Hermione is for me. Worried about Mum and Dad's reaction to you wanting to stay here with me. What about you?"

"Worried about my Transfiguration exam tomorrow, primarily."

I made a face. "Who puts an exam on the last day before holiday? Not even Professor Snape did that."

"Professor McGonagall's _your_ Head of House," he chuckled. "Professor Sprout didn't even give us homework this week."

"You have a point," I admitted with a laugh. "Professor McGonagall does take her class seriously. I'm sure you'll do well, though, you always do."

"Thanks, Lu, I hope you're right."

"Do you think Dad would be angry with me if I didn't get an O in History of Magic?" I asked shyly. "I'm really trying my best, but I can't get anything better than an E on the exams we've had. I do well on my essays, but-"

"I'll help you," Cedric said, knowing to interrupt me before I spiraled into more anxious thoughts. "Don't worry." He nudged my shoulder with his own. "Besides, I hear from Fred and George that you're the next Charms prodigy."

I felt my face flush with more than just fever. "Oh, definitely not," I stammered. "I'm nothing special. I think they're just upset that I'm better at the tickling charm than they are."

"Are you now?"

I nodded, quickly drawing my wand. "Rictumsempra!"

Cedric fell to the ground, twitching with laughter. It was nice to see the worried look on his face replaced by a smile. I relented after a couple of seconds, and Cedric drew his own wand as he jumped to his feet.

"Protego!" I shouted as he tried to cast the charm on me, effectively shielding myself. 

He raised his eyebrows. "And you said you're nothing special. Lucy, that's a fourth-year charm."

"Fred and George taught me," I mumbled through an embarrassed smile. "I'm guessing you don't want to see the fire spell they taught me?"

"I'll pass," he said with a laugh. "I am hungry, though. Want to head down to the Great Hall with me, or would you rather have more time to yourself?"

"I'll go with you. I feel better anyway."

"Good," he said, tucking his wand away. His fatal mistake. I blasted him with one more tickling charm for good measure.

* * *

I woke up the morning of the full moon in a nervous sweat. Hermione was still asleep, meaning it was still incredibly early. I buried my head in the sheets, gritting my teeth as every sense seemed to explode at once. The fire burning low in the corner was too bright. The sound of everyone's breathing was too loud. The smell of wood and books and perfume and ink was too strong. The sheets were too rough and my pajamas were too staticky.

I fought the overwhelmed tears that burned in my throat and tried to calm myself. I heard Hermione rustling around a couple minutes later. The squeaking sound of the shower faucet from behind the closed door sent a chill down my spine. I climbed out of bed and gingerly changed into my robes, which were even worse than my pajamas and my sheets. I crawled down to the common room with my bookbag and curled up on the window seat, watching as the sun slowly peeked over the horizon. I heard Hermione tiptoeing down the stairs and smelled the strong lavender before she actually entered the common room.

"Hi," she whispered when she did. I made room for her on the window seat, and she accepted the unspoken invitation. "How are you?"

I shook my head. "Everything hurts."

She contorted her face in sympathy. "My story will be quite close to the truth, then. I'll tell everyone that you're not feeling well, so you're sleeping it off in the dorm. Since you'll be the only girl there, no one will know any differently."

"Good idea. Thank you."

"Of course!" With that, we lapsed into comfortable silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts. I made it through breakfast and through Potions, each a miracle in their own way.

I smelled the tree before I saw it, at the end of the corridor.

"Hi, Hagrid, want any help?" Ron asked.

"Nah, I'm alright, thanks, Ron," Hagrid puffed in reply.

Just then, Draco and crew strolled up behind us. "Would you mind moving out of the way? Are you trying to earn some extra money, Weasley? Hoping to be gamekeeper yourself when you leave Hogwarts, I suppose – that hut of Hagrid’s must seem like a palace compared to what your family’s used to."

I caught Ron's arms as he lunged at Malfoy and pulled him back. Unfortunately, it was too late. Professor Snape had already seen.

"WEASLEY!" he barked.

Hagrid immediately jumped to his defense. "He was provoked, Professor Snape. Malfoy was insultin’ his family."

"Besides," I added, fighting to restrain my anger, "he didn't actually do any harm, did he?"

"Be that as it may, fighting is against Hogwarts rules. Five points from Gryffindor, Weasley, and be grateful it isn’t more. Move along, all of you."

I released Ron, who adjusted his robes and glared as the Slytherin trio disappeared. "You should have let me teach him a lesson."

"He doesn't learn," I replied. "Archie's tried and all it's gotten him is a new record for time spent in the Hospital Wing." 

"I'll get him one day," he snarled. "One day."

"I hate them both," Harry added. "Malfoy and Snape."

Hagrid interrupted their grumbling. "Come on, cheer up, it’s nearly Christmas! Tell yeh what, come with me an’ see the Great Hall, looks a treat."

They brightened considerably at that, so we followed him up to the Great Hall. He was right, the decorations were beautiful. They also were, however, incredibly bright and aromatic, and I could tell Hermione sensed my discomfort. 

"How many days you got left until yer holidays?" Hagrid inquired.

Hermione glanced at me before looking up at Hagrid. "Just one, but that reminds me. We’ve got half an hour before lunch, we should be in the library."

"Oh yeah, you're right," Ron agreed.

Hagrid's face was puzzled. "The library? Just before the holidays? Bit keen, aren’t yeh?"

"Oh, we’re not working. Ever since you mentioned Nicolas Flamel we’ve been trying to find out who he is," Harry said.

"You _what_? Listen here, I’ve told yeh, drop it. It’s nothin’ to you what that dog’s guardin’."

Hermione's face was the picture of innocence. "We just want to know who Nicolas Flamel is, that’s all."

"Unless you’d like to tell us and save us the trouble?" I bit back a laugh at Harry's enthusiasm. "We must’ve been through hundreds of books already and we can’t find him anywhere. Just give us a hint, I know I’ve read his name somewhere."

"I'm sayin' nothin," Hagrid grumbled.

"We'll just keep looking, then," Ron said. "Let's go!"

We looked, but were still unsuccessful. After lunch, Hermione and I disappeared up to the dormitory to say goodbye. Parvati and Lavender had already gathered their belongings, so we were alone. 

"Do be safe, Lucy," she said, fidgeting nervously. "I won't be here to cover for you if something goes wrong."

"Don't worry, I was alright after the Forbidden Forest incident," I assured her. "Sleepwalking, remember?"

She giggled. "You're right. Still, I'd hate for something to happen."

"I'll be safe. I promise."

"Okay. I'll see you in three weeks."

I screwed up my courage and reached for a hug, which she eagerly accepted. 

"And don't forget to look for more information about Nicolas Flamel," she instructed as we pulled away. 

"I won't. See you soon."

"See you!"

And with that, I was alone. I had a couple of hours before my transformation, and I knew Hermione had already told the others I wasn't feeling well. I stayed in my dormitory until the common room was silent, then I slipped down to the Hospital Wing and made my way to the Whomping Willow with Madam Pomfrey.

* * *

_The screams echoed into the frigid December night, slowly giving way to howls. The girl was again gone, a werewolf remaining._

_It was cold. Very cold._

_The wolf scanned its surroundings, looking for anything that might offer warmth. Finding nothing, it curled itself into a ball, trembling. Its fur was thin and wiry, offering little comfort, and the wooden planks beneath it were damp and chill._

_At some point, it occurred to the beast to try to warm up by running, so run it did. It circled the room over and over and over, careful not to run into anything that would make running more painful. When it wasn't possible to run anymore, it slowed to a stop and curled into a ball again, this time jumping on the dilapidated bed and attempting to burrow itself in the sheets._

_It was cold. Very cold._

* * *

I shivered uncontrollably when I awoke. I was awkwardly tangled in the sheets of the musty bed, so I wriggled myself free and rose to my feet, pulling my robes as tightly around me as I could. I would have jogged down the tunnel if I could, but the bitter cold was crippling. When I poked my head through the hole, I could see Cedric was freezing too.

"Good morning," he said cheerfully, pulling me into a hug. "Oh Merlin, you're shaking so much. Let's get you inside."

My teeth chattering too violently to speak, I let him lead me through the icy corridors to the Hufflepuff common room.

"There are only a handful of other Hufflepuffs staying, and they know you're my sister," he explained as he tapped the barrel with his left hand, his right arm still firmly around my shoulders. "You'll be safe in here. Let's get you to the fire."

"Th-Th-That feels good," I managed as soon as the heat hit my face. I extended my blue hands to the fire as Cedric wrapped a blanket around my shoulders.

"Are you hurt at all, Lucy, or just cold?"

"J-Just c-cold." I thought back to the night, another shiver wracking my body. "I was too c-cold to actually d-do anything b-bad."

"That's good, I suppose. Now we just have to make sure you don't get sick."

I nodded, inching closer to the fire. We sat in comfortable silence for a couple of minutes before a thought occurred to me. "Hermione told the others that I wasn't feeling well and sleeping it off in my dormitory. What should I do?"

"I'll tell them you came here instead, to be with me." He jumped to his feet and pushed the large yellow couch closer to the fire. "How about you sleep here? It'll be warm."

I nodded and crawled up onto it, curling into a ball. "Thanks, Cedric," I mumbled, already half-asleep and feeling much warmer. 

"Of course, Lu. Will you be alright if I head up for breakfast?"

Before I could reply, I was already asleep.

I didn't open my eyes again for hours.

"Good morning," Cedric teased from his spot in an armchair across the room.

"Something tells me it's not morning anymore."

"Quite the contrary, it's almost time for dinner."

I yawned and sat up, running my hands over my hair. My braids had all but fallen out, and I imagined my flyaways rather closely resembled a nest. "I should probably head up and take a shower before dinner," I said, folding the blanket and pushing the couch back to its original position. "Do you want to eat at the Gryffindor table with us?"

"Sounds great," he said with a smile.

I made my way up to the Gryffindor common room, still trying to smooth down my hair. Harry and Ron were the only ones there.

"Hi, Lucy! Feeling better?" Ron asked.

"I am, thanks," I replied, stepping closer to see what they were doing. "Teaching Harry wizard's chess?"

"Yup! Seamus loaned him some pieces. They don't like him very much."

"You make it look so easy," Harry groaned. "Every time I make a move, they just complain at me."

"I'll help in a bit," I promised. "I'll be back in a couple minutes."

I headed up to my dormitory and showered quickly, the warm water feeling good and waking me up further. The clean robes felt good, and I cast a braiding charm on my wet hair before joining them in the common room. Even with both my mind and Harry's, Ron secured the victory, and we headed down for dinner. We played a lot of wizard's chess the next few days; I even convinced Cedric to come up to our common room, and we had a tournament of sorts. Ron, still, secured the overall victory, though Cedric did give him a run for his money.

As promised, on Christmas Eve, we joined the twins for a magic-allowed snowball fight. They won handily, using the charm they had concocted for Professor Quirrell's snowballs, but they were impressed by my strategy of building one massive snowball, levitating it, then blasting it with a hearty "Bombarda!" so it covered whoever was below it in a fine powder. Our attempts to enchant a snowman were unsuccessful, but we were satisfied with the snowball fight so it didn't much matter.

That night, the six of us dragged mattresses from our dorms to the common room and lined them up in front of the fire. Even Cedric got in on the fun, shrinking his mattress and bringing it up to the common room, where we enlarged it to its normal size. Fred and George snuck down to the kitchens and returned with marshmallows to toast in the fire. I was the first to fall asleep, and when I woke the next morning, I learned not to make that mistake again, as my hair had been charmed to be the same violent shade of reddish-orange as the Weasleys'.

Harry, Ron, and I crept up to their dorm room to open our presents, since the twins and Cedric were still asleep and we didn't feel like waiting. My favorite gift was the roughly-whittled model of a dragon from Hagrid; I immediately pulled out my wand and cast a charm to make the eyes blink. I hoped he liked the little dragon I had crocheted for him.

Hermione had gotten Ron, Harry, and me all Chocolate Frogs, as if to apologize for that one day in History of Magic. I laughed when I saw it, because I had gotten Harry Chocolate Frogs too, to help start his collection. 

Harry's last parcel was the most exciting of all. He tore it open, and a shining piece of fabric slid out of his hands and onto the floor. Ron and I exchanged an amazed glance.

"Is that-"

"I think it is."

Harry furrowed his brows. "What? What is it?"

"It’s an Invisibility Cloak," I said. "I think so anyway."

"I’m sure it is," Ron agreed. "Try it on, Harry!"

Harry draped it around his shoulders, and everything below his neck vanished instantly.

Ron whooped with delight. "It is! Look down!"

Harry sprinted to the mirror to confirm what Ron and I were already seeing, sending a small scrap of paper flying out of its folds. I grabbed it and handed it to him. "This fell out."

"Thanks," he said, clearing his throat before reading the note aloud. "Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well. A very merry Christmas to you." He blinked and looked up, looking as if he'd seen a ghost. "This was my dad's."

Ron didn't seem to have heard anything Harry said. "I’d give _anything_ for one of these, anything."

"So would your brothers," I said softly, "and I think I hear them coming. Might want to hide that, Harry."

He had barely managed to stuff it into his trunk before the twins made their entrance, a very sleepy-looking Cedric just behind them.

"Merry Christmas!"

"Hey, look, Harry's got a Weasley jumper too!"

"Harry's is better than ours, though, she obviously makes more of an effort if you're not family."

"Why aren't you wearing yours, Ron? Come on, get it on, they're lovely and warm."

"You haven’t got a letter on yours. I suppose she thinks you don’t forget your name. But we’re not stupid – we know we’re called Gred and Forge."

I laughed. "Why did you two switch them?"

"You know, Lu, you're the first person to ever ask that question."

"If you can tell us apart, we might as well make you your own Weasley jumper, you're practically family."

"What's all this noise?" Percy asked, his curly red hair standing nearly straight up.

Fred and George turned on him quickly, excited to have a new victim.

"P for prefect! Get it on, Percy, come on, we’re all wearing ours, even Harry got one."

His protests were drowned out as they shoved it over his head.

"And you’re not sitting with the Prefects today, either, Christmas is a time for family. And Lucy and Cedric, of course, we can adopt them for a day. Lucy's already got the hair! Cedric, you want to match?"

When the twins lifted their wands threateningly, he backed away. "No, no, I'm good, it suits you two better anyway."

"Nonsense, old chap, there's plenty of ginger to go around," Fred insisted, chasing him down the staircase with George hot at his heels.

Percy shook his head and sighed as he straightened out his jumper, even though a small smile was on his face. "Merry Christmas, indeed."

Our magic-free snowball fight very quickly deteriorated into frenzied snow-slinging. The twins tried to advocate for a team of redheads against a team of brunettes, but Harry and Cedric shut them down, seeing as I was only a temporary redhead. (They used one heck of a charm --- I couldn't fully reverse it until New Year's.)

The best part of the day, however, came when the twins were being chased around the castle by Percy because they had stolen his prefect's badge. Again. As the three of them jumped through the portrait hole, I turned to Harry and Ron.

"I need to get revenge for my hair. If they ask where I am, just... I don't know, stall them as long as possible."

"Lucy? Pulling a prank?" Ron asked as he and Harry exchanged a bemused look. "Are you feeling alright?"

I nodded, grinning from ear to ear. "Fantastic." I drew my wand and bounded up the stairs of the boys' dormitory, bursting into the room labelled with a sign reading " ~~Third years~~ BEST YEARS (especially Fred and George)." Yeah, this was the twins' room alright.

Fortunately, the twins had left their snow-soaked sweaters draped over their respective trunks, G for Gred and F for Forge. I dug through their trunks, looking for something, anything, that might inspire me, Fred's first. Finding nothing but half-finished essays and balled-up robes (along with plenty of suspiciously-Dungbomb-shaped packages), I dove into George's. His was significantly more organized than Fred's, to my surprise. There was a stack of textbooks along the left, and his robes were well-folded. 

It occurred to me that I could enchant their underwear. I plucked through George's stacks of clothes until I came across a pair of checkered boxers at the very bottom of the chest. I grabbed them, and was about to go find Fred's, but a square piece of parchment fell to the ground. I stared at it for a second, utterly baffled as to why anyone would keep such an old piece of parchment in boxers, of all things. I considered for half a second just taking it and leaving; it was obviously important. But just as soon as the idea occurred to me, I shook it from my head and carefully returned the parchment to the bottom of the trunk. I didn't want to take something important to them, I was just out to have a little fun. I found a pair of Fred's boxers much faster and considered my options. 

I smirked as an idea came to me. I swirled my wand and shoved the boxers under their pillows, to be discovered that night when they went to bed. I made it back to Harry and Ron before the twins and Percy.

"What'd you do?" Harry asked with wide eyes.

"Let's just say they won't get their boxers mixed up anymore," I answered vaguely.

Less than a second later, a flushed yet smiling Percy climbed through the portrait hole, proudly holding the stolen badge high above his head. "I got it!"

"We let you get it!" came identical protests. Harry, Ron, and I exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.

When I returned to my silent dormitory that night, it seemed I had missed a parcel. I read the note on top before opening it.

_This will come in handy in the years to come. Keep it close, and don't lose it. You will want to start on page 1, but pay close attention to page 15. Merry Christmas, Lucy._

Thoroughly baffled, I opened the tissue paper to reveal a very old book of what appeared to be ancient runes. I couldn't even read the title; scanning through the pages confirmed that not a single word was in English. I sat down on the bed, the book suddenly feeling very heavy in my hands as I wondered what it could mean. 

Who was it from? Why? Would it help with our search from Nicolas Flamel? The handwriting wasn't Hagrid's, but who else knew we were looking for something?

I tucked the book securely at the bottom of my trunk, not unlike George's unusual piece of parchment, and stuck the note in page 15 like a bookmark. I showered quickly and climbed into bed, trying to force the book from my mind, but I simply couldn't. I crawled out of bed and grabbed it, heading down to the common room in my nightgown and not even bothering to put socks or slippers on my bare feet. For a fleeting second, I considered running up to Percy Weasley's room and asking, because if anyone would know anything about the book, I figured it would be him. I decided against this, however, and instead set the book on the coffee table and perused the bookshelves, looking for a left-behind Ancient Runes textbook or anything, really, that would help. I was too short to reach the third and fourth shelves, so I planted my bare foot on the second shelf and pushed myself up.

"Lucy?"

I nearly fell in surprise. I managed to make it look like I jumped off intentionally and landed on my feet. There was nobody there. "Hello?"

"Oh, sorry." Harry's head suddenly appeared. "That was probably confusing."

"A little," I admitted. 

"What are you doing up?"

I smiled sheepishly. "Couldn't sleep, but I'm guessing you really want to know why I was climbing the shelf. What are you doing up?"

"Just going to test this out," he said, sending his own sheepish smile my direction. "Why were you climbing the shelf?"

I grabbed the book of runes and handed it to him. "When I got back to my room," I explained in a low whisper, "this was on my bed with a note saying I'd need it in the years to come and telling me to pay special attention to page 15. Hey, wait a second." I took the note out and held it out in front of us in the firelight. "Harry, does this look like the same handwriting to you as your note?"

He squinted. "It might be. We can confirm tomorrow." As he read the note for himself, a mischievous glint entered his green eyes. "I wasn't sure where to go, but now I'm thinking we should go to the library and find a book that would help us."

"Or," I said in an even softer whisper, "we could sneak into the Restricted Section and look for a book about Nicolas Flamel. We could get an ancient runes book easily, but this would be the only way to get into the Restricted Section."

Harry smiled. "I like the way you think. The twins were highly amused by your revenge prank, by the way. They said something about how you needed to watch your back the next couple days."

"Oh brother," I giggled. "What have I started? Anyway, let's go."

Fortunately, the cloak covered us both easily. We climbed through the portrait hole, suppressing giggles at the indignant squawks of the Fat Lady, and made our way to the library.

"I didn't think to bring my wand," I whispered. "We should light a lamp."

Since Harry was the taller one of the two of us, he was in charge of holding the light while I scanned the titles. 

"What about that one?" he asked after a couple of minutes, gesturing with the lamp toward a large silver and black book.

"Sure," I whispered back. He set the lamp down, and the book was so heavy it took both of us tugging on the spine to get it out. We opened it on the ground, and to our horror, the book began to scream. Harry staggered backwards, yanking the cloak off of me and knocking the lamp over. He hurriedly threw the fabric back over me and grabbed me around the shoulders as we ran, careful not to expose me again. We ducked under the arm of the caretaker, Argus Filch, and ran blindly until we nearly smacked into a very tall suit of armor.

Harry relaxed his arm around my shoulders, and we sagged against the wall, making sure to keep the cloak firmly around both of us. 

"You asked me to come directly to you, Professor, if anyone was wandering around at night, and somebody’s been in the library. Restricted Section."

Harry stiffened beside me, and I stopped breathing entirely.

"The Restricted Section? Well, they can’t be far, we’ll catch them."

It was undoubtedly Professor Snape who replied. I would have remained frozen in place in fear if Harry hadn't grabbed my arm and pulled me into a nearby room, whose door was slightly ajar. I flinched slightly at the touch, but I followed him anyway, understanding we'd be caught if we didn't leave the narrow hallway.

Neither of us dared to move until their footsteps and voices had faded entirely. Harry was the first to find his voice.

"That was close," he whispered, breathing heavily.

I nodded, slipping out from under the cloak and closing the door silently. I heard Harry's soft footsteps wander over to what looked like a massive mirror. I glanced around the room to see for myself where we were. I could tell from the moonlight streaming through the windows that we were in some sort of storage room, or maybe an old classroom. Desks and bookshelves were stacked haphazardly against the walls. The only truly unusual thing about the room was the mirror. 

A soft whisper broke the silence. "Mum? Dad?"

The cloak slowly slid from Harry. He was nearly touching the mirror. He stepped even closer, lifting a hand to his shoulder. His face was halfway between joy and heartbreak; he appeared dazed, but perhaps in a good way. A sudden fear gripped me. Was he being bewitched?

"Harry?" I asked, taking a couple of steps closer. "Is everything alright?"

He blinked hard and stumbled away. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm alright." His gaze remained locked on the mirror, but he beckoned to me. "Come here, Lucy. Meet my family. Er, kind of."

I peered into the mirror. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I don't see them. I only see you."

"Oh." Harry seemed puzzled, but he stepped out of the mirror. "Can you see them now?"

"No," I said, shaking my head as an image began to form.

"Do you see your family?"

"No..." I reached up and touched my cheek, and watched as my reflection did the same. "My scars are gone." I looked above my reflection's head, and I saw a full moon shining brightly. Yet I was still human, and more than that, whole. The parts of my legs showing beneath the nightgown weren't scarred either, nor were my hands. I took a step closer, and the scene changed. "No, now Cedric is coming up behind me, with two brooms. He... he offered me one, and now he's taken off, and he's flying away..." I took another step closer, eager to see more, but the scene changed again. "No, wait, now... now I see a girl. But she... she's crying. And now she's running toward me. It looks like she wants a hug-"

I jumped and whirled around, but there was nobody behind me, only an old wardrobe. I looked toward Harry, and realized my hand was still touching my cheek. I dropped it quickly and pulled the sleeves of my nightgown over my hands self-consciously. "Reckon it's safe to go back now?"

He nodded, tossing the cloak over me. We made our way back to the common room without incident. When we shed the cloak, I grabbed my book and hugged it to my chest, looking at Harry, suddenly shy to be standing there in my nightgown, with my scarred legs and scarred feet so exposed.

"What do you think the mirror shows?" he asked, his voice tight with emotion.

"I don't know," I answered, looking down. "I... I don't know who the girl was, or why I saw three different things while you only saw one."

"I'll take Ron tomorrow night," he said, "and we can try to figure it out."

"And I'll try to figure out more about this book," I replied. I looked back up at him. "Would you mind not telling anyone what I saw in the mirror? I... I'm not even going to tell Cedric, at least not yet."

"I won't tell anyone. Good night, Lucy."

"Thank you." I sighed, then offered what smile I could manage. "Good night, Harry."

When I fell asleep, images of the girl with the blond hair and shining blue eyes crossed my vision. Maybe the adventure wasn't what Harry and I had expected it to be, but it was undeniably an adventure nonetheless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! As always, thank you so much to those of you who have read this far, and please feel free to comment what you think!


	13. The Real Cedric

LUCY:

"What on earth are you doing in the library on the last day of Christmas break?"

I slammed the book closed and tucked it beneath my arm, looking up at Archie sheepishly. "Just getting ahead. Welcome back, how was your Christmas?"

"It was good," he said, sitting down next to me and resting his head on his arm. "The best part of my break was going to see the new Star Trek movie with my mom in London. What did you do?"

"Not much," I replied with a shrug. It wasn't a lie. After Christmas, I spent most of my time in the library or in my dormitory, researching a number of different things. Harry and Ron weren't much in the mood to look for Nicolas Flamel, which I didn't mind. I only looked for him part of the time, truthfully; most of the time, I sat in a dark and quiet corner, translating the book of ancient runes letter for letter. It didn't make a lot of sense yet, I hadn't made a ton of progress, but it was something to occupy my mind and distract me from the terrors that had begun to plague me at night.

Harry had pulled me aside after breakfast about a week after we had gone to the mirror. "Dumbledore moved it and told me not to look for it," he had said, "so I haven't looked in it for a couple of days, but I've still been having nightmares. Ron basically told me 'I told you so' when I mentioned it, but... I thought you might understand."

I had nodded. 

"How can something that felt so good turn around and hurt me so much?" he had wondered out loud, looking crestfallen.

I had wanted to reach out and take his hand and somehow promise him it would be okay and tell him I would find a way to protect him from his nightmares, but I didn't. I couldn't. "I don't know," I had said instead, "but you're not alone. I've been having nightmares too. I understand, and I'm here."

Mine weren't about my parents like his were, at least not always. More often than not, I would be dreaming about something rather ordinary, then suddenly the sky overhead would darken and a full moon would rise, and I would transform and instantly maul anyone who was around me. Sometimes it was Cedric. Sometimes it was Hermione. Sometimes it was Harry, or Ron, or the twins, or Archie, or Neville, or my parents. But at least half of the time, if not more, it was the girl from the mirror who was my victim. Every time I woke up, I would be soaked in sweat, and my pillow would be drenched with tears. It was always hard to fall back asleep after those nightmares, so it was often in the early hours of the morning I made the most progress with the ancient runes book.

"What's this?" Archie asked, snapping me from my daze by reaching over and examining the bracelet around my left wrist that poked out slightly from under my sleeve. "Did you forget your name or something? Need a bracelet to remind you?"

I chuckled. "No, it's just my Christmas gift from Parvati Patil. She made the four of us Gryffindor girls friendship bracelets, so naturally, mine says Lucy."

"Yeah, it wouldn't make much sense for you to have Hermione's," he said, a stupid grin lighting up his face. "That's cool. I should ask her to teach me how to make one sometime. I could make matching ones for me and Cam."

"That'd be cool," I replied, borrowing his favorite adjective.

"Yeah." That dreamy smile that accompanied the name Cam was back on his face. I was about to point it out when he blinked and returned to earth. "Well, I'm going to go see if I can find her and leave you to your studies, Little Miss Overachiever. What are you even studying for in the first place?"

"Oh, nothing," I replied, shaking my head and tucking the book further under my arm. "Just reading ahead for fun."

He arched an eyebrow, disbelieving but not questioning. "Have 'fun' then. See you later."

"Bye, Archie." 

I sighed and cracked the book again. In this particular instance, I was looking for Nicolas Flamel. After searching for a couple of minutes with no luck, I returned the book to its shelf and sighed. Archie had a point. I wanted to make the most of my last day before term started. So, naturally, I went to find the twins.

My hair had finally returned to its natural brown, but the twins and I had been engaged in something of a prank war ever since. It officially started when I charmed their underwear to scream "I am Fred's underwear!" and "I am George's underwear!" every time they tried to put them on, as my revenge for the red hair. From there, I constantly had to watch my step and glance over my shoulder. I never knew when they'd try to convince me to be their test subject for a new prank device they'd charmed overnight or hit me with a jinx they knew I didn't know the counterjinx to. (That being said, I had learned a surprising number of counterjinxes lately.) My revenge was far more subtle. It started small, with shrinking their Dungbombs to the size of a marble or charming their quills to transfigure into fully-grown birds when they tried to write. They liked showing off around me, but they respected me too much to treat me like any old prank victim. They hadn't lobbed a Dungbomb my direction since that night in the common room, and whenever they saw I was about to place my foot on a sink-step or trigger a magical trap, they would quickly stop me, undo the charm, tell me it was safe, and rig it up again once I'd passed. We had an unspoken mutual understanding; as long as I stayed out of trouble, there were no boundaries. And they were more than content with this; sure, I wasn't exactly part of their "prank team," but I was a valuable source of information nonetheless, in my own subtle way.

I didn't have to look far. They were actually on their way to the library as I was leaving, Fred's robes bulging suspiciously.

"Hi," I said, looking Fred up and down and making eye contact with George. "I was going to see if you two wanted to hang out, but it would appear that you're busy, so I'll go find my brother."

"Oh, we always have time for you, Cub," George said, glancing around nervously. "Right, Freddie?"

"That's right, Georgie!" he chirped, lifting his hand in a mock salute, keeping the other hand wrapped firmly around his torso. "Fred and George Weasley at your service."

"I'm not stupid," I retorted, rolling my eyes, "I know you were on your way to do something with whatever Fred's hiding under his robes, and I know better than to get in the way when you're about to prank someone."

"Alright, alright, you caught us." Fred sighed and opened his arms. A massive cloth bag fell to the floor, and a puff of white powder drifted from the opening at the top. "George was going to lure you out of the library and I was going to dump all of this flour on you as you left by wingardium leviosa-ing the bag then diffindo-ing it open." 

"Good thing I left when I did, then. I guess now I need to help you figure out what to do with the bag." 

"Oh, we know what to do with the bag," George said, smirking. I immediately recognized the dangerous gleam in their eyes and sprinted away to the stairs, drawing my wand as I went. 

They were faster runners than me, but I had something of an advantage since they were trying to bring the bag of flour with them as well. Rather than running downstairs, as they probably expected me to do, I turned and raced up the stairs, ducking down narrow corridors until I reached a particularly dark and messy unused classroom. I left the door slightly ajar to avert suspicion and crawled under a desk in the corner of the room. 

After a couple of minutes, I heard Fred and George struggling up the stairs.

"Where did you say she was?" George (I think) grunted.

"In this one," the other one replied in a softer voice. "Should I check one more time? We have to uphold our reputation as Lucy-finding experts, and I'd hate to waste my time walking into the wrong room."

"You're one to talk, you're not the one who just carried this up a flight of stairs." I heard a thud, then the rustling of parchment.

"Yeah, because I'm the oldest."

"Oh, shut up. I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

After a moment, Fred spoke again. "Yeah, she's still in there."

My curiosity was piqued. How did they know where I was? And what did George mean by "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good?"

I backed further into the corner as they walked in, drawing my wand. I pointed my wand directly at the flour bag, whispering, "Wingardium leviosa!" But my spell was too weak, and the bag remained firmly in George's arms. 

"Heard you," Fred teased.

I sprang from my hiding spot and pointed my wand directly at Fred. "Rictumsempra!"

"Protego!" 

George launched the bag of flour my direction. "Wingardium leviosa!"

I cast one of my own. "Wingardium leviosa!"

Fred joined the fray, pointing his wand at the floating bag as well. "Wingardium leviosa!"

With two wands against one, the bag inched closer to me. I furrowed my brow and tried to hone the magic coursing through my veins. The bag slowed to a halt, still six feet above our heads. I tried and tried to push the bag closer to them, but there it remained, hovering in the air above us, completely motionless.

I don't know how long we were locked in that position, none of us wanting to give up, before the bag slowly started to come closer to me.

"No!" I panted. A familiar fighting fire ignited deep within me, and I gritted my teeth into a grin as I lifted my wandless hand high over my head until it was level with my wand hand. I let the fire burn until it seemed my face would shatter from how hard I was smiling. The bag began to move away from me. I waited until the bag was over the twins' heads before whispering "Diffindo!"

This time, the whispered spell was enough, and flour fell like snow all over them. I dropped my wand and laughed, wiping the sweat from my brow with the sleeve of my sweater. "I think I win."

The twins were laughing too, as they attempted to brush the flour from their black robes. 

"Bloody hell, Cub, how in Merlin's name did you overpower the both of us?"

"If I knew, I'd tell you," I said, sitting on a desk and wiping my forehead again. "I have a question of my own, though. How did you find me? I heard you two in the hall talking about checking something to make sure I was really there, but even if I hadn't heard that, you two are certainly good at showing up every time I'd really rather be alone and I suspect there's a reason why."

"Oh, you wound us," Fred gasped, dramatically placing a hand over his flour-encrusted chest. "You want to be alone? Without us? Impossible!"

"You're dodging my question." I raised a single eyebrow as best I could, but Cedric was always better at it than I was. I probably looked ridiculous, but for once, they didn't laugh.

They exchanged a serious look.

"I say we tell her, Freddie, she found it in my underwear anyway."

"I knew that scrap of parchment was important!" I crowed. "Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

They turned toward me at the same time. 

"Help us destroy the evidence we were ever here, then we'll let you in on a little secret."

"Fair is fair," I said with a shrug, pointing my wand directly at George's face. "Aguamenti!"

He was too slow to avoid the jet of water I sprayed at him. Fred laughed. "Nice shot!"

I turned my wand and aimed the jet of water right into his open mouth. He coughed, still laughing.

Cleaning up took longer than we expected, as none of us were any good at vanishing charms, but when we were done, we sat in a small circle in the middle of the room, and Fred extracted the piece of parchment from his robe.

"Light your wand, Cub," George said. "You don't want to miss a single detail. I will too."

"Lumos maxima," we whispered in unison, and our wand tips sprang to life accordingly. 

"This, Lucy, is the Marauder's Map," Fred said, laying it out flat on the floor between the three of us. He pointed his wand at the paper. "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

The map came to life before my eyes. I leaned in to get a closer look.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" George murmured.

"This is amazing!" My voice was no more than a reverent whisper. "Oh look, there we are. Is that-"

"Filch coming this way? Yes."

"Nox!" I hissed, George quickly following suit.

"Mischief managed," Fred whispered, stuffing the parchment into his robe again and grabbing me by the hand as he jumped to his feet.

"Silencio!" George muttered, and our footsteps were instantly muted as we made our way to the darkest corner of the room. The twins shoved me under a desk, their message clear: Stay out of sight. I took it to heart and backed up until I was flat against the wall. I pulled my knees to my chest so at least one if not both of them could fit under there with me. 

In the silence, we could hear the groundskeeper's heavy footsteps as he shuffled down the hallway. He was humming an unfamiliar tune, and I saw Fred crack an amused grin. George squeezed under the desk next to me and positioned myself so I was hidden from sight from anyone coming in the door. We waited for about two minutes after the humming and shuffling had faded away before moving.

"That was close!" Fred declared, shoving the desk aside and helping George wiggle out. I accepted the hand he offered to me.

"Yeah, it was."

"Students in an abandoned classroom!" a loud voice laughed. "Up to no good, I hope!"

I jumped, but the twins greeted the poltergeist that had suddenly appeared with a smile. "Wotcher, Peeves."

"You two remind me of that pink-haired prankster when you say that," he chuckled, floating back and forth gleefully. "But who is the third member of your party? Does she have a nice new trick for Peevesy to learn?"

I shook my head. 

"She can't get in trouble, Peeves," George said, his voice uncharacteristically serious. "She's a brilliant prankster, but she only pranks us."

The poltergeist zipped over to me to take a closer look. "I know you! You're the sleepwalker! I've talked to you before! Not that you would remember, ha ha ha ha!"

I smiled, remembering all too well the exchange about cats Peeves and I had shared one night while I was sleepwalking. "I was too deeply asleep to remember, but I'm glad I could be of entertainment."

"Entertain me more!" He turned a flip in the air. "Play a prank, Sleepwalker!"

"Her name is Lucy," Fred said, "but she only pranks us so she doesn't get into trouble. If she gets in trouble, she has to leave Hogwarts."

"Alright, alright, very well. I don't want that. But in exchange for my silence, do tell me what you're doing here! Is that why you hid from dear old Filchy?"

Fred drew the map from his robes again. "We were just showing her this. Care to help us finish our explanation?"

As they traced secret passageways and good hiding spots on the map, I grew increasingly convinced that Fred and George were some of the brightest students Hogwarts had ever seen. Even as I fell asleep that night, my mind buzzed with all of the new information I had learned, and for the first time since Christmas, I slept without nightmares.

* * *

The night before the full moon, my nightmares returned with vengeance. I was home in Ottery St. Catchpole, working in Mum's garden alongside Cedric in silence. The silence was suddenly interrupted by uproarious laughter, and Cedric and I glanced up just as Fred and George burst through the flowers, faces hidden behind two of our Halloween masks. We laughed alongside them, when the sky suddenly grew dark. I jumped to my feet and began to run away, knowing that the full moon would come next, but Fred and George chased me.

"Where are you going?" they called.

"Don't follow me! Run! Run away!" I screamed, tripping over myself with how fast I was sprinting. I had nearly reached the forest when the first streaks of moonlight hit me. I turned around to make sure they were far enough away, but they were right there, right behind me. Cedric rushed forward, standing between them and me, his face soft as he watched me transforming.

My vision went dark, but only for a second. When it returned, the twins were backing away slowly, but Cedric stood his ground. 

"Run!" I cried, as the last of the transformation took place. "Cedric, what are you doing? Run!"

"Lucy, it's okay," he replied, his voice completely calm. He even smiled. "I'm not afraid."

I had just lunged at him, fully a werewolf and no longer aware of myself, when someone grabbed me around the shoulders and shook me violently.

"Lucy! Lucy!" the person was shouting.

"Hermione?" I mumbled. My eyes opened, and Hermione, Lavender, and Parvati were gathered around my bed, looking at me worriedly. "What's wrong?"

"You were screaming," Lavender said, her voice soft and concerned. "You kept screaming for someone, Cedric I think, to run."

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked, one hand still firmly gripping my shoulder. I forced myself to a sitting position, my head pounding.

"Yeah," I said, not even convincing to my own ears. "I'm alright. Sorry to wake you all."

"It's okay," they said in unison, cracking small grins as they did so. I smiled, too.

"I'm going to go sit in the common room for a bit." I rubbed the back of my neck, and when I pulled my hand away, it was slick with sweat. "I need to clear my head."

"Do you want me to go with you?" Hermione's question was more of a statement, but I shook my head anyway.

"You can go back to sleep. I'll be back up in a little while. I just need to be alone for a bit."

I left before anyone could protest. I didn't want them to see how violently I was trembling.

The common room was empty when I reached it, to my relief. I made my way to the largest couch and curled myself into a ball, pulling my nightgown down so it covered my scarred feet. I took a couple of deep breaths to try to calm myself, but all it did was make me feel even sicker to my stomach. Cedric's voice was haunting. "Lucy, it's okay. I'm not afraid."

It wasn't okay. He should have been.

The real Cedric would have been afraid. The real Cedric would have saved himself. Right?

I made my way to the window, praying for a glimpse of the stars, but they were veiled by dark clouds. I leaned my head against the cool glass, finally feeling myself begin to relax. I closed my eyes and took a few more deep breaths to combat the queasy feeling in my stomach.

I never did go back to sleep that night. My mind was racing with too many questions and not enough answers. With the full moon that very next night, I was especially terrified. I hoped that my dream wasn't a sign of what was to come. I had never really been that big of a fan of divination. My dad liked to brag that he was the best Seer in his class, but my mum believed it was nonsense, so he didn't get the chance to brag about it very often. I most often agreed with my mom that it was silly, but that night, I was too shaken to know what to believe.

After what felt like an eternity, I stumbled back up to my dormitory and changed into my robes, dreading the day ahead. I made my way down to the Great Hall with Hermione, hoping to eat before it got too loud. Fortunately, it was a Sunday, so I had no classes to worry about, though I did have Quidditch practice before lunch. Even the ceiling seemed to understand the way I felt; the same heavy clouds that had hidden the stars still loomed overhead, and a steady rain could be heard falling outside. To my surprise, Cedric was already there eating by himself, so I made my way over to him, telling Hermione I'd be back, and rested my head against his arm. (I would have laid my head on his shoulder, but I was too small in comparison.)

"Good morning, Lu!"

"Good morning, Cedric," I replied. I must have sounded as horrible as I felt, because he immediately laid a comforting hand on my leg.

"That doesn't hurt, does it?"

"No. Thanks for checking."

"Of course. Is something wrong? More wrong than usual on this day, anyway?" he asked in a softer voice.

I lifted my heavy head and wiped at my eyes. "Bad dream. It's okay," I added quickly, noting his concerned expression, "I just... it's a lot to take right now."

"I'm here. Always will be."

I rested my head against his arm again. "Promise?"

"Promise."

I made it through the day, and through the night. When I awoke on the floor of the Shrieking Shack the next morning, my head was still pounding, and my throat was aching. I tried to stand, but my right knee buckled when I applied weight to it. A hoarse cry escaped my lips, and I tried to remember what could have possibly happened. A hazy vision of falling down the stairs rose to the surface of my memory, and glancing around, I realized I was in fact at the base of the stairs. 

"Lucy?" came a muffled voice. 

"Cedric?" I croaked, inching toward the tunnel by sliding on my backside, not wanting to try to stand again.

"Lucy, are you alright?"

"No," I whimpered. "I'm coming, but I can't walk."

"Just get to the tunnel," he said. "I'll help you. When you didn't come right away, I came to get you myself."

I made my way to the tunnel and dropped down into it, careful to only land on my left leg. Unbalanced, I fell right into Cedric's waiting arms.

"My knee," I managed, pushing myself to a standing position and hopping on my good leg. "I think I fell down the stairs. I must have hit my head and blacked out; I don't remember anything after that."

"Yeah, you've got a nasty bump forming. I'll ask Hermione to bring you a hat to cover it. We'll get you some Pepperup Potion, too," he said. "You sound like you have a cold. Here, get on my back."

I obeyed, burying my face in his shoulder. I was so exhausted I was half-asleep by the time I got to the Hospital Wing, and my hands trembled as I drank the horribly bitter potion. Madam Pomfrey wanted me to stay in the Hospital Wing for at least the morning, but I convinced her I'd be alright and left between Cedric and Hermione, who both refused to leave my side. We were nearly to the Great Hall when a girl in Ravenclaw robes suddenly ran to up to Cedric.

"Hi," she said, clutching her books tightly to her chest. "H-How are you, Cedric?"

"I'm well, thanks, and you?" 

"I'm well, thanks," she said. I glanced her direction, and saw a fierce blush climbing into her cheeks. "I-I was wondering. I know it's still nearly a month away, but, well, would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me on Valentine's Day?"

I fought the urge to cringe. Poor Cedric, being asked out in front of his younger sister and her friend. But Cedric, ever the gentleman, responded calmly. 

"I'm sorry, Bella, but I already have plans to meet an old friend at The Three Broomsticks for a butterbeer. I haven't seen her in quite a while, and we've had this plan for a couple of months now."

"Oh, okay, it's okay," she stammered. "Have fun."

With that, she turned on her heel and hurried down the hallway. Once her footsteps had faded away, I offered a sympathetic glance to my brother, who still looked uncomfortable.

"You alright, Ced?"

"Yeah," he replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "Valentine's Day makes all of the girls here get a little funny. I'm glad I have that plan with Adalyn, though."

"Oh! Adalyn is the one you'll be seeing?"

He nodded. "I haven't seen her since she graduated, and I'd really like to learn more about her job as a Healer. We've exchanged letters, of course, but it's not the same as seeing her in person."

"Adalyn? As in Adalyn Benson?" Hermione asked, eyes wide.

"The one and only," Cedric replied with a grin, but before he could reply further, the bell rang over our heads and we went our separate ways.

"Poor Cedric," I lamented under my breath so only Hermione could hear. "I don't know how he handled that so well."

She giggled. "He's probably used to it at this point. Everyone knows he's handsome."

I made a mock gagging noise. "He's my brother!"

"Certainly didn't matter to that girl," she said with a shrug. "Asking him out with you right there! I hope the other girls that ask him out have a little more tact."

* * *

Hermione's optimism was not rewarded. My poor brother was asked out left and right as Valentine's Day drew nearer and nearer. I had confessed to the twins that I suspected that Cedric was hiding his discomfort so he didn't hurt the feelings of the people who asked him out. From there, they took matters into their own hands, making an effort to ask Cedric out to Hogsmeade at least four times a day in the most ridiculous manner possible to try to lighten the mood. 

When the big day finally came, the twins tried to convince me to borrow the Marauder's Map and sneak into Hogsmeade, but I was too afraid of getting caught, and I wasn't sure how to explain my absence to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who would surely notice. I instead spent the day in the common room with a large group of first- and second-years, playing a series of massive games of Exploding Snap. To the surprise of nearly everyone there, I was able to hold my own, and I nearly won one of the games. Ron was particularly impressed, and he was still talking about one particular move of mine when we made our way down to the Great Hall for the Valentine's Day feast.

I assumed my typical spot across from Harry, Ron, and Hermione and between Fred and George, though I was careful not to get too close to the twins, knowing they had spent the day at Zonko's. Professor Dumbledore offered a cheesy speech about love before we dug in, which drew both groans and giggles from the student body. It was quite a sickening sight, really; everywhere I looked, couples were holding hands under the table and resting their heads on each other's shoulders. It was nice to see people eating at other houses' tables for a change, but the PDA that went with it was just plain excessive. 

I must have been cringing outwardly as well as inwardly when I saw Oliver Wood place a kiss on the cheek of the girl next to him, who blushed furiously and scooted even closer to him (which I hadn't even realized was possible) because Harry laughed loudly at the sight of my face.

"I take it Valentine's Day isn't your thing, Lucy?" he teased.

I smiled, my face burning with embarrassment. "Not my favorite day in the world," I admitted.

"Oh, just you wait, Cub," Fred said, resting his head on his fist in a mock dreamy fashion. "Once you meet your soulmate and fall in love, your whole _world_ will change. This will be your favorite day of the whole _year_. You'll get to smother your one true love with chocolate and affection for a whole twenty-four hours."

"Yeah, just imagine," George added, nudging me with his elbow and pointing to Oliver Wood and his girlfriend. I thought her name was Willow, but I couldn't quite remember. I was too distracted at the moment by the way they were feeding each other grapes. "One day, you'll meet someone so amazing you'll act like that every chance you get and not feel the slightest bit of shame! Sounds wonderful, doesn't it?"

I wrinkled my nose. "If that's the case, I guess I'll be alone for life by choice rather than just circumstance."

Everyone laughed at that, myself included. We were interrupted by a Slytherin girl tapping Fred on the shoulder. "Can I talk to you and your twin for a second?" she asked, twirling her curly black hair around her finger, one hand tucked suspiciously behind her back. "I need a favor from you two. And don't worry, I can pay you for your trouble."

The twins exchanged a glance, shrugged, and rose to their feet. The girl smiled at me before she left. "You're Cedric's sister, aren't you?" I nodded, and she extended a hand. "Jenna Gordon. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," I replied. She smiled and ushered the twins from the room. I tried to see what she was holding in her hand, but her fingers perfectly covered whatever it was. I turned back to Ron, Harry, and Hermione. "What do you think that was all about?"

"I don't know," Hermione said, watching as they left, "but I've got a bad feeling about this."

Fred and George returned alone a couple minutes later, shaking their heads.

"What did she want?" I asked.

"She's trying to slip someone a love potion, but we told her it'd be too difficult to execute secretly right now with so many people here watching," George sighed as he sat back down. "She sure was insistent, though. Oh, there she goes now."

Fred grimaced. "Godric, she looks determined."

I watched with dread as she marched directly to Cedric, smile glued to her face.

"I should stop her," I muttered, my hand moving instinctively to my wand. "But how?"

"Not worth it, Lu." George placed his hand over mine. "I doubt Cedric will fall for it anyway. I mean look, the poor guy is already swamped by ten times more girls than usual."

"Want me to light her robes on fire?" Hermione offered jokingly.

I cracked a grin. "No, save that for Snape."

"Wait, what?" the twins asked in unison.

"I'll tell you later," I replied, dismissing them with a wave of my hand. "Oh, bloody hell, what does she have in her hand now?"

"Looks like a cookie to me," Ron said with a shrug. "She must have given up on the love potion."

"I don't trust it," I mumbled, watching as she parked herself between Cedric and Henry. "Oh, now that's too far, she separated him from his best friend. She's up to something. I should do something."

It was too late. She offered him the cookie, and he took a bite. His eyes instantly widened, and he looked at the now very smug Slytherin with renewed interest. I jumped from the bench and got there just as Cedric tipped his face toward her to kiss her.

"What was in that cookie, Jenna?" I hissed, pressing my hand firmly over Cedric's mouth before he made a fool of himself. "What did you do to him?"

Her dark eyes flashed with anger. "Nothing, it's my mum's recipe. What are you doing here? What are you trying to imply? We were in the middle of something."

Cedric wrenched my hand away, eyes glazed over. "Lucy, it's okay! It was the best cookie I've ever had! Oh Godric, Jenna, I love you!"

"Henry, help!" I pleaded, pushing Cedric away from her. "I think she smuggled a love potion into that cookie somehow, Cedric has never acted this way in his life. We need to get him out of here!"

Henry nodded and helped me grab Cedric under the arms and drag him out of the Great Hall. Jenna tried to follow, but she was stopped by the twins, who had their arms crossed over their chests. Once we made it to the hallway, Henry and I wrestled him against a wall.

"What do we do?" I panted, grabbing Cedric's wrist as he tried to bolt back into the Great Hall.

"What did you do that for?" he cried incredulously. "I was about to get my first kiss!"

"Save it for someone you really love, mate," Henry replied, ducking as Cedric swung his fist haphazardly toward his friend. 

"Cedric, stop!" I squeaked, hanging onto his arm as he wound up to throw another punch. "It was just a love potion! It's not real!"

"No, it _is_ real! I do really love her!" he exclaimed, looking as if he'd cry. His sorrow quickly turned to anger. "You interrupted a very intimate moment, Lucy! What do you have to say for yourself? You ruined it!"

"You'll thank her later, Ced," Henry sighed. He looked toward me, his brown eyes equal parts amused and exasperated. "Maybe Madam Pomfrey has something to balance him out?"

"She's all out of Hate Potion," an older Slytherin sighed as he walked past us. It seemed his friend, also in Slytherin, was in the same boat as my brother. The friend's eyes were starry and wide, and his mouth hung open in a half-smile. "You should just get him to his common room and hope he sleeps it off. Had to do that with old Jeremy here last year. Firewhisky helps, if you have any."

"Thanks for the advice," I replied, adjusting my grip on my brother's arm. 

"Yeah, no problem. Hey, is that the Diggory kid?"

Henry nodded. "The one and only."

"Poor guy will probably have to deal with this again. My sister never shuts up about how hot he is."

"Your sister's name isn't Jenna, is it?" I asked reluctantly.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I told her not to do anything stupid, but I guess she's still pissed that he didn't accept her offer to Hogsmeade. Sorry you had to deal with that, I'll talk to her."

"It's okay," I said. I remembered Oliver and Willow and grinned. "I know love makes people do some crazy things."

"I'll say," he grunted, catching his friend by the elbow as he tried to break away. "I should probably take care of him. Name's Liam, by the way."

"I'm Henry, and this is Lucy. Thanks again for your help."

"Good luck!" he called as he marched his friend down the hallway and disappeared around the corner. 

I sighed and turned to Henry. "Sounds like you've got quite the night ahead of you. Do you want me to stay with him in the common room overnight?"

"It's alright, I can handle him. Would you mind helping me get him down to the common room, though?"

"Will Jenna be there?" Cedric asked desperately, suddenly breaking his silence. "Please tell me Jenna will be there! I never got my kiss!"

"Yeah, she'll be there," I replied, thinking quickly. "But only if you get there really fast! Can you get there really fast?"

He nodded excitedly, reminding me of a puppy. Henry and I exchanged an amused glance. This was going to be funny. I released his arm, and Henry let go too. "Go ahead, mate, she's waiting!"

Cedric took off at a dead sprint toward the Hufflepuff common room, and Henry and I tore off after him. We clambered through the barrel hole just as he turned around, enraged.

"Where is she?" he demanded.

"Must have been too slow, Cedric," I said sadly. "But you know what, maybe if you go straight to sleep, she'll be there when you wake up in the morning!"

"I won't be able to sleep thinking about her beautiful face," he groaned, running a hand through his hair. He froze in horror. "What if she comes in and sees me with bedhead? What if I'm snoring?"

Henry chuckled. "I see it every day, mate, it's not that bad. And you don't snore."

Cedric nodded a couple of times, as if to reassure himself. "Okay. Okay. I'll go to bed. She'll be there when I wake up?"

"Yeah, of course," I lied, smiling. "Good night, Cedric."

"Good night!" he said brightly, taking the stairs two at a time.

Henry and I sighed simultaneously, then exchanged a glance.

"Cedric was so paranoid all day," Henry admitted. "Didn't drink a thing aside from a butterbeer when he went to see Adalyn, and even then, he was nervous about drinking even that much. He didn't even really trust the cookie either, but she somehow knew snickerdoodles were his favorite cookie and he probably felt obligated to accept it."

"What a snake," I muttered, "no pun intended. Her brother was nice, though."

"Yeah, he was."

I sighed again. "Poor Cedric. He'll be so embarrassed when he snaps out of it. Are you sure you don't want me to stay to help?"

"Don't worry about it, Lucy, I can take care of him. He's helped me out of a fair few sticky situations. I'm more than happy to help him with this one."

"Thank you, Henry. I guess I'll head back up to my common room. I'm worried that I'll hit Jenna with a bat bogey hex like she's never seen if I head back to the Great Hall now."

He laughed. "Can't blame you. Good night, Little Diggory."

"Good night," I replied with a chuckle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Well, that was a fun chapter to write! Hopefully it was worth the wait, and hopefully you all enjoyed it even though I don't actually have any events from the books in this chapter.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me this far! I hope you're enjoying the story! And as always, please please please leave feedback! Comments on stories literally make my day. I love hearing from you!


	14. First to Last

_All the things that fly by me  
All the lives that I could lead  
Maybe I was born for that  
Or maybe I was first to last_

_"It Comes Back to You"  
Imagine Dragons_

* * *

_The screams gave way to mournful howls. The February night was cold, but cloudless, the first night in weeks where the stars were visible. Were the werewolf a human, she would have enjoyed the sight, as the sprinkles of light seemed to stretch on forever. But the wolf didn't even notice the stars outside; its only concern was its own empty stomach._

_The girl had rushed to the Shrieking Shack straight from Quidditch practice, no time to have dinner before the sun would set. She had assured her very-concerned brother she would be okay, but the wolf could not keep the promise. It scrounged the entire house looking for something, anything, finding nothing._

_It launched itself at closet doors, cabinet doors, willing them to open, but they didn't budge. The wolf was destroying itself with every lunge, every pounce, every desperate claw at the doors, but it didn't care. It couldn't make itself care. Its only concern was filling the hole it felt inside, yet there was nothing. Nothing._

_It howled in frustration, annoyance, anger. Hunger. The wolf eyed the wardrobe in the corner of the room, the only door it hadn't yet tried to bring down. It had a running start, snarling as it lunged at the door snout-first. The wardrobe wobbled back and forth a couple of times, but the doors did not give way. The wolf tried again and again, but the sun rose before success came. The screams began anew, and the girl who remained was battered and exhausted._

* * *

LUCY:

Life did not get much better after the full moon. Practices had gotten more and more intense in anticipation of the Hufflepuff match, and we practiced rain or shine. After one particularly brutal practice, Harry and I kept our heads bowed low against the rain as we hurried to the castle. Another weight now rested on our shoulders, and it wasn't just the weight of our soaking robes. Skye had announced that Professor Snape would be referee for the upcoming match against Hufflepuff. 

Once in the common room, we immediately made a beeline for Hermione and Ron, who were engaged in an intense game of wizard's chess. 

Ron noticed us first. “Don’t talk to me for a moment, I need to concen- What’s the matter with you, Harry? You look terrible.”

"Snape is refereeing the next Quidditch match," he explained in a low voice.

Hermione's eyes bulged. "Don't play."

"Say you're ill," Ron said.

"Pretend to break your leg."

"Really break your leg."

Before I could speak, there was a commotion by the portrait hole. The room exploded with laughter, but I jumped to my feet and ran over to Neville, whose legs were locked together. Hermione was right behind me and performed the countercurse. I helped him to his feet and ushered him over to Ron and Harry.

"What happened?" Hermione asked.

Neville wrapped his arms around his middle. His voice was little more than a whisper. "Malfoy. I met him outside the library. He said he’d been looking for someone to practice that on.”

Hermione was horrified. "Go to Professor McGonagall! Report him!"

Neville shook his head violently, rocking back and forth slightly. "I don't want to cause more trouble."

"It wouldn't be trouble, Neville," I said, reaching forward and rubbing my hand slowly up and down his arm, "honest. But it's okay if you'd rather not go to Professor McGonagall."

Ron piped up then. "You've got to stand up to him, Neville! He’s used to walking all over people, but that’s no reason to lie down in front of him and make it easier.”

Neville looked like he was about to burst into tears. “There’s no need to tell me I’m not brave enough to be in Gryffindor, Malfoy’s already done that."

Harry extended a Chocolate Frog to Neville, which he accepted gratefully. 

“You’re worth twelve of Malfoy, if not more. The Sorting Hat chose you for Gryffindor, didn’t it? And where’s Malfoy? In stinking Slytherin.”

"Harry's right," I agreed. "You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and there's nothing wrong with that. And hey, remember how Professor Snape said the same about me? Well, I'm still here, aren't I?"

"I haven't fought a troll," he mumbled through a mouthful of chocolate, "or been to the Forbidden Forest."

"You don't have to do either of those to be a Gryffindor. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, too. I'm sure one day, you'll have your chance to be brave in a big way, but until then, you still belong here, with us." I drew my wand. "Now, where did you say Malfoy was? I want to talk to him."

He smiled. "He was outside the library, but he's probably gone now. I think I'll head to bed. Thank you, though, Lucy, and Harry, for the frog. Do you want the card? You collect them, don't you?"

"Good night, Neville," we said as he headed up the stairs to his dormitory. 

I tucked my wand away, pouting a bit. "I wanted to see how Draco looked with a sunburn in February. Might finally bring some color to his pale-as-a-ghost face."

Ron and Hermione laughed, but Harry's jaw dropped as he looked at the card. 

He looked up at us excitedly. “I’ve found him, I’ve found Flamel! I told you I’d read the name somewhere before, I read it on the train coming here! Listen to this: 'Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon’s blood, and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel!'"

Hermione immediately gasped. "Stay there!" she whispered as she rushed up to our dormitory.

"What's gotten into her?" Ron muttered. Even as the words left his mouth, she was back with the massive book she'd been keeping under her bed since she returned from Christmas holiday.

Ron opened his mouth to ask another question, but she shushed him before flipping through the book as quickly as possible, muttering to herself. Harry and I exchanged an amused look as Ron grumbled something under his breath. 

“I knew it!" Hermione whispered, eyes shining. "Nicolas Flamel is the only known maker of the Philosopher’s Stone!”

I immediately joined her side and read the words for myself. "No way," I said under my breath. The boys seemed confused.

"What _is_ the Philosopher's Stone?" Harry asked shyly.

Hermione rolled her eyes and turned the book to face them. “Oh, honestly, don’t you two read? Look, read that, there.” She waited a couple of moments before speaking again. “See? The dog must be guarding Flamel’s Philosopher’s Stone! I bet he asked Dumbledore to keep it safe for him, because they’re friends and he knew someone was after it, that’s why he wanted the Stone moved out of Gringotts!”

"Anyone would want something that would make them immortal," Harry said, eyes wide. "No wonder Snape is after it." He gulped. "No wonder he wants me out of the way."

"Harry, I'll fill in for you," I said. "I can ask Skye to have me play Seeker instead of Chaser during practices. Harry, this stone isn't worth dying for."

"Wait, Lucy, you're on the team?" Ron asked.

I bit my lip, realizing my mistake. I nodded. "But you can't tell anyone else, it's a secret."

"Why do you think she always disappears the same time as Harry?" Hermione retorted.

"I just thought she was studying in the stands, like Fred and George said she does. You knew?"

"I didn't know, but I could guess easily." She reached over and twisted one of my still-wet braids around her finger for emphasis. "Haven't you noticed they've _both_ come back soaking wet the past couple of weeks? You really don't pay attention to much, do you?"

"I'll play," Harry said, interrupting the two of them before their argument could progress any further. "If I don't, the Slytherins will think I'm just too scared to face Snape. I'll show them; it'll really wipe the smiles off their faces."

"Just make sure we don't have to wipe you off the field, mate." Ron grinned uneasily. "It'll be hard to light Snape's robes on fire from where we'll be in the stands."

Hermione pursed her lips. "We'll need to make a new plan in case he tries to tamper with your broom again."

"And I'll still ask to spend more time playing Seeker. I've been meaning to ask since the last match when Skye almost called me in." I turned my sore shoulder in a couple of circles and grinned. "I wouldn't mind taking a break from lobbing Quaffles anyway."

* * *

"T-Today, we will be t-t-taking notes on how to t-t-treat werewolf b-b-b-bites," Professor Quirrell said. I immediately stiffened. I knew that werewolves were part of the DADA curriculum, but I still felt something like a rock settling in my stomach as the blackboard came to life with an animated sketch of a werewolf biting a human over and over. This particular day, I was sitting next to Harry and Hermione was sitting with Ron, which was probably for the best in hindsight, but I could still feel Hermione's stare on the back of my head, imagined though it may have been. I fought the urge to massage the scar; the bite mark had stretched slightly as I had grown, but beneath my more recent scars from September's full moon, I could still see the bite mark that stretched from my belly button to the small of my back, from my rib cage to my hip bone on the right side of my body. 

I caught Hermione's eye as we reached into our bags for parchment and a quill.

"You okay?" she mouthed.

I nodded quickly and sat back up, willing myself to focus on the notes and nothing else. It felt something like floating, when I distanced myself from, well, myself. I could see my left hand writing the notes as my right hand held the parchment in place. I could hear Professor Quirrell's stuttering voice and the scratch of chalk on the board. I could feel the nervous bounce of Harry's leg up and down next to me, and the way the desk trembled slightly as he did it. But it was like I was on the outside looking in, rather than on the inside looking out. 

As soon as the bell dismissed us to lunch, I glanced at Harry. I could tell the Snape situation was still weighing heavily on his mind, but I didn't want to push him. I turned away to pack up, wishing there was something I could do.

"I'm going to the library," Hermione said, looking intentionally at me before the boys. "To research what we talked about last night. Does anyone want to go with me?"

"I'll go," I offered, rubbing the back of my neck. "I'm not very hungry anyway."

"I am," Ron said. "But if you two want my help..."

"It's okay," Hermione said quickly. "You and Harry can go eat. Lucy and I can handle it."

Without waiting for a response, Hermione hurried out of the classroom.

"See you two later," I muttered with a wry grin before following her. 

"Are you alright?" she whispered immediately.

I nodded. "I'm alright."

She didn't seem convinced, but she didn't ask any more questions. "I've been trying to think of spells that would be effective even if Professor Snape is on a broom, but the only one I've been able to think of is the Leg-Locker Curse because of what happened to poor Neville. As someone who rides a broom much more than I do, would that work?"

I nodded immediately. "Using your legs is essential to balancing. If his were locked together-" I giggled. "First of all, ouch, it would probably hurt him a lot more than it would me, considering he's not female."

"Oh dear, I hadn't thought of that." Hermione giggled. "Ouch."

"But aside from that, it would probably cause him to lose balance and maybe even fall off. Do you want to practice it right now, actually? I can get Cedric's broom, and I doubt anybody is there since it's lunch and it's raining."

"I don't want to hurt you," she said.

"I won't go very high off the ground," I assured her. "Come on, Hermione, now's the perfect time to try it without being seen. Let's go."

We hurried down to the Pitch, and I got the broom out of the broom closet quickly. As expected, the Pitch was deserted. I flew down to Hermione, who was looking around with wide eyes.

"I never thought I'd see it from this view."

"Pretty great, isn't it? Okay, I'll come close so you can try it without having to worry about distance." I gripped the broom handle tightly, making sure I was less than a meter above the ground. "I'm ready whenever you are."

"Okay." Hermione took a deep breath and pointed her wand at me. "Locomotor mortis!"

I was launched off of my broom as my legs snapped together. 

"Are you okay?" Hermione asked, rushing over to me.

I laughed and performed the countercurse. "Yeah, I am. I think this is going to work." I climbed back on my broom and backed up. "Let's try from more of a distance. Ready when you are!"

"Locomotor mortis!"

I was once again launched off of my broom, but I shot my hand out to grab it this time. I managed to hold onto it, my locked legs dangling. "Do you think he'd still be able to jinx Harry's broom like this?" I called.

"Only one way to find out. Try to cast a spell and keep it up even after you fall off. Finite incantem!"

I climbed back on my broom, this time drawing my wand. I pointed it at a spare Quaffle. "Wingardium leviosa!"

The red ball hovered above the ground.

"Locomotor mortis!"

I tried to keep the Quaffle aloft, I really did, but I had to choose between grabbing a hold of my broom or keeping the ball up, and I chose the broom. I hoped Snape would make the same decision.

Ron had his chance to practice on me a couple days later. It took him longer to master the spell than it took Hermione, but he succeeded eventually. We kept this all a secret from Harry, figuring he didn't need one more thing on his mind at the moment. For his part, he was keeping a secret from Hermione and Ron as well. On multiple occasions, we lingered in the stands after practice so he could copy my homework (and correct any mistakes I made) and I could work ahead without interruption. Hermione frowned upon any type of cheating, but with our practices getting longer by the week, we realized early on we couldn't keep up doing all of the work on our own.

The day of the match came soon. Very soon. Dare I say too soon.

* * *

"Now, don't forget, it's locomotor mortis," Hermione said softly as Ron slipped his wand up his sleeve.

"I know, don't nag," Ron snapped.

Hermione huffed and turned to me. "You have your Snitch?"

I nodded, opening my fist ever so slightly to show her. She nodded approvingly and turned back to the stadium.

My hand was beginning to ache with how tightly I was clutching the Snitch, but I simply couldn't relax. I had smiled for Cedric when I wished him good luck, and I had smiled for Harry when I had reassured him everything would be okay, but I hadn't saved any optimism for myself. 

"I've never seen Snape look so mean," Ron moaned. 

"There they go," I said softly as the whistle blew.

"Ow!" Ron yelped.

"Oh, sorry, Weasley, didn't see you there."

Draco. My blood boiled at the sound of his voice, and I reckoned it was a good thing my wand was in my trunk instead of up my sleeve like Ron's and Hermione's. My desire to see his pinched, pale face sunburnt to a crisp was still unmet. I tuned him out and turned my attention to the game, going back and forth between watching Harry and Cedric, who circled high above the game. 

"Wonder how long Potter's going to stay on his broom this time? Anyone want to bet? How about you, Weasley?"

Nobody replied as Snape awarded Hufflepuff a penalty for George hitting a Bludger at him. 

But Malfoy couldn't be stopped. "You know how I think they choose people for the Gryffindor team? It's people they feel sorry for. See, there's Potter, who's got no parents, then there's the Weasleys, who've got no money. You should be on the team, Longbottom, you've got no brains!"

Neville turned around, echoing Harry's words. "I'm worth twelve of you, Malfoy!"

"You tell him, Neville," Ron said, not looking away.

"Longbottom, if brains were gold, you'd be poorer than Weasley, and that's saying something."

"I'm warning you, Malfoy, one more word-"

"Look! Harry!" Hermione gasped. 

He dove toward the ground, Cedric quickly streaking after him. I raised my hands to my cheeks, feeling my whole body shaking from the tension I felt.

"You're in luck, Weasley! Potter's obviously spotted some money on the ground!"

Ron dove over the seats, and I whirled around and grabbed his arm just before he could take a swing.

"Stop!" I shouted, forcing myself in between them and pushing them apart as best I could. Draco wound up for a punch, but Neville pulled Ron out of the way and back over the seats just in time. His fist connected with my cheek instead, but I managed to stand my ground. I glared at Draco, crossing my arms across my chest, smirking a bit as he winced and shook his hand. I guessed he had never actually thrown a punch before, and it hurt more than he expected. "Are you done making an arse of yourself yet, Draco?"

He smirked back, mocking my posture by crossing his own arms. "You should be thanking me, Diggory. You'll look prettier than ever with that bruise. Let's go, Crabbe, Goyle. Looks like Diggory's about to cry, and I don't think I could take the sight of her face getting any more hideous."

But before they could leave, Ron and Neville had pounced on them, fists flying.

"Stop! Stop!" I cried, but it was pointless. I turned on my heel and weaved my way through the crowd, racing down the stairs and running all the way to the shores of the Black Lake. Halfway there, I heard the stands erupt into cheers; I supposed someone had caught the Snitch. I hoped it was Harry --- sorry, Cedric.

I slowed to a walk as I approached the water. The sun was just beginning to set, a cool evening breeze swirling around me. I let myself reach up and touch my cheek for the first time. It was already starting to swell, but I didn't have my wand to attempt any kind of healing spell. I walked across some larger rocks until I found one I could perch myself on. I sat down heavily and pulled my knees to my chest, Draco's words looping through my head.

I obviously knew what he meant. Seeing myself without scars in the mirror had brought back to the surface the deep-rooted insecurity that had followed me my entire life. What he had said hurt more than the punch itself. 

My tears evaporated as the sun disappeared behind the mountains. I sighed, realizing I should probably head up to the castle before it was completely dark. With any luck, everyone would already be at dinner and I could slip up to my dormitory unnoticed. I dried my face with my sleeve one last time, careful not to press too hard on my now-very-swollen cheek, and began the hike. I managed to get through the halls without seeing anyone, but when I crawled through the portrait hole, Fred and George were in the middle of the room, dumping their loot from the kitchen onto a large table. I tried to sneak past without them noticing, but they looked up just as I reached the door. I guessed we had won, seeing as a party was sure to begin soon.

"Hey, Cub!" 

I carefully turned the unbruised half of my face to the twins and forced a smile that probably looked more like a wince. "Good match! Nice shot at Snape, George, the look on his face was priceless."

"Thanks, mate. I didn't like the way he was looking at Angelina. Why aren't you down at dinner?"

"I'm just tired," I lied.

"You can't miss the party! Everyone will be up here in just a couple of minutes!"

"I'll come down later. I still need to congratulate Harry. I haven't seen him yet," I said, backing closer to the door. I held out my hand, still clutching the Snitch. "I just need to put this away, since I didn't end up needing to use it today."

George narrowed his eyes. "Haven't seen him yet? We saw him talking to Ron and Hermione outside the Great Hall."

"Oh, I must have missed him." I shrugged and started to turn to the door, but I felt a hand on my shoulder, and before I could resist, Fred spun me around.

"Bloody hell, what happened to you?"

"Nothing," I said, holding my hand over my cheek. "It's nothing."

"Who hit you?" George asked, gently but firmly grabbing my wrist and lowering my hand.

"It's nothing," I repeated. "I can fix it."

"We know you can, but it never should have happened in the first place, Cub. Who hit you?"

"Draco Malfoy," I muttered. 

"What? Why?"

I shook my head. "Not important. I'm going to go try to cover this up before the party starts. I promise, I will actually come down," I added quickly, noting their skeptical faces.

George sighed. "This conversation isn't over. I can't believe he hit you."

"It's not that big of a deal," I said quietly, looking down at my shoes. "You should see what he probably did to Ron. I'll be back." 

With that, I disappeared up the stairs and tucked the Snitch into my trunk. I grabbed my wand and studied my reflection in the mirror. An angry black bruise had formed that spread across my whole left cheekbone. I pointed my wand to it. "Episkey."

Immediately, some of the pain disappeared, and some of the color faded. But Draco's bony knuckles had done their damage, so it was still moderately dark. I tried a couple more times to heal it away, but refused to disappear entirely. I was just about to dig through my chest for the small make-up set Lavender had gotten me for Christmas when Hermione walked in.

"Where have you been?" she demanded. "I've been so wor-" I turned around, and her words died on her lips when she saw my face. She sighed. "At least you look better than Ron. Malfoy broke his nose, but Ron gave him a black eye. Neville tried to take on Crabbe and Goyle at the same time, I heard, but I didn't actually realize anything had happened until after Harry caught the Snitch and Neville was knocked out. Madam Pomfrey said he'll be okay, though, don't worry, and she fixed Ron's nose easily."

"I told Fred and George I'd head down to the party, but I..." I crossed the room and lowered myself onto my bed, fighting tears. "I can't get the bruise to go away." I sighed. "You know what. I'm not going to worry about it. Draco wants me to be embarrassed. I can't give him that satisfaction! I'm going to go enjoy this party!"

I jumped up and ran down the stairs, leaving a confused Hermione in my wake. I spotted George by the drink table, so I made my way over, smiling and reaching for a glass of butterbeer.

"Looking better, Lu," George shouted over the music.

"Thanks! I tried! Where's Fred?"

"Probably flirting his face off with Angelina."

I nearly spat out the massive sip of butterbeer I had just taken, but I managed to swallow it, though it burned my throat on the way down. "Angelina? Our Angelina?"

"Yeah, he's decided he fancies her. Hasn't left her alone the past three weeks."

"Why aren't you flirting your face off with someone?" I took another sip. Butterbeer had never tasted so good. I supposed it was the excitement of the party or the adrenaline of the fight or the immense relief of Harry's survival of the match, or perhaps all three.

He shrugged. "Fred's always been the flirt. I prefer to let my naturally good looks do the talking. I am the handsomer twin, after all."

I rolled my eyes. "You're identical!"

"Says the only person who can consistently tell us apart," he teased. "Ah, here comes my dearest brother now. No Angelina, he must have scared the poor girl away."

"Are you going to tell me what actually happened to you now?" Fred asked.

"You should have seen it!" Ron rushed over just behind Fred, Harry tagging along behind him. "She didn't even flinch! She just crossed her arms and asked him if he was done making an arse of himself yet!" Hermione was right; I did look better than Ron. His white shirt had massive bloodstains all down the front, but he didn't seem to mind. Quite frankly, it might have been the happiest I'd ever seen him. 

"That's our Cub!" Fred cheered, pumping a fist in the air. "She'll be hexing all of the bullies left and right by next year, mark my words."

I shook my head, smiling nonetheless. "I didn't even have my wand. I do still want to practice a sunburn jinx on him, though."

"As long as it's not on my handsome face," Fred said, reaching for a glass of butterbeer and taking a sip. His eyes widened. "Bloody hell, someone spiked this!"

All eyes immediately went to the half-empty glass in my hand. I blushed. "I thought it tasted better than usual."

George immediately snatched it out of my grasp and took a sip to see for himself. "Yeah, there's definitely some firewhisky in there. Going to have to cut you off, Cub."

"You're underage, too!" I protested.

"Look at me," he said, gesturing to his sturdy frame. He reached forward and patted me on the head to emphasize the fact I didn't even reach his shoulders. "I can handle a little firewhisky. You're small. Seems like it's already taking effect, too."

I wrinkled my nose. "Fine. But I can still kick your arse in a broom race."

Everyone laughed at that. Harry turned to me, his face serious. "Can I talk to you for a second, Lucy?"

I nodded, and we slipped out of the common room.

"I already told Ron and Hermione this," he whispered as we walked down the stairs, "but since you were... wait, where were you? Neither of them knew."

"Trying to cover up my bruise," I muttered. "Obviously it didn't completely work, but it looks better than it did at first. What did you tell them?"

"In here." We ducked into an unused classroom and shut the door behind us. "I was putting my broom away when I saw Snape heading toward the Forbidden Forest, so I followed him and overheard his conversation with Professor Quirrell. He asked if he knew how to get past the three-headed dog, and then said something about how Quirrell didn't want Snape for an enemy, then he told him to consider where his loyalties lie and left. I think the safety of the Stone depends on Quirrell's ability to stand up to Snape."

"Meaning it's in grave danger?"

He nodded. "I'm afraid so."

I bit my lip. George was right; the firewhisky was already taking effect. It was hard to think straight. "So what are we going to do?"

"I don't know."

"I don't know either." I wrapped my arms around my torso and stared at the ground. "I think now all that's left to do is protect each other, and try to protect Quirrell." I looked at him shyly. "Congratulations on the win today, Harry. You were under a lot of pressure. I can't imagine how nervous you must have been."

He smiled. "Thanks, Lucy. Must have been hard to say that to the person who beat your brother."

I smiled a bit back at him. "I wished Cedric luck this morning, but something tells me Gryffindor throws better victory parties anyway."

Harry laughed aloud at this. "Thanks to the twins. Speaking of, want to head back?"

"I think I'm going to pay Neville a visit in the Hospital Wing, actually. Want to come with me?"

"Sure, that's a good idea."

When we arrived, he was sitting up and stroking Trevor, who was snuggled comfortably in his lap. 

"Hi, Neville," Harry said, approaching his bedside. "How are you?"

"I'm alright. How are you, Lucy?"

"Oh, this? It doesn't hurt anymore. I'm just glad you're okay."

"I-I meant... how are you with what he said? You do know that's part of why we jumped at him again, right?"

I felt an uncomfortable heat crawl up my neck to my face. "I know. It's not worth it, honestly."

"What did he say?" Harry asked. "Ron didn't say why he attacked Malfoy, but I just assumed it was something about his family."

"That's what started it," I said quickly, "but it doesn't really matter. Neville, remember what I said about having your chance to be brave in a big way? Well, I think today was your chance. And you definitely proved yourself to be worthy of this red tie."

He grinned from ear to ear. Trevor croaked his agreement, and we all burst out laughing.


	15. I'm Your Brother

CEDRIC: 

When I awoke Sunday morning and peeled my sleep mask off my eyes, Henry was the only other person left in our dormitory. I stretched and rolled onto my stomach. "Good morning," I mumbled through a yawn, my eyes slowly adjusting to the morning glow. Our common room and dormitories were in the dungeons, but that didn't stop Hufflepuffs from installing windows and enchanting them to reflect the outside world like the ceiling of the Great Hall. Most of us used sleep masks on weekends so the sun wouldn't wake us. This particular morning, a couple of faint rays of sunshine pierced the clouds overhead, and they happened to be hitting me square in the face.

"Good morning!" Henry said brightly, glancing up from the book in his lap. He ran his fingers through his curly hair. "How'd you sleep?"

"Pretty well, thanks." My eyes sank shut, and I hugged my pillow. "How about you?" I asked, yawning again.

"Same here. Martin and Paul headed down to the Great Hall already. I think they were planning to spend the day in the library making up for the studying they didn't do yesterday. What were your plans?"

I ran a hand over my face, as if to wipe the tiredness away. "I'll see if Madam Pomfrey needs help in the Hospital Wing. If she does, I'll spend my day there, and if she doesn't, I don't know." I opened my eyes and rolled onto my back, lacing my fingers behind my head. "Looks like today will be a beautiful one. I'll probably spend at least a little while outside."

"I'm tired of being cooped up," Henry agreed. "I'll definitely join you if you head outside. We still need to play with the new Gobstones I got for my birthday."

I laughed. "Sounds like a plan." I pushed myself out of bed and grabbed a set of clothes for the day. I showered quickly, and by the time I got out, Henry had already left for the Great Hall. It was just as well, really. I wasn't particularly hungry anyway. More so than that, I didn't want to have to respond to the letter inevitably on its way from home asking how the Quidditch match had gone. I wasn't a sore loser, but my father sure could be. Especially when I was the one losing.

I forced the thought from my mind and made my way to the Hospital Wing, offering a smile to the people I passed in the halls. When I entered the Wing, I found Madam Pomfrey right away, organizing the potions in one of her many cabinets.

"Good morning!" I said. "Do you need any help?"

"Good morning, Mr. Diggory! It's been rather quiet, but if you'd like to take this to the boy in the red striped pajamas, that would be very helpful." She pressed a small vial of yellow liquid into my palm. "Once he drinks it, he's free to go."

I nodded and made my way over to the boy. 

"Good morning! This is for you." I smiled, holding out the vial. "Madam Pomfrey says you're free to go once you drink it!"

"That's good," he said with a tired grin. "Say, do you happen to know if Madam Pomfrey has anything for healing scars?"

I studied the boy's face, which was only marked by a small bruise above his left eye and a cut on the tip of his nose. "I'm sure she does, but your face will heal just fine."

"Oh, no, it's not for me." He struggled to uncap the vial, so I reached over and helped twist it off. "Thanks. Anyway, it's not for me, it would be for my friend, Lucy."

"Do you mean Lucy Diggory, by chance?"

He nodded, lifting the rim to his lips and downing the liquid in one swig. "She's my partner in most of our classes. She's nicer to me than anyone else," he added in a small voice. He cleared his throat and put the plug back in the top of the glass. "Everyone loves her, really. That's why Ron punched Malfoy during the match. I tried to get a punch at him, too, but Crabbe and Glyle knocked me out before I got the chance."

I blinked. "What?"

"Yeah, yesterday, Draco tried to punch Ron, but he punched Lucy instead. But instead of saying sorry, he insulted her, so Ron broke his nose."

"Well, I'm glad everyone's alright," I said, quickly looking around the room to make sure Lucy wasn't there. "Thank you for standing up for her. She's brave, braver than anyone I've met, but she doesn't like fighting, even if it would only be standing up for herself."

"Neither do I," the boy said, "but Lucy makes me want to be brave. She told me I was last night, when she and Harry came to visit me. Her eye looked better, by the way, so don't worry. She's okay."

"Thank you, I'm glad to hear that. What's your name?"

"Neville. Neville Longbottom. And yours?"

"Cedric Diggory," I said, extending a hand. "Nice to meet you." I cleared my throat and took the vial from his hand. "Well, Neville, if you're feeling better, you're free to go!" He rose from the bed slowly, and I noticed for the first time the toad sleeping soundly in the boy's chest pocket. I smiled. "What's your toad's name?"

"Trevor," he answered, smiling back.

"That's a nice name. You know, I've always wanted a toad. Lucy and I used to catch them when we were younger, but our parents always made us return them to the wild, saying that if we kept one, we'd have 37 before we knew it."

Neville laughed. "Trevor is a good pet, but I wouldn't want 37 of him. One is more than enough for me."

* * *

After helping Madam Pomfrey for most of the morning, I set out to find Lucy. 

When it came to finding my sister, I was something of an expert. I knew that when she was upset, she liked to isolate herself, but that she was always glad for my company whether she admitted it or not. At home, she would either sit at her bedroom window or climb a tree when she was upset.

At school, she had far more options, but the Quidditch Pitch still seemed to be her favorite spot. I couldn't blame her; it was far from the castle and offered many options for hiding, from the stands to the stairs to the commentary box. It was my escape too. I liked sitting in the stands and taking in the sheer scope of the stadium. Every problem I faced seemed small in comparison to the towering stands and expansive sky. It seemed only natural that my sister settled for the same haven most of the time. So, naturally, the Quidditch Pitch was where I headed.

As expected, I found her at the top of a flight of stairs about halfway up the whole staircase, wand in hand and a book balanced on her lap. She didn't seem to hear me coming, perhaps due to the intense concentration written all over her face. I could see a faint blue mark beneath her eye, and I was relieved it wasn't any worse than that. After a moment, she slammed the book shut and tucked it under her leg, pulling the hood of her robe over her head. She pointed her wand toward the ceiling.

"Metelojinx!"

Instantly, a small thundercloud formed above her head, a couple raindrops trickling out of it and a couple small streaks of lightning flicking like snakes' tongues around the cloud.

"Whoa," I couldn't help but murmur. "Lucy, that's incredible!"

She jumped, a slight blush rising to her cheeks as she saw who had spoken. "Hi, Cedric." With a flick of her wand, the thundercloud disappeared. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you." She lowered her hood and brought the book back onto her lap.

"It's okay, I wanted to see what you were practicing. I wasn't expecting that."

"Well, hopefully Fred and George aren't either. George turned my eyebrows purple last night at the party, and I've been working on this for a couple of weeks now, so I came out here to practice by myself before taking revenge." 

"Just George? I don't think I've ever seen him and Fred apart. What was Fred doing?"

"To quote George, he was 'flirting his face off' with Angelina Johnson."

"Interesting."

"Yeah. Quidditch practice should be funny later. What brings you here, Cedric?"

"You," I answered honestly.

"Me? Why?"

"I volunteered in the Hospital Wing this morning, and Neville Longbottom told me what happened yesterday during the match. I had to make sure you were okay."

"Yeah, I'm okay. I've gotten quite good at the healing charm you taught me. How'd you know I was here?"

"Neville said Malfoy insulted you, and I figured you'd rather contemplate on your own than have to pretend to be unbothered around your friends." I cracked a smile at her slightly stunned expression. "Lucy, you're forgetting that I've known you your whole life. I know you like to be by yourself when you're upset. But," I added, stretching my legs out in front of me, "I'm your brother, and while I wasn't around yesterday to punch Malfoy like Neville and Ron, I'm here now. What did he say?"

"Nothing worth fighting over," she said softly, her fingers tracing the letters of the book in her lap. "It was nothing."

"If it was nothing, you'd be using that perfectly good jinx against the twins instead of practicing by yourself out here."

She hesitated. "I don't want to talk about it, Cedric."

"And that's okay. You don't have to, but I also can't help as much if I don't know what he said."

Lucy smiled, looking up from the book. "I appreciate your willingness to help, but it would be a little odd for my brother to tell me I'm not ugly." She held up a hand as I opened my mouth to protest. "I don't want to hear it. I know he's right and I won't believe you no matter what you say so save your breath. It truly doesn't bother me that much, but I really, truly, genuinely don't want to talk about it."

I pouted, making her smile even wider. "Well, I need to make you feel better somehow. It's my job."

"I thought you were a Seeker," she teased.

"I consider being a Seeker as more of a side job or a hobby, because my real job is being your brother. Besides, Harry's a better Seeker than me, but I'm a better brother than he is."

"He happens to be an only child."

"And?"

She laughed. "You're right. You're a better brother than he is. You are a talented Seeker, though, Ced."

"Harry set a record for catching the Snitch yesterday, but thanks for thinking so."

"You're a better Seeker than I am!"

"You happen to be a Chaser."

"And?"

I rolled my eyes. "Alright, you got me."

Lucy grinned. "I suppose I did." She sighed. "I'm guessing you want me to go back to the castle with you?"

"I'm sure your friends would like to see you. Neville's been released from the Hospital Wing, but I'm not quite sure where the others are. The library, most likely?"

She shrugged. "We finally found what we were looking for, so I'm not entirely sure what they're doing."

I cocked an eyebrow. "You were looking for something all that time?"

She nodded, offering no further explanation. I was about to press for details, my curiosity piqued, when she tucked her book under her arm and rose to her feet. "I'm actually fairly hungry. Are you?"

I nodded, also rising to my feet. We started toward the castle together, silently at first. 

"How close were you, Cedric?" she asked suddenly. 

"Hm? How close was I to what?"

"Catching the Snitch. I missed the end of the match."

I rubbed the back of my neck, smiling sheepishly. "To tell you the truth? I didn't stand a chance against Harry. That broom of his is something else, no doubt, but he's incredibly talented, too. But don't worry." I jokingly bumped her shoulder with my arm. "I'll catch it next year."

She turned to me, a wicked grin on her face. "Only in your wildest dreams."

* * *

Truthfully, the hardest part of Lucy's transformation for me was rarely the night of the full moon itself. I still took the potion for dreamless sleep every month, and even then, I knew that whatever happened in the night, I would be there first thing in the morning.

The days following the transformation weren't the worst part either. She was exhausted, of course, but it was sweet watching Lucy's friends look out for her, from the way Hermione always checked the Hospital Wing first thing in the morning to make sure Lucy was okay to the way the twins sat a little closer to her at meals to make sure she didn't faceplant onto her plate if she fell asleep at the table.

The worst part of every transformation had to be the days leading up to the full moon. When we were home, it was easy enough for her to hide in her room, protected by spells that blocked all light and sound from entering until one of us came to fetch her in the late afternoon before the moon came out. But at school, I watched as she flinched at every sudden sound or movement or touch. I watched as her face gradually grew redder and redder, and as she had to fight harder and harder for a sense of normalcy. I had to watch her go from bouncing her leg up and down at meals to picking at the skin of her hands to try to curb the restlessness. All of this, all while wondering why on earth the first round of wolfsbane potion hadn't worked after it had always worked at home.

March was no exception. The day before the full moon, I glanced up from my dinner just as Lucy jumped up from her table. 

"I'll be back," she said to whoever was watching, making eye contact with me for a split second before hurrying from the room, one hand on the back of her neck and the other closed into a tight fist.

Henry had followed my gaze and offered a gentle look. "She didn't look too good. If you want to follow her, I'll bring food to the dorm for you."

"It's okay, I'm not very hungry," I said, rising from the table. "But thank you for the offer. I'll be right back." 

I found her quickly. She was hiding behind the fountain in the courtyard, in the very spot I always lost to Henry at Gobstones. I rushed over and was about to rest a hand on her shoulder when her hands flew to her face and she squeezed her eyes tightly together. 

"I'm fine, Cedric," she squeaked.

"No, you're not." I pulled my hand back, sitting cross-legged a little less than a foot away from her. My voice was no more than a whisper, so it didn't overwhelm her. I knew she didn't need to see me to know I was there. She knew my scent. I extended a hand, ready for her to grab when she was ready. "But it's okay. I'm here." 

She relaxed slightly, but kept her eyes shut tight. Her breath came in ragged gasps. I inched my hand forward.

"Breathe," I whispered. "Just breathe. I'm here."

A flash of red in the moonlight caught my attention. The twins had followed, and they sported identically concerned expressions. I shook my head, hoping to discourage them from coming any closer. They didn't come closer, but they also didn't leave. 

Lucy chose that moment to shoot her hand forward and squeeze mine. She opened her eyes slightly, so I quickly looked away from Fred and George so she didn't know they were there. 

"Better?" I asked. 

She shook her head violently. Her hand, too, trembled as she gripped mine. 

I moved slowly and settled down next to her with my back to the fountain, never once letting go of her hand. "Look at the stars," I whispered. "Can you find Gemini?"

Lucy blinked a couple of times, squinting at the sky. She lifted her right hand, the one not holding mine, and pointed. 

I nodded. "Good, good. Now, is that your sun sign, or mine?"

She pointed to herself. 

"That's right. Good job. Now can you find Libra?"

She found mine more quickly, pointing with more enthusiasm.

"You did it! Good thing it's March, huh?" 

Lucy nodded, taking a deep breath. Her grip on my hand relaxed slightly. 

"Can you show me any more constellations?" I asked. 

She nodded, and spent the next couple of minutes silently tracing shapes in the stars overhead. Her head slowly sank onto my shoulder, and soon, she was completely calm again. I hazarded a glance over my shoulder. The twins were still there, now looking rather impressed. I turned back to Lucy, prying my fingers free from hers so I could put my arm around her shoulders. I slowly rubbed my hand up and down her arm, and a couple minutes later, she was down for the count. 

"She's asleep," I called quietly over my shoulder. "You can come now."

The twins immediately rushed over, dropping to their knees in front of us.

"What happened?" they asked in unison before splitting apart into their own thoughts.

"She seemed jumpy all day, but we didn't think much of it-"

"Then all of a sudden she just jumped up and sprinted out-"

"And Hermione was going to follow her when she saw you get up and go-"

"But we offered to instead."

They finished together with a muted "What _happened_?"

"She gets anxious," I said softly. It wasn't too far from the truth. Hermione and I had agreed that it would be this month's excuse for her absence, and had spent a fair amount of time working on an explanation while she was at Quidditch practice. "Really anxious, as you can see. I'm the only one who can calm her down, really. She gets herself worked up to the point of nearly exploding, then crashes. She'll probably need a couple of days to herself before she's back to normal."

"How can we help?" they asked immediately. I bit my lip. I hadn't really been expecting that question, though in hindsight, I definitely should have.

"Right now? I need the password to get her to her dormitory somehow."

"We can do that."

"But what about tomorrow? How can we help tomorrow?"

I wracked my brain. How _could_ they help? "Hermione already knows about, well, this. She knows how to help, and she knows how to find me if Lucy needs me. But for tomorrow, she'll be best if you just treat her like you always do. She thinks the world of you two, and she'd probably be embarrassed if she knew you knew about this."

They exchanged a glance before turning back to me.

"We can do that."

"Easily. Whatever will help her."

"What about Quidditch practice tomorrow?"

"She probably shouldn't play, right?"

"Does Skye know?"

"Should we tell her?"

I nodded. "I'll talk to Skye tomorrow. For tonight, let's get Lucy to bed. She doesn't normally sleep when she's like this, so it's something of a miracle and I don't want to screw it up."

"Understood!" they whispered in unison. I looped my arm around her sleeping form ad scooped her up princess-style. 

"Good thing she's a deep sleeper," the twin to my left remarked as we headed to the castle. 

"We were initially glad because of the endless prank potential it posed," the twin to my right agreed, "but it's good to know it helps her too."

"Speaking of pranks," I said, smiling in spite of myself, "you two better be careful once she's feeling better."

"Oh, we know."

"She's becoming quite the little mischief manager."

"Don't you mean mischief maker?" I inquired.

"Nope!" they exclaimed in unison.

Once we reached the top of the many, many stairs, I passed her to George while Fred held the portrait hole open. When it swung shut, I took a deep breath, held it, and released it in a sigh. For tonight, Lucy was safe and well. 

I made my way down to my dormitory. It was empty, but a small bowl of soup waited on my nightstand. A small note was scrawled next to it.

_I know you said you weren't very hungry, but I know you better. If this bowl isn't empty by the time I get back from the library, I'm dragging you to the kitchens myself and I don't care if it's after curfew. -Henry_

I smiled as I lifted the bowl to my lips. Henry may have forgotten a spoon, but I still couldn't have asked for a better best friend.


	16. It Could Stay This Simple

_Oh darling, don't you ever grow up,  
Don't you ever grow up  
Just stay this little  
Oh darling, don't you ever grow up,  
Don't you ever grow up  
It could stay this simple_

_"Never Grow Up"  
Taylor Swift_

* * *

LUCY:

When I opened my eyes again, I was in my bedroom. I sat up and glanced over toward my roommates' beds. Lavender and Parvati were gone, but Hermione was sitting on her bed, nose in a book.

"Wait, how did I get here?" I mumbled. "I don't even remember falling asleep."

Hermione answered without looking up from her book. "You fell asleep in the courtyard after running out of the Great Hall. Cedric brought you to the portrait hole, Fred and George brought you into the common room, then Skye brought you up here."

I glanced down quickly, relieved to see I was still in my robes and no one tried to change me into pajamas. The last thing I needed was everyone seeing my scars, especially _the_ scar. My relief was temporary, however. "Wait, oh Godric, what does everyone else think happened?"

She shook her head. "Cedric used the story we agreed upon. They just think you were so stressed you more or less self-destructed. Cedric and I also agreed you should miss classes today."

I couldn't believe my ears. Hermione and Cedric of all people, encouraging me to skip classes? "No! I can't! I mean, I actually managed to sleep the night before a full moon. I don't remember the last time that happened. I feel so much better than usual-"

"Which is why Cedric and I decided you are staying here today." She closed her book and looked me in the eyes. "Lucy, you missing class today makes our story more believable. You want that, don't you?"

"But what about Quidditch?" I protested. "Professor McGonagall doesn't let us go to practice if we miss that day's classes. Skye would kill me if I miss-"

"That reminds me, Skye said you don't have to go to practice today." She sat on the foot of my bed and smiled her most innocent smile. "You're staying here today, Lucy, and that's that. If _Skye Parkin_ of all people agrees that it's okay for you to take a break on top of your brother and your best friend, you've been overruled."

I slumped against my pillow. "But I feel better."

"So there's no reason to go out there, where you'll feel worse. Lucy," she lowered her voice, "Cedric was so happy to hear you were still asleep when I headed down to the Great Hall this morning. If not for yourself, do it for him. He wants you to stay here today because he knows you'll feel better if you do."

I sighed. "Okay. I'll stay."

She smiled. "Good." She glanced at her wristwatch. "Well, now that you're convinced, I'm going to head to class. I'll come get you half an hour before sunset, alright? You have no reason to leave this room, okay?"

"Okay," I said through a yawn. "Take care of Neville and Harry and Ron for me."

"Will do. Get some rest."

With that, she slipped out the door and I heard her footsteps all the way until she left the portrait hole.

I really did feel better than I had felt on the day of a full moon in a long time, but it was still a full moon. I had slept all through the night, but I could already feel the anxious energy beginning to buzz anew through my veins. As much as I would have loved to sleep the day away, I knew it to be impossible.

I managed to crawl out of bed and made my way over to my chest. I pulled the ancient runes book out for the first time in several weeks, running my fingers over the cover.

Harry remained the only person who knew I had it. I knew I really ought to tell at least Hermione or Cedric, but I didn't. I knew that if I told Hermione, her insatiable curiosity would overcome her and I'd never see it again. If I told Cedric, he'd probably worry about who sent it, and want me to get rid of it in case it was dangerous, or something like that. No, I had convinced myself that the book would remain a secret between Harry and me, just like our nightmares after the mirror.

Because it was such a secret, I hadn't been able to work on it much. But with the full moon that night and probably around eight uninterrupted hours ahead of me, I figured it was as good a time as any to study it.

I worked all morning by the light of my wand, translating rune by rune. It didn't make much sense yet (the sentence structure was incredibly complicated and consistency of spelling was seemingly nonexistent), but I was making progress. I heard Hermione's footsteps coming up the stairs around lunchtime, so I quickly shoved the books and papers under my pillow and feigned sleep. She opened the door, and, apparently satisfied with my performance, closed it quietly and went back down the stairs. I smiled in spite of myself and went back to work.

* * *

_The screams gave way to howls. The werewolf trod the now-familiar path around the house, feeling the now-familiar pangs of hunger, amplified by the fact the girl hadn't eaten at all that day._

_A couple miles away, a bushy-haired and big-hearted girl was staring out the window into the night, not hearing a word her professor was saying, which was incredibly out of character for her. The green-eyed boy next to her noticed this strange behavior, and he meant to ask about it, really he did, but before he got the chance, the girl snapped from her trance and began writing notes. He noticed then that her handwriting was far neater than usual. This was the handwriting his friend typically reserved for essays alone; her standard handwriting was often a scribble only she could read, as she was still trying to learn how to write with a quill. When he tried to ask why she was writing so neatly, she shushed him, and he thought he spied the glimmer of tears in her eyes. When the red-haired boy on her other side tried to ask why she was crying, she shushed him as well. The boys exchanged a glance and shrugged their shoulders in unison before turning their attention back to the front of the room._

_She was right to worry about her best friend. The wolf, driven mad by intense hunger, was desperate, launching itself at anything and everything that might contain something, anything to eat._

_The werewolf knew in the recesses of its mind that the wardrobe in the corner was unstable, but it tried anyway to bust it open. It tried again and again and again, until the wardrobe collapsed and landed on top of it. It didn't know at the time that it had just fractured three ribs, and that the girl would not be able to laugh or talk or even breathe without pain for the next several weeks. All it knew was that it was still hungry, and now it was in pain too. It managed to wrestle itself free from beneath the heavy furniture before sunrise._

_30 nights later, the Shrieking Shack was again occupied. The fractured ribs were mostly, but not completely, healed. The girl had managed to keep her injury a secret from everyone but her brother and her best friend; everyone else just assumed that the paleness of her face and the softness of her voice and the rarity of her laughter was attributed to the same anxiety that had overcome her the night before the full moon._

_The April night was finally somewhat warm. The girl had learned her lesson, and tried to eat as much as possible before the sun set. The wolf was somewhat content, only pacing the house for a couple of hours before settling down and trying to sleep. There were no injuries that night, for which everyone was glad whether they knew it or not._

* * *

While Hermione, Harry, and Ron spent much of their free time studying in the library, I opted instead for the solitude of the staircases of the Quidditch stands. Sure, I was interrupted by the twins every now and then, wanting --- no, _needing_ \--- my opinion on one thing or another, but their presence was always welcome. But for the most part, I was left alone, and I was glad for it. My ribs were mostly healed, but it was nice not having to worry about trying to act okay. 

One particularly sunny Saturday, however, I felt suffocated within the four walls. I tried studying in the stands instead, but the skies beckoned to me. Unfortunately, Hufflepuff was already practicing, meaning I had no broom and no place to fly. I realized trying to study would be useless, however, and opted to explore the grounds a bit. My feet led me to Hagrid's hut, and I arrived just as he was leaving.

"Good morning, Hagrid!" I called. He turned around and smiled when he saw who had called him.

"Mornin', Lucy! How are yeh?"

"Too beautiful of a day to focus on my studies," I admitted with a shrug. "How are you?"

"I, eh... er..." He ran a hand over his bushy beard, glancing back and forth nervously. "I shouldn' tell yeh this... but, well... c'mere a minute. You can't tell anyone about this, alrigh'?"

"Of course, Hagrid, I can keep your secret." Curiosity piqued, I followed Hagrid into his hut. He ducked into a back room, and emerged seconds later with a large black egg.

My jaw dropped. "Hagrid, is that a dragon egg?" I rushed forward to examine it, running my fingers along the surface. "Is it a Norwegian Ridgeback?"

"Sure is," he said, his chest swelling with pride. "Only problem is, I haven't ever had a dragon of my own before, an' I was just heading up ter the castle, ter the library, lookin' fer something that might help me."

"If you want, I can stay here and help make him comfortable while you look for an official guidebook," I offered shyly. "My dad works with magical creatures, after all. I'm no expert, but, well, I know where to start."

"That'd be great, thank you," he said, resting the egg in my arms. It was heavier than I expected, but the sheer excitement of being able to hold a real dragon egg mattered far more than how uncomfortable it was to hold it. "I'll be back."

And with that, he was gone. I set the egg gently on the worn rug in front of the fire.

"Oh sweet mother of Godric Gryffindor! It's a real dragon egg! With a real dragon inside!" I took a deep breath, muttering to myself as I worked to try to organize my thoughts. "Okay. I need to put him --- or her --- in the fire. It'll simulate the way Norwegian Ridgeback mothers breathe on their eggs. Right? Right. Now I just need to light a fire. Where would Hagrid keep matches? I wish Mum was here to just light it with magic. Oh, wait, I can use magic now. Incendio!"

The fire burst to life accordingly. I sighed when I realized I should have put the egg in before lighting the fire. I considered attempting to use Hagrid's fireplace tongs to place it there, but they were Hagrid-sized and not me-sized; I was barely taller than they were.

I turned toward the egg, contemplating my options. I could try to bring it to the fire and hope I didn't burn myself, but that seemed risky. I had never attempted the flame-freezing charm before, and now didn't seem the right time to try.

"You can use magic, stupid," I said to myself, pointing my wand at the egg. "Wingardium leviosa!"

I guided the egg slowly to the fire, nestling it in the embers. Once it was secure, I lowered my hand and went to kneel beside it.

It wasn't the first time I had seen a real dragon egg in a fireplace. Every couple of years, Dad would bring an egg home from work for a couple of days before sending it off to a dragon sanctuary, usually the Romanian one. I had never been allowed to go to the sanctuary with him, but boy, did I try. I begged and begged, but he never gave in. That being said, I was more than content to look after the egg for as long as we had it. As a little girl, I would sit in front of the fireplace for hours upon hours, watching the flames dance around the new life. I watched it from the moment I woke to the moment I went to bed (and sometimes I watched it even when I was supposed to be in bed). But for all of my efforts, I had never seen an egg hatch, and I had never seen a dragon, a real dragon, with my own two eyes. Sitting in front of Hagrid's fireplace, knowing I'd get to see the baby dragon hatch within a couple of weeks' time, was a dream come true.

"Hi," I said softly to the egg. "I know you don't know me yet, but I love you already. My dad told me once that talking to dragons before they're born can help make them more friendly with humans, so here I am."

I talked to the egg until Hagrid returned, a book tucked securely under his arm. "I got the book!"

"And our new little friend is in the fire!" I reported happily.

"In the fire?!" He glanced over, panic in his eyes.

"Don't worry, Hagrid, it's what you're supposed to do. Their mothers breathe on them, so this helps mimic that."

He relaxed slightly. "Alright. Okay."

"Let's see what the book has to say about it," I said, climbing into a chair at the table and gesturing for him to open it. For the next hour, we stirred chicken's blood into brandy and shut all of the windows and curtains in his hut. It grew extremely hot extremely quickly, but neither of us minded. I was about to start gathering materials to make the baby dragon a sleeping mat when there was a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" Hagrid called, knocking the book to the ground in his fright.

"Just us," Harry's voice replied. "Me and Ron and Hermione."

I scrambled to pick up the book and toss it under a cushion on Hagrid's couch. "What do I do?" I squeaked in a whisper, hurriedly sitting on top of it. 

"Jes act natural," he replied as he opened the door. Of course, their eyes found me immediately.

"Hi, Lucy!" Ron said brightly. "Taking a break from studying too?"

"I, um, yeah." I nodded.

"Hopefully not too much of a break," Hermione added, eyeing me warily. "Have you been sticking to that study schedule I made you?"

"Would anyone like stoat sandwiches?" Hagrid interrupted, beginning to boil some water for tea.

"No thanks, Hagrid," Harry said, glancing my way and smiling. I smiled back, carefully arranging my robes to hide the fact that I was trying to hide an extended edition of _Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit_ beneath me. Harry turned back to Hagrid. "We were wondering if you could tell us what’s guarding the Philosopher’s Stone apart from Fluffy."

Hagrid looked at them disapprovingly. "O’ course I can’t. Number one, I don’ know meself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn’ tell yeh even if I could. That Stone’s here fer a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts... I s’ppose yeh’ve worked that out an’ all? Beats me how yeh even know abou’ Fluffy.”

Hermione flashed her brightest smile at him. "Oh, come on, Hagrid, you might not want to tell us, but you _do_ know, you know everything that goes on round here. We only wondered who had done the guarding, really. We wondered who Dumbledore had trusted enough to help him, apart from you.”

Her flattering was working like a charm. Hagrid radiated pride as he placed tea in front of them. "Well, I don’ s’pose it could hurt ter tell yeh that… let’s see… he borrowed Fluffy from me, then some o’ the teachers did enchantments. Professor Sprout, Professor Flitwick, Professor McGonagall, Professor Quirrell, an’ Dumbledore himself did somethin’, o’ course. Hang on, I’ve forgotten someone. Oh yeah, Professor Snape. Oh, and Professor Babbling.”

"Snape?" they asked incredulously, as I asked "Professor Babbling?" But Hagrid didn't hear my question, as their three voices were far louder than mine. 

"Yeah, yer not still on abou’ that, are yeh? Look, Snape helped protect the Stone, he’s not about ter steal it.” 

In the heavy silence that hung over the room, I tried to remember where I had heard the name Babbling before. I made a mental note to ask Cedric later. 

Harry was first to speak. “You’re the only one who knows how to get past Fluffy. aren’t you, Hagrid? And you wouldn’t tell anyone, would you? Not even one of the teachers?”

“Not a soul knows except me an’ Dumbledore.”

Ron scratched his ear and shifted his collar. “Hagrid, can we have a window open? I’m boiling.”

"Can't, Ron, sorry." I cringed as he glanced directly at the fire, and Harry followed his gaze.

"Hagrid, what's _that_?"

Ron rushed over and crouched down to get a better look. “Where did you get it, Hagrid? It must’ve cost you a fortune!" he gushed.

“Won it las’ night. I was down in the village havin’ a few drinks an’ got into a game o’ cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad ter get rid of it, ter be honest.”

"But what are you going to do with it once it hatches?" Hermione asked.

“Well, I’ve bin doin’ some readin’, an' Lucy's bin helpin' me fer the past hour or so. She knew to keep the egg in the fire, ‘cause their mothers breathe on I em, see, an’ when it hatches, yeh need to feed it on a bucket o’ brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour.”

I joined Ron at the fire. "Isn't it beautiful? It's a Norwegian Ridgeback, we reckon."

"But those are so rare!" Ron gasped. "And wait, aren't they illegal?"

I nodded. "My dad rescued an egg once. We kept it at the house, but he found a sanctuary that would accept it before it hatched."

"Hagrid," Hermione said, sounding very disapproving, "you're keeping an _illegal_ dragon in your _wooden_ house."

But Hagrid hadn't heard her, as he had come over to stoke the fire.

"He'll be beautiful," he murmured, a wide smile on his face.

* * *

A couple of weeks later, Hedwig dropped a piece of paper in Harry's lap. He looked straight at me, a smile playing with the corners of his mouth as Hermione and Ron leaned over to read the note. He couldn't say anything in front of Fred and George, but I knew what the note said. I knew the egg was about to hatch.

"I'm going to Hagrid's," Ron said as we walked to Herbology. "Lucy, do you want to go with me?"

"Yes!"

"No!" Hermione snapped. "You can't!"

“Hermione, how many times in our lives are we going to see a dragon hatching?” Ron groaned.

“We’ve got lessons, we’ll get into trouble, and that’s nothing to what Hagrid’s going to be in when someone finds out what he’s doing-”

"Shut up," Harry whispered, jerking his head toward Malfoy, who had seemed to have stopped to listen. I winced. How much had he heard?

I sighed. "I'm going to go to class," I said in a much softer voice, "but by Godric I will sprint to Hagrid's the second the bell rings because I am _not_ missing the hatching of a dragon."

Ron and Hermione started their arguing again, so Harry attempted to drown them out by starting a conversation with me.

"So, you really like dragons, don't you?"

I nodded. "My dad works with magical creatures, so I've been around various animals my whole life, but never dragons. Believe it or not, I'm the only one in my family that really loves dragons. My dad's afraid of them, my mum prefers plants to creatures any day, and my brother is afraid of fire and by extension dragons. But don't tell him I told you," I added with a smile. "It's one of his only weaknesses. He would sooner swim with grindylows than cast the fire-making charm."

Harry laughed. "Like Ron with spiders?"

"Exactly!"

"I heard my name and spiders in the same sentence and I don't appreciate it," Ron said loudly.

I laughed, and for the first time in a while, the pain was manageable.

Never had a class seemed so long. The second the bell rang, we dropped our trowels and sprinted to Hagrid's hut. I was the first one there, the adrenaline coursing through my veins numbing the increasingly sharp pain around my ribs. I had barely knocked before Hagrid ushered us inside.

"It's nearly out," he whispered, and I rushed to the table, the others behind me. I couldn't keep a wild grin from my face as the egg clicked and cracked further. The egg opened with a sudden crack, and the dragon slid out in one fluid motion.

Its wings were significantly larger than its thin and bony body, and its eyes were a brilliant orange like the fire from which he was born. It sneezed, and sparks flew out of his nose and landed on my sleeve.

I giggled as I swatted out the small flames. I really couldn't help it. "Hi," I said softly, laying my hand flat on the table, palm to the sky. To my delight, the little dragon crawled up onto my hand. "It must remember my voice!" I exclaimed in a reverent whisper as I stroked its head.

I held it out to Hagrid, and it scurried over onto Hagrid's arm. 

"Bless him, he knows his mummy," Hagrid said, beaming. His face suddenly dropped, however, and he passed the dragon back to me before bolting to the window.

"Hagrid, what is it?" Hermione asked. "What's the matter?"

“Someone was lookin’ through the gap in the curtains, it’s a kid, he’s runnin’ back up ter the school.”

Harry jumped up to see for himself. "Malfoy," he spat.

My heart sunk. I cradled the little dragon close to my chest as if to shield him from Draco, though I knew he was long gone. 

"Don't worry, Hagrid," I said. "We'll keep both him and you safe."

"In the meantime, we really should head to our next class," Hermione said reluctantly.

"But we'll be back." I passed the dragon to Hagrid, stroking it on the head one last time. "This little one still needs a name."


	17. More to This Than Meets the Eye

LUCY:

In the weeks that followed, my life revolved around little Norbert the dragon. Harry and Ron and Hermione visited Hagrid's hut when they could, but everyone knew and accepted the fact that I was his favorite. I would often babysit Norbert while Hagrid attended to his gamekeeper duties, careful to feed him every half an hour and make sure he didn't burn anything down. (I had mastered the flame-freezing charm by the time he hatched. I wasn't taking any chances.)

A week after Norbert hatched, I consulted the others in the common room late one night, after nearly everyone else had gone to bed.

"Norbert's getting big," I whispered. "He's probably tripled in size since he was born. He can barely fit across my shoulders anymore. We need to get rid of him before he gets much bigger, Hagrid won't be able to keep him a secret much longer."

"Malfoy could go to Dumbledore any day," Harry agreed.

"Have you mentioned any of this to Hagrid?" Hermione asked.

I shook my head. "I don't want to mention it until we have a solid plan. He's grown quite attached to Norbert."

" _He's_ grown quite attached?" Ron scoffed. "Lucy, every time we see you, you've got a new burn mark you forgot to cover up, which just makes us wonder how many more you're hiding."

I blushed. "Norbert can't help it, he doesn't know how to control his fire yet." All three of them stared at me, eyebrows raised. My blush intensified. "Okay, maybe I've grown attached too. But I know that we need to get Norbert out of here sooner than later. The only problem is, without a mother dragon to look after him, he'd die in the wild, and if he gets caught by humans, he'd be killed on the spot." I sighed. "I convinced Professor Kettleburn to take me to the magical creatures reserve yesterday, claiming that my dad was curious about the hippogriff habitats, but I don't think Norbert would be able to stay there. He's too friendly."

"I can't believe you just described a dragon as friendly," Hermione said, shaking her head, "but you have a point. Norbert needs to leave Hogwarts, because he could always be traced back to Hagrid."

"Charlie!" Harry exclaimed.

Ron rolled his eyes. "You're as mad as Lucy, I'm Ron."

"No, not you. Charlie, your brother. In Romania? Charlie could take care of Norbert until he's ready to go into the wild!"

"Brilliant idea, Harry!" Overwhelming relief poured through me. "Charlie would take good care of Norbert. Now we just need to ask Hagrid into letting us send him an owl."

I broached the topic sensitively the next day when Hagrid was somewhat distracted. Norbert had begun to eat dead rats, and Hagrid made it something of a game for him, tossing rats in a unique game of fetch. I held the crate as Hagrid tossed the carcasses, and we both beamed with pride as Norbert caught a particularly fat rat with a satisfying crunch.

"Say, Hagrid, don't you think Norbert is getting a little large for your hut?" I asked.

"He's a growin' boy!" he agreed heartily. "Nothin' I can't handle."

I bit my lip. "I know you can handle him, Hagrid, but, er, well... what about next week? What about when he gets even bigger?"

"I'll make it work! Good boy, Norbert!"

"Hagrid, you know I love Norbert as much as you do, but I, erm... I think we need to start talking about releasing him. For his own good, before he gets too much bigger."

He froze, rat in hand. "But Lucy, he's too little. He'd die."

"I know, and we don't need to release him right away, I'm just saying, well, eventually, we'll need to release him and we should have a plan." I paused. "Well, I talked to the others, and we do have a plan. We just agreed to talk to you first."

"What's yer plan?" His hesitation was obvious.

"Ron's brother Charlie works on a dragon sanctuary in Romania. If you agree, well, we were thinking we could send Charlie an owl asking him to take Norbert to the sanctuary until he's big enough to be released."

He didn't reply. Norbert snapped angrily at the rat in Hagrid's hand, nearly taking a couple of Hagrid's fingers with it. I smiled, tossing Norbert another rat as Hagrid thought about my proposal.

"Alrigh'," he relented. "Yeh can send Charlie a letter. I'm just... sad ter see 'im go."

"I will be too, Hagrid. Trust me. But it's for his own good, don't you agree?"

He nodded solemnly, reaching into the crate for the final rat. Norbert caught it with a snap, chewing happily before gulping it down. I reached forward to pet his head, and he nuzzled his face against my abdomen. "Good boy," I chuckled.

That night, I helped Ron write the letter to Charlie while Hermione and Harry took a shift at Hagrid's hut. Once they returned, we sent the letter off with Hedwig and anxiously waited for a response. 

* * *

"Skye sure wants the Quidditch Cup," Fred remarked as we headed up to the common room a week later.

"I wonder why that is," I retorted.

"Yeah, it couldn't possibly be because she's a seventh-year," George said, pretending to be deep in thought. "Maybe she just likes the color gold?"

"That must be the reason," I agreed. "What do you think, Harry?"

"I think she wants a physical container for all of our blood, sweat, and tears from practice." He ran a hand through his sweat-soaked hair. "I think even Oliver is feeling a little overwhelmed."

"I feel like my arms are going to fall off," Fred moaned, dramatically swinging them around. "Sometimes I feel that I'm too tired to even make mischief."

"That's a lie and you know it," I laughed. "For what it's worth, I don't remember the last time I was able to sit in a chair without still feeling like I have the broom glued between my legs. It wouldn't surprise me if I just carried it up to the common room with me one of these days and didn't even notice."

We were nearly to the castle when we passed Ron heading the opposite direction.

"Wotcher, Ronniekins!" Fred called. "Where are you headed?"

"Hagrid's," he replied.

"Ooh! Can I come with you?" I asked. I paused. "Well, maybe after I shower."

"Sure! See you in a bit, then?"

"More than a bit," George teased, nudging me with his elbow. "A couple hours, more likely, after that practice. I reckon she smells more like a lion cub than a girl at this point."

"Oh, shove off," I said, punching his shoulder and ducking out of the way of his attempt to put me in a headlock. "At least you know I _can_ smell like a girl. You and Fred always smell like this. I think the sweat actually helps you two smell better, believe it or not."

Harry laughed. "She's got a point, you know." When Fred lunged forward, trying to wrestle Harry into a headlock as well, we darted forward and sprinted all the way to the common room, leaving the twins in our dust. We burst through the portrait hole and began giggling uncontrollably.

"Being smaller than them has its benefits for once," I panted. "Normally I just have to outwit them. Good to know I can outrun them, too."

"Good thing they're faster on brooms than on foot," Harry added. They tumbled into the portrait room then, wicked grins lighting their faces when they saw us.

"Good luck, Harry!" I said quickly, turning to dart up my staircase as they pursued Harry up theirs. I reached my dormitory out of breath and sweaty, but smiling. Parvati and Lavender were giggling over a magazine when I stumbled in.

"What happened to you?" Lavender asked, her face torn between disgust and concern.

I laughed. "Don't mess with the Weasley twins. I had to run away from them all the way up here."

They simultaneously sucked in a sympathetic breath. 

"Don't worry, I'm going to go shower now," I said, laughing again when their faces gave way to relief. I grabbed a clean set of robes and disappeared into the bathroom.

The cool water felt fantastic after such a hard practice. They had all been hard practices lately, really; Fred was right in saying Skye really wanted the Quidditch Cup. 

When I wasn't playing Chaser, I was playing Seeker alongside Harry, in an attempt to simulate the competition that would exist in a real match. I say attempt for a reason; I had never once beaten Harry to the Snitch. His broom was simply too fast, and his eyes too keen. I had been getting better with time, but Harry's abilities were truly incredible.

I showered quickly, despite how good it felt, and slipped out of the common room down to Hagrid's hut. I knocked, but it wasn't Hagrid who asked "Who is it?"

"Lucy," I called back. "Ron, is that you?"

"Oh, thank Merlin," he sighed as he opened the door, crate of rat carcasses tucked beneath his arm. "I can't do this by myself."

"Good thing your brothers chased me all the way to the common room, then," I joked. I froze when I saw the bloody cloth he had wrapped around his hand. "Ron, what happened?"

"He bit me. I told Hagrid I could handle feeding him but when I held out the rat, he bit my finger too."

I winced. "I'm so sorry, Ron, I thought Hagrid would have told you to throw the rat. I'll finish, you can head to the Hospital Wing."

"No, it's fine," he said, though he did pass me the crate. "I told Hagrid I'd stay here until he got back."

"Where did he go?" I tossed a rat to Norbert, and he caught it with a snap.

"He said a group of students tried to sneak into the Forbidden Forest or something, and one of them got separated from the rest of the group so they confessed."

"You would have thought that my experience would have discouraged people from going in there voluntarily," I grumbled. "I'd be perfectly content with never going there again. Well, unless I had Norbert to protect me, huh, Norbert?"

"He does a good job of protecting you from people who actually pose no threat, so I'm sure he'd protect you in the Forbidden Forest, too. Why does he like you so much, anyway? I mean, well, you're you, so it's not that I expected him to not like you, but, well... you know?"

I laughed. "I understand what you mean. Well, to tell you the truth, I talked to the egg a fair amount, so I suppose he recognizes my voice. My dad told me once that talking to dragon eggs will make the dragons less aggressive toward humans when they hatch, so I figured it was worth a shot."

"It seems to have worked. Though I do wish he hadn't bitten my finger just for trying to feed him."

"He didn't mean to. I brought my wand, I can try a healing charm as soon as this crate's empty."

"He's surprisingly nimble," Ron remarked as Norbert launched himself at a rat I had thrown a little too high. "I don't remember Charlie ever talking about how graceful dragons could be, except for when they're flying, of course. Normally he complains that they're clumsy."

"It's probably part of living in a house rather than the wild. He's had to be careful all his life so far. Once he's out in the open, I'm sure he'll become as clumsy as his untamed counterparts." I sighed. "I just hope I'll see him again someday. And that he remembers me."

"He won't forget his favorite, I'm sure."

I smiled as I tossed the last of the rats. I settled on the couch, motioning for Ron to join me. Norbert took this as a personal invitation and crawled up beside me, but I rolled my eyes and nudged him off. "Not you, silly." He grunted, smoke puffing from his nostrils, and curled around my feet instead. Ron eyed the dragon apprehensively before sitting next to me.

"It's like a cat with scales," he whispered. "I know why you don't want him in the wild yet."

"Yeah. Anyway, let's see that hand." I unwound the cloth gently and wrestled my wand out of my pocket, trying not to disturb Norbert too much. "Bloody hell, Ron, doesn't that hurt?"

He shrugged. "Well, yeah, but it's okay. I don't want to go to the Hospital Wing and risk exposing Hagrid, especially since we have a plan for getting rid of Norbert now and it's only a matter of time."

"If you're sure," I said slowly. "For now... episkey!"

"Ow! Oh, well, that feels better."

I cocked my head. "Wait, what happened?"

"It got really hot, then really cold, but now it feels better. See? The cut closed. Thanks, Lucy."

"No problem! I'm glad it worked. That's interesting, though, because I've never felt that. My body heals differently, though, I've learned."

"Oh, how so?"

"I'm allergic to dittany," I explained with a shrug. "Norbert, you can't just go around and bite the hands that feed you," I scolded the dragon. "That's not a good way to make friends."

Ron laughed, hesitantly reaching down to pat the dragon's head. "No harm no foul, mate."

"He's really not so bad, is he?"

"No, he's not. But, er, don't tell Hermione I said that. I think she's afraid of him."

"Sometimes I feel like I'm mad not to be," I admitted. 

"No, you're not mad. I think you just choose to see the best in him rather than the worst. Hermione sees the potential to burn this whole hut down, but you see, well, this. You see a dragon that curls up like a cat around your feet and sleeps on a blanket you crocheted for him."

I scrunched my nose. "I could be crocheting 24 hours a day and still not keep up. It's over there. He outgrew it officially three days ago, but I haven't had the time to try to make it long enough again."

"I'm sure he appreciates it regardless," Ron chuckled. "Studying with Hermione every spare moment is awful; I was glad you had Quidditch practice so I could get away."

"You can come with me whenever you want, Ron, I wouldn't mind. I know what you mean about Hermione, though. Her dedication is admirable, but I definitely prefer studying in the Quidditch stands, myself." I yawned, and rested my head back against the couch. "But this is nice. Norbert has been the perfect distraction." 

At the mention of his name, the dragon climbed onto our laps, stretching out so that he draped across the whole sofa. I laughed. "Do you want me to tell him to get off?"

"It's alright," Ron said, yawning as well and also leaning his head back against the sofa. "I wasn't planning on going anywhere anyway."

I don't know who fell asleep first, but I woke with my head on Ron's shoulder and Ron's head resting on top of mine to the sound of the front door banging open and Norbert lighting the cushion on fire with a frightened snort. Thankfully, my wand was still in my hand, so I shot off a quick "Aguamenti!" before the flames could spread. Norbert slunk off of our laps and greeted Hagrid with a happy snort, slithering between his legs and clamping his teeth around Hagrid's boot.

"Thanks fer takin' care of 'im," Hagrid said, sounding as tired as we felt.

"Did you find the student who got lost in the forest?" I asked anxiously.

"I did. Found him kinda near where you were, actually."

I gulped. "Was he okay?"

"He will be. He's in the Hospital Wing now. Yeh should head up to bed now, yer both half-asleep."

"I have the Invisibility Cloak, Lucy, we can both fit under it."

"Good thinking, Ron," I said as he threw it on top of us. "Good night, Hagrid! Bye, Norbert!"

We made our way up to the common room as quickly as we dared. Harry and Hermione were the only ones there, and they seemed significantly relieved to see us.

"What happened? Where were you?" Hermione asked.

"Hagrid got delayed," Ron explained.

"What happened to your hand?" was her next question.

"He bit me, but Lucy was able to close it up."

"I'm glad you two are back," Harry said. "Now let's go to be-" He was interrupted by a tapping at the window. "Hedwig! She'll have Charlie's reply!"

He let her in, and we crowded around the note. 

_Dear Ron,  
How are you? Thanks for the letter! I’d be glad to take the Norwegian Ridgeback, but it won’t be easy getting him here. I think the best thing will be to send him over with some friends of mine wo are coming to visit me next week. Trouble is, they mustn’t be seen carrying an illegal dragon.  
Could you get the Ridgeback up the tallest tower at midnight on Saturday? They can meet you there and take him away while it’s still dark.  
Send me an answer as soon as possible.  
Love,  
Charlie_

I rubbed the back of my neck as we exchanged a glance. Harry had the first idea. “We’ve got the invisibility cloak,” said Harry. “It shouldn’t be too difficult. I think the cloak's big enough to cover two of us and Norbert.”

"But who will go?" Hermione asked.

"It's my brother," Ron replied.

"Well, it doesn't sound like he'll actually be there," I said softly as I reread the letter, "but you can definitely go if you want."

"Do you want to go, Lucy?" Harry offered. "I know you're his favorite."

"It's okay," I stammered. "I-I don't know if I have the heart to send him off. But I could stay with Hagrid and keep him company after you take Norbert, possibly, and help, ah, destroy the evidence Norbert was ever there."

"Alright, so Lucy's definitely going down with me." Harry sighed. "We have until Saturday to figure it out, though. For now, let's go to bed."

I yawned. "Great idea. I'm sure glad Astronomy was cancelled tonight. I feel as if I can't keep my eyes open a second longer."

* * *

Though my healing spell had helped initially with Ron's hand, it appeared that Norbert's fangs were poisonous, and I didn't know of any healing spells that could help mitigate the effects of poison. I felt awful, afraid I had made things worse, but Hermione and Harry assured me that it wasn't the case and that it wasn't my fault. We rushed to visit him in the Hospital Wing as soon as flying lessons for the day ended.

He gestured for us to bend down closer to him, so we did as he spoke in a whisper. “It’s not just my hand, although that feels like it’s about to fall off. Malfoy told Madam Pomfrey he wanted to borrow one of my books so he could come and have a good laugh at me. He kept threatening to tell her what really bit me. I’ve told her it was a dog, but I don’t think she believes me! I shouldn’t have hit him at the Quidditch match, that’s why he’s doing this!" I grew red in the face, knowing I was the reason he had hit Malfoy. He faltered. "Lucy, that's not what I meant, I-"

"It's alright," I said. "What's important now is that you feel better as soon as possible and it stays secret."

"Besides," Hermione added, "it'll all be over at midnight on Saturday."

Ron sat bolt upright. "Midnight on Saturday! Oh no, oh no, I’ve just remembered, Charlie’s letter was in that book Malfoy took, he’s going to know we’re getting rid of Norbert!"

We exchanged a nervous glance, but before we could reply, Madam Pomfrey shooed us away, saying Ron needed rest. As soon as we were out of the Wing, Harry muttered to us, "It’s too late to change the plan now. Hermione, you'll have to come with us. We haven’t got time to send Charlie another owl, and this could be our only chance to get rid of Norbert. We’ll have to risk it. And we _have_ got the invisibility cloak, Malfoy doesn’t know about that.”

Hermione and I nodded our agreement, making our way to the Great Hall for dinner. I assumed my typical seat between Fred and George, my stomach feeling slightly unsettled from the guilt and nerves plaguing me. They didn't seem to notice this, however, and immediately launched into a discussion about a new product from Zonko's.

"Hey, wait a second," George said suddenly, "where's Ron?"

"In the Hospital Wing," I answered. "He was bitten by a... dog. I think."

Harry and Hermione nodded their violent agreement.

Fred pursed his lips. "Well, that's not good. Reckon we should send him a toilet seat to cheer him up?"

"No!" Percy exclaimed, having taken sudden interest in the conversation. "That would be completely unsanitary!"

"I'm sure he'd appreciate it," George chuckled. "Lighten up, Perce!"

"I'll go cheer him up myself," he said, scowling as he rose from the table, "before you two besmirch the atmosphere with your foul presence."

"He's sleeping right now, Percy," I said, giggling, "but I'm sure you can visit him tomorrow. And um," I added, "I agree with Percy on this one, the toilet seat seems a bit far."

"I guess we'll just send it to Ginny instead," Fred sighed.

Percy looked so torn between anger and amusement it seemed he would burst, but the rest of us burst into laughter.

* * *

Saturday night seemed come too slowly and altogether too quickly at the same time. Hermione and I snuck out from our dormitory at the appointed time, meeting Harry in the common room. I was sandwiched in between them as we crawled through the portrait hole. We had nearly made it outside when I heard an all-too-familiar noise. Peeves was playing tennis in the one hallway separating us from the outside world. Harry glanced at me as if to ask what in Merlin's name we were supposed to do. I shook my head, and he seemed to understand that my gesture meant that we just had to wait.

As soon as he was done, we walked as quickly as we dared down to Hagrid's hut and knocked on the door. Once we were safely inside, we shed the cloak.

"We're already running a little late," Hermione said as I knelt down in front of the crate.

"I know," I replied, pressing my hand to the front of the crate. Norbert touched his nose to it, and for a second, I thought I might cry. I didn't, however, and rose to my feet. "Bye, Norbert. I'll come find you again one day, I promise."

"We'll come back to get you as soon as we can, Lucy," Harry said.

I shook my head. "Not worth the risk. Just go back to the common room. I'll meet you there."

Hermione didn't like the sound of that. "But how will you get there without getting caught?"

"I can sleepwalk, remember?" I managed a small smile. "Be safe, you two, and don't get caught." I grabbed the cloak and tossed it over them. "Now go!"

“He’s got lots o’ rats an’ some brandy fer the journey! An’ I’ve packed his teddy bear in case he gets lonely.” Hagrid sounded near tears. “Bye-bye, Norbert! Mommy will never forget you!” 

With that, Hermione and Harry and Norbert stepped into the night. I reached for Hagrid's hand, laying my small one over his massive one. "It's okay, Hagrid, don't cry! Why don't you come sit down?" I guided him to the couch. I was about to offer to make him tea when he began to sob. I instead searched frantically for a handkerchief. I found a napkin next to his sink and figured it was close enough. He accepted it gratefully and blew his nose so hard it honked. I wedged myself in what little space remained on the couch and ran my hand up and down his arm.

"Hey, Hagrid, I have an idea. Would you like to go with me to find Norbert one day?"

"What d' yeh mean, Lucy?"

"Well, once I graduate, maybe the two of us could go out into the wild and find him. Do you like the sound of that?"

He sniffled, bringing the napkin to his eyes. "I do. Les do that."

I smiled. "Sounds like a plan."

I rose to my feet and drew my wand from my pocket, using various charms to clean what blood and brandy I could from the floor and my hands to clean everything else. Hagrid busied himself with helping get rid of the leftover brandy, and he croaked something about fertilizer as he dumped chicken blood in the pumpkin patch. I balled Norbert's blanket up and shrunk it to get it into my pocket. When I went looking for Norbert one day, I wanted to have it with me, in case he recognized it. Part of me wondered if the next few years would bring even more scars, ones that might make me unrecognizable otherwise. 

I left Hagrid's around 1 in the morning, having cleaned up as best I could and promising to come back tomorrow to return _Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit_ to the library. The thought of tomorrow made me equal parts giddy and mournful. The weight of Norbert's safety would be lifted from my shoulders, but with that came the absence of Norbert. That little dragon had made me so very happy; I didn't want to go back to studying by myself in Quidditch stands.

I was incredibly careful sneaking back up to the castle, clinging to shadows and constantly checking over my shoulders for any ghosts or portraits that wanted to talk. I knew I didn't look like much of a sleepwalker, but tonight of all nights, the last thing I wanted was to be caught. It was now very late; all I wanted was my nice, warm bed and to be able to cry for Norbert until I fell asleep. I was pleasantly surprised and incredibly relieved when I made it to the common room without seeing anything or anyone out of the ordinary, but these feelings were short-lived. Neither Harry nor Hermione were anywhere to be seen.

I reluctantly settled onto the couch, eyes glued to the clock. My anxiety increased with each second that passed. Where were they?

My question was answered at 1:17 when the portrait hole lurched open. I jumped to my feet and ran over.

"Oh, thank Merlin, there you a-"

They weren't alone. Neville climbed through the portrait hole behind them. 

"What happened?" I gasped, looking at their pale faces. But no one could answer me. Neville burst into tears and ran up to his dormitory. Hermione looked as if she wanted to do the same. A sudden realization hit me. "Where's the Invisibility Cloak?"

"At the top of the astronomy tower," Harry said. There was a pain and a fear and a brokenness in both his and Hermione's eyes that made my heart ache for them. I wanted to reach forward. I wanted to fix it, whatever had happened, but I knew I couldn't.

Instead, I took a deep breath. "You don't have to tell me what happened, but whatever it is, I know it'll be okay."

"We just lost Gryffindor the House Cup," Harry whispered. "And probably Neville's friendship. But Norbert's safe."

"And Malfoy got detention too," Hermione added with a weak smile that instantly vanished. "But that's the end of our good news."

"Do you want to talk about it? Or would you rather sleep?"

Harry sighed shakily. "We'll tell you and Ron at the same time. I... I don't have the heart to talk about it more than once."

"Okay. Good night, Harry."

"Good night," he replied, heading the same way Neville had. It turned to Hermione, whose eyes were now brimming with tears. I reached forward and hugged her; she hugged back with such force I wondered for half a second if she could possibly break my ribs anew. But she didn't, and I held her for a long time as she sobbed into my shoulder. I gathered bits and pieces of the story, though it was quite difficult to discern half of what she said. Malfoy had known about their plan and alerted Filch. Neville had somehow known, too, and tried to warn them, but had gotten caught instead. Her tears eventually dried, and we headed up to our own dormitory. Lavender and Parvati had never known we were gone. I climbed into bed like Hermione, but my night wasn't quite over yet. I waited until she was sound asleep, then crawled from bed one more time that night. 

I crept up the stairs to the boys' dormitory, finding Fred and George's room by the light of my wand. Casting silencing charms left and right, I tiptoed over to George's chest and dug the Marauder's Map out. 

My hands trembled violently as I descended the stairs and studied the map. Professor McGonagall was in Professor Dumbledore's office, which was fortunate because his office was in the West Tower whereas the Astronomy Tower was on the east side of campus. Filch was lurking around the kitchens, and a small dot reading "Jenna Gordon" made clear why he was there. I managed a smirk. I hoped Filch caught her red-handed. Peeves was nowhere to be seen, but the coast was clear as far as I could see. I tucked the lit end of my wand into the thickest fabric of my robes and pressed the map to my chest, then crawled through the portrait hole and began the journey to retrieve the Invisibility Cloak. 

I got lucky a second time that night. I felt somewhat guilty; it seemed all of the luck for the evening had been allotted to me, leaving none for my friends. I made it to the Astronomy Tower without seeing a single soul. I raced to the cloak on the ground and threw it over myself. I extinguished my wand and shoved the map into my pockets, and was about to make the journey back when I heard a pair of voices. I retreated to the darkest corner of the room and held my breath.

Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore entered the room. Professor McGonagall sighed.

"You were right. Nothing's here. But that just baffles me all the more."

"I'm sure there's a very logical explanation for this unusual behavior," Professor Dumbledore said.

"I don't understand how you're so calm about all of this. Four students out of bed in one night, while we have the Philosopher's Stone in the castle! And for what, a dragon story?"

Professor Dumbledore's eyes landed on me. For a second, I was terrified that I hadn't actually put the cloak on and he could actually see me. Which was ridiculous, of course, but the intensity of his gaze shook me to my core.

He turned back to Professor McGonagall as they left the room.

"Minerva," he said, "I'm quite sure there is more to this than meets the eye."


	18. Already Brave Enough

_A white flag waves in the dark between my head and my heart  
My armor falls apart  
As if I could let myself be seen, even deeply known  
Like I was already brave enough to let go_

_"Five"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

For as much joy Norbert brought to my life, his absence left me feeling hollow. 

Harry, Hermione, and Neville were shunned by nearly everyone. Ron and I were practically the only ones who talked to them; even Fred and George clammed up during meals when they were around, eventually moving away to sit with other people altogether. Ron often studied with Harry and Hermione in the library. The library was too uncomfortable for Neville most of the time; I brought him to my Quidditch hideout instead, where at least he could escape the glares for a little while.

When Hermione stopped answering questions in class, I began to raise my hand more and more. Harry offered to quit the Quidditch team, which Skye immediately shot down, but everyone on the team referred to him as "the Seeker" rather than Harry. My pleas to treat my friends like people fell on deaf ears, but I tried anyway.

"Lucy, you don't have to burn all of your bridges," Harry said one day as we returned from practice.

I grinned. "Was that a dragon joke?"

He laughed a little. "No, I was being serious. I mean, it wasn't you who got caught. It wasn't you who left the Invisibility Cloak at the top of the astronomy tower. You were the one who saved it from being seen by Dumbledore and McGonagall, after all. People have no reason to shun you the way they have, and you shouldn't be burning bridges just because we were stupid."

"I'm not the one burning bridges, they are. And you weren't stupid, accidents happen even when we try to do the right thing. I'm going to stand by you, and Hermione, and Neville, and so is Ron. If everyone thinks that's the wrong decision, why should I care? I know the truth about what happened that night, so why would I join everyone else in shunning you?"

"I just don't understand why I'm worth it," he admitted. "You and the twins, you were so close, but now they don't even sit with you because you're sitting with us."

"They'll come around. Until they do, I'm more than happy to be your friend, Harry. You did the right thing at the end of the day and you can't convince me otherwise."

He relented after that, and seemed to come out of his shell a bit around me. Hermione, however, had retreated so far into herself it was impossible to talk to her unless it was a brief exchange about what we were studying. Every time I tried to talk to her about something else and reassure her everything would work out, it was as if my words bounced off of an invisible shielding charm. She didn't really speak to me until a week before the full moon when Hedwig dropped a note in my lap. 

"Harry, Hedwig must be confused," I said with half a laugh, passing him the folded piece of parchment.

He shook his head and handed it back to me. "No, it's for you. See?" Surely enough, "FOR LUCY" was scrawled on the underside of the note.

I scanned the note quickly, and felt the blood drain from my face. 

"Lucy, what is it?" Hermione asked, fixing me with her best mind-reading stare.

"Hagrid wants to talk to me." I swallowed. "Meet you in our dorm afterwards?"

Hermione nodded, and I headed down to his hut. As nice as it was to feel the sun streaming through Hagrid's windows, it was yet another reminder that Norbert was gone.

"Dumbledore wanted to be the one to tell yeh this," Hagrid began as he gestured for me to take a seat at the table, "but somethin' came up and he said I could. So well... there's bin somethin' off in the Forbidden Forest lately. Remember when you an' Ron were here the night a kid got lost?"

My eyes wandered to the couch, where the burn mark remained. I nodded. "Yeah, I remember."

"Well, when we found 'im, he was blubbering about a dead unicorn in the forest. It sounded like rubbish of course, because killin' a unicorn... that's just..."

"Unheard of," I finished for him. "I've heard that from my dad dozens of times. Drinking its blood can keep you alive, but it comes with a curse. My dad found someone once who got lost and tried to stay alive by drinking unicorn blood, but she accidentally drained the corpse and died anyway." 

"It's just awful," Hagrid said sorrowfully. "Beautiful creatures, unicorns, though they never did like me all tha' much. I think I frighten 'em. Anyway, Lucy... I found the body, so I knew it wasn't rubbish. But ever since, I've bin seein' more an' more trails of blood an' the like, and I've spoken to both Dumbledore and Kettleburn about it, an', well, Dumbledore wanted to ask yeh if yeh would mind takin' wolfsbane this month an' tryin' ter get down to the bottom o' this."

"I'll do it," I replied immediately. "I'll need to start taking the potion tonight."

"Professor Snape already has it prepared. Dumbledore reckoned you'd agree." Hagrid sighed. "We all hate ter ask this of you, since it went so badly las' time."

"I know what to expect this time. Now I just need to figure out how to prepare." I bit my lip. "Does Cedric know?"

"Tha's the other thing," he said slowly. "Dumbledore'd like to keep it a secret 's long as we can. You can come here to take the potion, since Cedric won't be helpin' this time."

"I understand," I replied. "I can do that."

"Thanks fer agreein', Lucy. I dunno what I could have said to convince yeh. I would rather not ask yeh to do this, but-"

"It's okay, Hagrid," I said, even as cold fear settled in my bones. "Really. I just want to help." I smiled. "See you tonight?"

He nodded. "See yeh tonight."

I opted not to tell Hermione. If Professor Dumbledore didn't want my family to know so they weren't worrying about me, I figured I shouldn't place that burden of worrying on anyone else either. Besides, I figured I had learned my lesson about wolfsbane in September, and I figured I knew how to prepare. 

But I had to be careful. I had nobody to lean on this month. I had to be careful around even --- especially --- Hermione and Cedric, who would recognize that I was more sick than usual. And I was doing a great job of it, until Wednesday came and everything nearly fell apart.

* * *

I made it through Wednesday's classes easily enough, but nothing could have prepared me for Quidditch practice.

I had been sleeping little and eating even less all week. It didn't matter much in class, since all we were doing at that point was reviewing anyway, but as soon as I took to the sky, I felt all of it at once, it seemed. 

I couldn't score a goal no matter how hard I tried. The Quaffle was too heavy, and the Bludgers were too fast. It was all I could do to stay on my broom. When one particularly fast Bludger struck me on the back of the head and nearly knocked me off, Skye shouted for Angelina to take my place and sent me up to join Harry as Seeker.

"Maybe this is why we don't let first-years on Quidditch teams," came Fred's voice as I passed the Quaffle to Angelina. "One can't stay on a broom, the other can't stay out of trouble."

"Shut up," Skye snapped. "Everyone's allowed a bad day, Weasley. Last I checked, I'm the Captain and I call the shots. And it's funny you should mention trouble, because if you don't shut up and start focusing on this practice, you'll be in it with me."

My face burned equally with fever and embarrassment as I joined Harry above the practice. 

"You alright, Lucy?" he asked. 

I managed a nod. "Just feeling a little off today."

He nodded back in understanding and returned his attention to the field. I kept scanning for the Snitch, but the pounding in my head from the last Bludger was making me so dizzy it was hard to focus. 

I don't know how much time passed before Harry went darting after the Snitch, but I followed as best I could. As always, he caught it handily, and Skye had us take a few laps before ending the practice. I climbed off my broom slowly, expecting to feel better on the ground, but as soon as my feet hit the grass, the world around me pitched and I would have fallen if someone hadn't grabbed my shoulder.

"Lucy? Are you okay?"

I shook myself free and forced myself to stand up straight as I turned to face Fred. "Guess this is why first-years shouldn't be on Quidditch teams. We get a little dizzy after taking a Bludger to the back of the head." I limped into the locker room to toss Cedric's broom into his locker before heading to Hagrid's.

"You alrigh', Lucy?" he asked as soon as he opened the door.

I nodded as I stumbled inside. "Rough Quidditch practice." I glanced out the window and grabbed the goblet. "It's actually almost time. I'll be right back."

I slipped outside and settled down with my back against a pumpkin. I only had to wait a couple of minutes before taking the potion. I tried to chug it down the way I had the last couple of days, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't help but gag every other swallow. Defeated tears had leaked down my face by the time it was finally gone, and I wiped them with my shirt before heading back inside. I set the empty goblet down and sank into the couch.

"Is it okay if I stay here instead of going to the Great Hall, Hagrid?" I asked softly. "I don't really want to see anyone other than you at the moment."

"O' course, Lucy. Yeh want somethin' to eat?"

"I'm not hungry, but thank you." I reached a hand to touch the throbbing bump on the back of my head. "My head hurts more than anything. I reckon I look so awful because of the Bludger. I would have healed it myself, but my wand is up in my dormitory and I didn't have time to run up there and back here."

"This helps my headaches," Hagrid said as he pressed a very small teacup into my shaking hands. "Jes don't tell anyone I told yeh that."

Intrigued, I lifted the cup to my lips and took a small sip. The liquid inside burned all the way down my throat, but I didn't mind. It burned away the awful taste of wolfsbane. I coughed, then smiled. "Firewhisky?"

Hagrid smiled back. "Reckon you can keep another secret?"

I nodded. "It's already helping. Thank you." It was true. The steady throbbing in the back of my head was already easing. 

"Don't drink more 'n that, but that should be enough. D'yeh want ter talk about practice?"

I shook my head. "It's okay. Er, well, it will be. I just don't want to face anyone on the team quite yet."

So instead, we talked about creatures. The ones I might encounter in the Forbidden Forest, and the ones we had always dreamed of seeing with our own eyes. I almost asked if Hagrid had ever seen a werewolf for himself before, but given the Norbert situation and his proven affinity for dangerous creatures, I didn't want to give him any ideas.

Once the pain in my head had dulled to a faint ache when I moved too quickly, I made my way up to my dormitory and showered. When I emerged, Hermione was rifling through her trunk.

"Looking for Astronomy notes?" I asked.

She nodded, turning around quickly. "Harry told us what happened. Are you alright?"

I nodded. "I was too dizzy to try the staircases, so I went to Hagrid's instead. I feel better now, but not great."

"You don't look that great, but you never do this close to a full moon."

"Gee thanks," I teased, taking the towel off my head and letting my hair fall to my shoulders. My headache was gone, but a raging stomachache was brewing. It seemed I was incapable of deciding if I was starving or stuffed; all I felt was shooting pain. I laid on my bed and curled into a ball to try to ease some of the hurt. "It's not that late already, is it?"

"No no," she assured me. "Astronomy is just next on my study schedule. I'll be studying in the common room tonight, if you'd like to join me? Assuming you don't feel too awful, that is." She glanced up and approached my bedside, book tucked under her arm. "Maybe you should stay here. You really do look awful. Worse than usual. How hard did it hit you?"

I buried my face in the towel, not wanting her to see how much worse I really was. "Hard," I said, my voice muffled. I pulled my face away. "But it's okay. I'll go study with you."

"Alright. Want me to dry your hair?"

I pushed myself to a sitting position and reached for my wand. "It's okay. A braiding charm and the fireplace will do for tonight." I dug my notes out of my trunk and headed down the stairs. 

The common room was quiet; most people were either studying in the library or trying to catch up on sleep. Harry and Ron were already by the fireplace, so Hermione and I joined them there and set to work reviewing constellations and phases of the moon. Fitting, I thought. 

We were discussing Aries when a paper airplane bounced off of my forehead. I glanced around to see who had thrown it, and my eyes immediately landed on the two most likely suspects. I unfolded the note and skimmed it, letting Harry read over my shoulder.

 _I'm sorry for what I said,_ it read in one type of handwriting _. I didn't mean it. You're a talented Quidditch player, Cub, honest._

 _Fred did always have the hotter temper,_ said the other handwriting, _but I was the one who sent that last Bludger. Are you alright?_

_Hotter temper? I think he meant hotter, period._

_I'm only letting him keep that so it hopefully makes you laugh._

I smiled in spite of myself and scribbled a reply on the back.

_I'm okay. Thanks for the note. I know you're still mad at my friends, but maybe the three of us could figure something out after we win the Ravenclaw match and get all of those points back._

I sent it back across the room and waved at them when they smiled at me. 

"Who knew it'd take a Bludger to knock some sense into them?" Harry whispered. I snickered, and for a moment, everything was almost alright.

* * *

I only felt worse and worse as Saturday approached. Quidditch practice was even worse than Wednesday's had been, but the twins were careful not to send too many Bludgers my way, so I managed. They were still sitting with Lee Jordan and his group of friends during meals, but they had been friendlier with me and I was glad for it. We had yet to try to prank each other, but with final exams around the corner, I reasoned it was for the best anyway.

Madam Pomfrey had arranged for Cedric to be helping her at sunset so she could accompany me to the Forbidden Forest. I didn't know how the morning would go, assuming I made it until morning, but when he fell asleep, at least he wouldn't know where I really was. 

To my surprise, Hagrid was waiting at the edge of the woods when we arrived. Madam Pomfrey handed me the final goblet with a couple of tears in her eyes. I was touched by her concern, truly, but it made me worry all the more. Fortunately, Hagrid seemed more confident, or at least he was better at hiding his fear.

"You'll be jus' fine," he said with a smile. "Yer smart an' brave an' yeh certainly know yer creatures. I know I'll see yeh in the mornin', hopefully with some answers."

I smiled as bravely as I could. "I'll do my best. See you then, Hagrid."

I clutched the goblet tightly in my hands and descended into the forest. I found a spot where I could see the sky clearly through the trees and settled with my back against a rock. I tried to breathe deeply to calm myself, but I was terrified.

I had been scared in September as well, but my only plan then was to sleep on the edge of the forest until the morning. I didn't know exactly what the forest held, but I never dreamed I'd come so close to death. I knew that the cloaked figure I had seen then was the one responsible for the unicorn deaths, but it was up to me to prove it now.

I had been scared the night of the troll attack, too. But I didn't have much time to be afraid, I only had time to act to protect my friends and myself. The fear settled in later, as the gravity of the danger finally hit me.

I had been scared when Harry nearly fell off his broom in November, not knowing if he'd walk off of the Pitch alive. I had been scared before every transformation in the Shrieking Shack, not knowing what I would do in the night when I lost myself to a monster. I had been scared so many times since September, but this fear was different. This fear was one fueled by knowledge. I knew what horrors I was walking into, what danger I had readily agreed to. I just hoped I was ready.

When the time came, I drank the potion as quickly as I could. I shuddered in the silent stillness for a couple of moments before the pain began.

One hundred thousand different knives plunged into my body at once. They ripped and pulled at my muscles, my organs, my skin, my very soul. The knives were twisted, and sharpened, and dragged, and plunged deeper and deeper until suddenly, it stopped. 

I dared to open my eyes. I glanced down at my paws. I was aware of myself. And I had a job to do.

I couldn't go out, so my only direction was in. I tried to keep track of where I was going, but I quickly became lost on the various paths and around the different colonies of various creatures. Despite the chill of the night air, I felt as if I were on fire. Wolfsbane really was horrible for my body. 

I kept my nose to the ground sniffing for any indication of unicorn blood. I wasn't even honestly sure if unicorns would present themselves to me. They favored human females, but I had never heard of a unicorn encountering a female werewolf. 

After probably about an hour, I came to the lake Hagrid had mentioned. I peered around the perimeter, hoping for even the slightest shimmer of a unicorn. But the lake was motionless and dark.

I stepped forward and hesitantly dipped my head into the water in an attempt to mitigate the fever still burning through my body. I took a couple of sips, hoping the water wasn't poisoned, and turned onto a new path, one that was too overgrown for someone like Hagrid to navigate safely. As I ducked under brambles and wove through skeletal bushes, a couple of silvery strands of hair caught my eye. Sniffing them confirmed that a unicorn had passed through somewhat recently. I glanced at what ground was exposed around me, and saw deep hoofprints. The unicorn had been in a hurry.

I followed the prints until I came across the next tuft of fur for what felt like hours, but I never did find the unicorn itself. Instead, I found another set of footprints, that appeared to be human. They were too large to be mine and too small to be Hagrid's. I had found a clue.

The lack of blood implied to me that the human had failed to catch the unicorn, but I reckoned that whoever it was had come close, perhaps following the same trail I had. I followed the human footprints in reverse, practically dragging my nose on the ground in an attempt to commit the faint scent to memory. To my confusion, it smelled faintly of garlic and metal. To be quite frank, it smelled more like the Great Hall after a meal than a human. But I continued sniffing anyway. I could already feel my enhanced senses beginning to fade as the sky above lightened, but I continued to do my best. 

I had nearly reached the edge of the forest when the first rays of the sun peeked over the horizon. The hundred thousand knives once again dug into my skin, but I was too tired and dehydrated and miserable to even scream. I took the pain with only a couple of whimpers and sobs, feeling the weight of my exhaustion press down on me as I lay on the forest floor.

I wiped the tears from my eyes and struggled to my knees. My whole body trembled with the effort, but I braced myself against the nearest tree and got to my feet. I could see a faint puff of smoke in the distance, and, hoping it was Hagrid's chimney, staggered towards it. 

I knocked on the door and was immediately let in and led to the couch. Madam Pomfrey got to me first, asking a slew of questions I answered as best I could.

"Where's Cedric?" I managed to ask somewhere between her pulling a thorn out of my hand and her taking my temperature. 

"Still sleeping," she answered as she dabbed at a cut on my forehead and wordlessly used a healing spell to make it disappear fully. "I may have tampered with his dreamless sleep potion so he would sleep well past sunrise."

I bit back a chuckle. I didn't realize she could be so mischievous. When she was satisfied that I was well taken care of, she pressed a wideye potion into my hand and headed back to the castle, leaving me alone with Hagrid. I explained what little I had found, and he listened intently.

"I don't like the sound o' that," he said after I was finished, "but it's a really good start. Thank you, Lucy."

I blushed. "I'm sorry I couldn't find more. I'd be happy to take you to where I found the trails."

"I think I know where you might've seen 'em. I'll take Fang later today and see fer myself. You run up to the castle now, yeh've done yer part."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Absolutely sure. I'll go with yeh an' report back to Dumbledore."

I made my way up to the dormitory and found all three of my roommates still asleep. I considered the wideye potion in my hand for a moment before tossing it into my chest and crawling in between my covers. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow, and didn't wake up again for a long time.

* * *

My birthday began normally enough. I had explained to Cedric earlier that week that I didn't want anyone to know it was my birthday. While he had teased me at first, threatening to ask Dumbledore himself to hang "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LUCY" banners from the ceiling of the Great Hall, he eventually agreed that he would keep it low-key.

Just as I was about to enter the Great Hall for breakfast, he had dragged me outside. A small package waited under his favorite tree. The second I had lifted the lid, golden glitter exploded in my face. 

"Cedric!" I squealed, laughing as I slapped at my robes and face. "What was that?"

"What, you didn't think I had it in me?" he asked with a smirk. "Come on, Lu, I've seen how happy those Weasley twins make you with their shenanigans. I had to try it myself. And look how well it worked!"

"I don't know a spell to get the glitter off, and you promised not to tell anyone it was my birthday. How will I explain this?"

"Well, look in the box. Maybe that'll help."

"If a red glitter bomb goes off, I won't hesitate to hex you so hard you-"

"Just open it," he chuckled. "I swear it won't bite. Or blow up."

I wrinkled my nose. "I guess I'll have to take your word for it."

I peered into the box. Surely enough, there were no creatures or joke products to be found, but there was a book. I reached inside and brushed the glitter off to read the title. _Uggla Uzely's Guide to Utterly Useless Spells_. 

"I spotted it at Zonko's next to the glitter bombs," he explained. "Flip to page 23."

I did, and a rectangular piece of paper floated into my lap. I lifted it up, and saw that it was a picture of Cedric and me on my seventh birthday. Cedric was standing behind me, smiling as I attempted to blow my candles out. But no matter how hard I tried, the candles always flickered back to life.

"That was the year Dad bought those prank candles that never stop burning, wasn't it?" I asked.

He nodded. "I figured it seemed appropriate. But beyond that..." He pointed at the chapter title. "I figured you might be needing this chapter more than others."

"'How to Clean Up Various Messes Before the Nosy Questions Come,'" I read aloud. "Wow, who knew _that_ would come in handy so soon? Tell me, Ced, did you get the book to make the glitter bomb make sense, or the glitter bomb just to make sure the book served a purpose?"

My brother laughed. "That's a secret I'll never tell. Fortunately for you, I already went to the trouble of learning the spell that absorbs all of the glitter."

With a flick and a sound similar to slurping soup off a spoon, the glitter on my robes was sucked into his wand. I grinned. "Wicked." I threw my arms around him. "Thank you, Cedric, this is amazing."

"Of course," he replied. "Just remember who got you that book, if you ever decide to try a prank with anything in there."

"Don't worry, I reserve my mischief for the red-headed nuisances. You should be safe."

"Should be?"

"Yeah," I said mysteriously. "Should be."

I ran the box up to my dormitory quickly and hid it in my chest before heading down to the Great Hall, my spirits were high. But I could tell immediately something was wrong.

"What is it?" I asked. "Why does everyone look so upset?"

Harry passed a piece of parchment into my hand, which I read quickly.

_Your detention will take place at eleven o’clock tonight. Meet Mr. Filch in the entrance hall. Professor McGonagall_

My heart dropped. "Well... that would explain why everyone looks so upset." They cracked grins at this. I frowned at the piece of paper. "Well, I wish we knew what it was so we could prepare."

Harry sighed. "Professor McGonagall agreed to it, so how bad can it be?"

"She wouldn't let anything get out of hand," I assured him. 

"I don't know," Hermione said softly. "She was furious with us."

I had no words to offer that would make the situation better, so I said nothing.

The rest of my birthday aside from Quidditch practice was spent studying, at least as best I could while stuck between the dread of the looming detention and the general birthday spirit that was in the air for me. I hugged Harry and Hermione and Neville tightly before they left the common room at half past ten. Ron and I kept a quiet vigil in front of the fireplace, playing wizard's chess and trying not to worry too much about our friends. When midnight, then one o'clock, then two o'clock came and went, though, we couldn't focus on the game anymore.

"Something tells me they're not just doing lines," Ron said nervously. "But what else could they be doing?"

"I honestly have no idea," I admitted. "I'm trying to remember what your brothers' detentions have been like, but I don't remember them ever being this long."

Finally, the portrait hole swung open and they stepped inside. I jumped up just as Hermione flung herself at me, burying her face in my shoulder. I stroked her back, sending a questioning glance Harry's way as Neville climbed the stairs to his dorm without a word.

"What happened, mate?" Ron asked. "You look awful. And Hermione..."

"Our detention was in the Forbidden Forest," Harry explained in a quiet voice. "It... it was..."

"I'm so sorry," I said, holding Hermione a little tighter before she let go and swiped at her eyes. Understanding settled in my stomach like a rock. I already knew why they had been there, but I asked anyway. "Why on earth were you there of all places?"

"It's a longer story than you're probably expecting," he said slowly. He closed his eyes. "I don't even know where to start."

I guided Hermione to the couch. Her face was still pale, and she shook violently. I rubbed my hand up and down her arm as Harry explained, pacing back and forth.

"We were looking for clues about a unicorn that had been wounded. Hagrid said it was the second in a week, I think. I started with Hermione and Hagrid, but Malfoy thought it was funny to pull a jump scare on Neville so I got stuck with him and Fang. We came across the unicorn, and there was a cloaked figure drinking its blood. Malfoy screamed and ran away, but I... there was this horrible pain in my scar, it still hasn't fully gone away, and I honestly think I fainted. Next thing I knew, a centaur was standing over me, and two others joined him, and they started arguing about something they had seen in the stars. And... and... well, he didn't say this outright, but Voldemort had to have been the one drinking the blood."

At this point, I was sure I was as pale as Hermione. I bit my lip. "So he's in the Forbidden Forest, killing unicorns to stay alive? That's what unicorn blood does," I explained quickly to Ron, who looked rather confused. "My dad's told me about it a dozen times. It keeps you alive, but it curses you at the same time. Only the most desperate people would drink it."

Harry nodded vigorously. "But if Snape wants the Stone for Voldemort, it wouldn't matter that his life is cursed, he'd live forever... and all this time, we thought Snape just wanted to get rich... but Voldemort's waiting in the forest..."

"Stop saying the name!" Ron gasped. Harry didn't seem to hear him and kept talking, but whether it was to himself or to us it was hard to tell.

“Firenze saved me, but he shouldn’t have done so, Bane was furious. He was talking about interfering with what the planets say is going to happen, they must show that Voldemort’s coming back. Bane thinks Firenze should have let Voldemort kill me, I suppose that’s written in the stars as well. So all I’ve got to wait for now is Snape to steal the Stone, then Voldemort will be able to come and finish me off. Well, I suppose Bane’ll be happy.”

"Will you stop saying the name?" Ron begged.

"Harry, if you think for a second we'll let You-Know-Who finish you off, so to speak, think again," I said.

Hermione straightened up and offered her own assurance. “Everyone says Dumbledore’s the only one You-Know-Who was ever afraid of, so with Dumbledore around, You-Know-Who won’t touch you. Anyway, who says the centaurs are right? It sounds like fortune-telling to me, and Professor McGonagall says that’s a very imprecise branch of magic.”

A sudden, horrible realization occurred to me. "Oh. W-Wait. Harry, what did the cloaked figure look like?"

"It was hard to tell," he replied. "It was dark. But whoever it was seemed tall. The hood covered any facial features, though."

The air in the room suddenly seemed way too thick. I wrapped my arms around my torso and stared at my socks. 

"Why do you ask?" Harry inquired.

"That night in September," I replied, my voice small even to my own ears, "I think I was attacked by Voldemort." I sighed shakily. "I told everyone that I didn't remember what happened, because the fact of the matter is that my memory is fuzzy anyway and I thought everyone would think I was batty for thinking a human was what attacked me. But I did wake up when, well, I was in so much pain." I traced my scars on my hands as I talked faster and faster. "And I saw a cloaked figure. So I guess, well, I guess I was attacked by Voldemort. But why wouldn't he have killed me?"

"Maybe he wasn't strong enough," Hermione suggested.

"He didn't attack me tonight," Harry said, "or at least not with a wand." He rubbed his forehead. "I don't know what happened with my scar, but it's happened before tonight, so I... I don't know."

"Do you want me to try a healing spell?" I offered. "I can run up and get my wand."

He shook his head. "I don't think it'll help, but thanks for offering, Lucy."

We talked until nearly sunrise. About the forest, about the centaurs, about the unicorns, about the Stone. About Snape, about Voldemort, about Dumbledore. I stumbled up to my dorm with Hermione, utterly exhausted, but one last birthday surprise awaited me beneath my covers. 

I grabbed the piece of parchment paper and held it up to the candlelight. On one side, there was a note written in the same handwriting as the note that accompanied my ancient runes book.

"Translate this and commit it to memory," it read. "It may yet become more important than even your end-of-year exams. Happy birthday, Lucy."

On the other side was a long passage in ancient runes. I was too tired to begin to make sense of it that night, but I tucked it securely into the book in my chest. I fell asleep glad I had spent most of the day studying; deciphering that mysterious passage would take a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everyone! Thank you so much to those of you who have continued to stick with me and my story through all of these crazy times! Escapism is definitely my primary coping strategy these days, so I hope I've been able to provide you all with a bit of release as well.
> 
> If anyone's wondering, Lucy's birthday is May 23. I decided to give her my birthday because quite frankly, I think I see more of myself in Lucy than in any other character I've created, for better or for worse. This story has shaped me a lot the past couple of months, and I really can't wait to watch it grow over the summer as I get more and more time to work on it. 
> 
> As always, feedback is loved and appreciated in any way, shape, or form! You can be honest! I love hearing from you, and I'd love to hear whatever you have to say about the story. If you're looking for a friend, please don't hesitate to shoot me a private message, too! I know that this time is extremely difficult for everyone, and if you'd like to talk about anything from Harry Potter to the fate of the world, I'm always available to help someone in need.
> 
> Stay safe and keep your head up! Love you all!


	19. Made to Fly

LUCY:

I thought it was incredibly fitting that the exam I was dreading most was my last for the year: History of Magic. Cedric had helped me a lot by comparing his notes with mine; he always went back and put stars next to whatever had been tested in class, and I started to do the same. It made studying for the final exam easier, but I was still nervous. Charms and Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology were my easiest exams by miles, but I felt I had done well in everything else too. But when it came to History of Magic, I was something of a nervous wreck.

"Good luck, Lucy," Neville said with an anxious smile as we neared the classroom. "You look nervous, but I know you'll do well."

"Thank you, and so will you," I replied, offering the most encouraging smile I could find.

"Do you want to go to the greenhouses with me afterwards? To relax a bit? Professor Sprout said she could use some help, and when I asked if you could come too, she said you were more than welcome if you wanted."

"Sure, Neville, that'd be great." _Assuming I survive this exam,_ I thought to myself. But he smiled even wider, and we entered the room together with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. We took our seats and set to work.

My hand ached with how much I had to write, but to my immense relief, I had studied everything that was tested. When the bell rang, a massive weight lifted from my shoulders.

"We're going down to the Black Lake," Ron said as we poured out of the room. "You coming, Lucy?"

"I'm heading down to the greenhouses with Neville, but I'll catch up with you later in the common room!"

"Alright, see you later!"

I turned to Neville. "Ready?"

He nodded. "Plants are better than history anyway."

I laughed. "I couldn't agree more. I feel so much better now that exams are done. How about you?"

"Well, I'm glad I don't have to study anymore, but I don't want my grades back," he admitted. "I don't think I did well in anything other than Herbology."

"Nonsense, Neville, you worked hard! Remember all of those hours spent studying in the Quidditch stands?"

"Yeah," he said reluctantly. "I just hope my hard work will be enough."

"It already is. You did your best, and that's all that matters, right?"

"Not to my gran. I don't want to disappoint her. I already did with the whole... dragon thing."

"Even then, you tried to do what was right, and that means a lot even if it didn't work out the way you wanted."

"I guess."

"But don't worry about that for now," I said quickly as we reached the greenhouse, "because exams are over and now all we have to worry about are these plants."

We pushed the door open.

"Hi, Professor Sprout!" Neville called. "Lucy and I are here."

"Excellent!" she said, clapping her gloved hands and beaming. "How were your other exams, dears?"

"They were okay," Neville said with a shrug. "Yours was still my favorite."

"How can we help?" I asked.

"I have a special task for you two today," she replied, eyes twinkling. "Follow me."

We followed her into another greenhouse filled with empty pots and bags upon bags of soil and fertilizer and wood chips lining the walls.

"One of the plants you'll be studying next year needs to be planted now so they can grow over summer. You'll likely not need these, but better safe than sorry," she explained as she passed us earmuffs.

"Are we planting Mandrakes?" Neville asked excitedly.

Professor Sprout nodded. "We certainly are, Mr. Longbottom! Now let me demonstrate what to do. Earmuffs on, please, I'd rather not take unnecessary risks."

We complied immediately and watched as she planted one as an example. Neville and I spent the next several hours working together to plant mandrake after mandrake. Neville was right in thinking it would help us relax; it required just enough thought to hold my attention, but it wasn't so intensive that I was stressed. 

The mandrakes were tiny, too small to have any details, really, but Neville explained to me on our walk back to the castle that they would grow to the size of a human baby, and look rather like a human baby as well.

"I'm going to go shower," he said as we climbed through the portrait hole to a completely empty common room, "it was hot in there. But I'll see you later, Lucy."

"Bye, Neville!" I called as he climbed the stairs to his dormitory. I was about to take a shower of my own when Harry, Ron, and Hermione burst through the portrait hole.

"Lucy!" they exclaimed in unison. I whirled around, and they all began to speak at once, various expressions of fear and concern and anxiety on their faces.

"I can't understand a word anyone just said," I said, holding my hands up. "What happened?"

"Hagrid told us about how he got Norbert from a guy in a cloak and now we know that-"

"Snape knows how to get past Fluffy and-"

"And we tried to go after him ourselves but-"

"McGonagall held us up and-"

"Hermione couldn't do her part and-"

"Hey! I tried but-"

"And now we have to go after the Stone-"

"Tonight!" they all finished once again in unison.

I took a deep breath. "Okay." I took another deep breath. "So what's the plan?"

"I need to study," Hermione said quickly. "You never know what we'll find down there."

I nodded. "That sounds like a good plan. What about you two?"

"We'll use the Invisibility Cloak," Harry said. "And we get past Fluffy by playing music, and Hagrid gave me a flute for Christmas, so we don't have to worry about that."

"Okay." I took yet another deep breath as the gravity of the situation settled on my shoulders. "I'll be right back. I need a little fresh air. The greenhouses were hot," I offered as a weak excuse before leaving through the portrait hole.

I raced down staircases trying to get outside; my mind raced even faster. Professor Snape was going to get the Stone. We were the only ones who could stop him. But at what cost, I wondered?

I needed to see Cedric. It might be the last time.

As I had hoped, Cedric and Henry were playing Gobstones in the courtyard. Cedric smiled and waved me over when he saw me.

"You survived your first round of final exams! How'd it go?"

"Pretty well, I hope," I replied, sitting behind him and ducking as the stinky spray exploded in his face.

Cedric turned to me. "Want to play? I'm sure you're better than I am."

"It's okay, I like watching you get sprayed," I teased. I winked at Henry. "Keep it up, will you? I'm on your side."

The boys laughed.

"How were exams for you two?"

"You know your brother was perfectly fine," Henry retorted, "genius that he is. As for myself, the Ancient Runes final exam nearly killed me."

"You're exaggerating, Hen, I'm sure you did alright," Cedric asserted, ever the diplomat.

"Being professor's pet doesn't guarantee anything in that class, because if it did, I would have perfect marks," he argued with a laugh.

"Who's the professor for that class?" I asked.

"Professor Babbling," Cedric answered.

"Seems appropriate, I say," Henry added. "Not that she babbles, she's actually quite soft-spoken and unassuming, but my brain might as well be comprehending nothing but babbling in that class. I don't know why I let Ced talk me into it."

I felt as if I'd be struck by lightning as everything clicked into place. I needed to bring my translation of the riddle on the back of my birthday note to... wherever we were going that night. Though temporarily distracted, raw terror once again surged through me. I was glad Cedric's back was to me and that Henry was distracted by the game, because for a second, I knew that my emotions were written all over my face. I carefully arranged my facial features into a smile and forced away the chill in my veins.

"You excited for the match on Saturday?" Henry asked. "Skye Parkin's last match, isn't it?"

I nodded. "It should be great! We have one last practice tomorrow since we didn't have one yesterday, then we'll be as ready as we'll ever be."

"Hopefully you can gain back the points those first-years lost," he added in a lower voice. "We'd all love to see Slytherin's downfall. We put up a fight last week, but Gryffindor's our best shot to overthrow them for the House Cup."

I laughed. If only he knew what we planned for tonight.

I ended heading back to the common room without an official goodbye to Cedric. I just couldn't do it. I vowed to do it after dinner. Not that I ate anything at all; the four of us just picked at our plates and exchanged heavy glances.

"I'll meet you in the common room in a minute," I whispered to Harry. "I... I need to say goodbye to Cedric. Not that I think we'll... well, you know, just in case we..."

"I understand," he said with a nod. "Do what you need to do. We'll have to wait until everyone goes to bed anyway."

I slipped away and caught Cedric walking by himself. I breathed a small sigh of relief. "Cedric?" I called.

He turned around, already smiling. "Hi, Lu. What's on your mind?"

"Nothing much," I lied. "Just saw you walking alone and thought we might as well be alone together. Where's Henry?"

"Already asleep. He wasn't kidding about that Ancient Runes exam."

"That hard?"

He nodded. "I don't usually complain about exams, but... that one was hard."

I fingered the folded pieces of parchment in my pocket. The original note and the translation were already there; I didn't want to risk leaving them behind. I grew more and more convinced that it would become important that night.

"I'm sure you did well," I said once I snapped back to reality. "You always do."

"Something's definitely on your mind," he remarked.

"What makes you think that?"

"You hesitated. Unless you think I actually bombed it and you're just trying to protect my feelings?"

"No, no, of course not! You always do well."

"I'm just teasing, Lucy. Come on, now, out with it. What's bothering you?"

I didn't know what to say. I couldn't tell the truth. But I couldn't think of a good enough lie, either.

"I just..." I hesitated, scrambling for something to say. "I don't want anything to change."

"How so?"

I didn't want to die. I didn't want my friends to die, either. I didn't want to keep anything a secret from Cedric anymore. I wanted to tell him about the Stone, about the Forest, about Norbert. I wanted everything to go back to the way it had been at Christmas, when everything was right and happy and the troll was dead and we didn't know who Nicholas Flamel was and we thought Hogwarts was safe. But I didn't say any of this.

"Neville and I helped Professor Sprout plant Mandrakes today, and it just reminded me of everything that's about to change. This year will end. Skye will graduate. We'll go home. I won't see my friends again until September. Next year will be different."

I said all of this with more optimism than I honestly possessed. I didn't expect to see next year, not really, but Cedric seemed to believe me.

"I know a lot is going to change," he said, "but some things never will. You'll have all of the same professors next year, even if the classes are a little different. Skye will graduate, but she won't go anywhere. I saw Adalyn in February, remember?"

I cracked a grin. "I'm surprised _you_ remember."

He blushed. "Yeah, I do. I'd rather forget the rest of that day, but seeing Adalyn was nice. That's another thing that'll never change. Friendship. Sure, you won't see your friends for a while, but they'll all be here next year. Besides, we still have the Weasleys nearby. And Fred and George and I have been talking. Apparently their mum wants us to spend more time with them this summer, assuming our parents are okay with it, and I'm going to do my best to convince them. She thinks we're a good influence, on the twins especially, and Mrs. Weasley wants their younger sister to have a female friend when she starts at Hogwarts next year."

I smiled. "That would be great."

I glanced up at my brother, taking the time to absorb every detail of this moment. The way the sunset filtered through the windows of the corridor and cast him in an almost unearthly glow. The way he intentionally slowed down so I didn't have to work hard to keep up with his longer strides. The way he smiled when he noticed me looking at him.

"What is it?"

"Just trying to hold onto this," I said, with complete earnestness.

"Good. Some changes will be sad, Lu, like Skye leaving, but some good changes are coming too. And some things will never change, like the fact I'll always be here for you and you'll always be here for me. Right?"

"Right."

We stopped on the threshold of the castle steps, taking in the June sunset. "This is another thing that will never change."

"What?"

"Hogwarts will always have the best sunsets."

I smiled. For what might be my last sunset, it sure was a beautiful one.

* * *

A couple hours later, when Lee Jordan, the last person in the common room, headed up to his dormitory, Harry followed to get the cloak. He returned quickly, and we gathered by the portrait hole.

"We’d better put the cloak on here," Harry said, "and make sure it covers all four of us. I think Ron and I should be in the middle, then Lucy and Hermione on the ends to make sure it stays all the way down. If Filch spots one of our feet wandering along on its own-”

"What are you doing?" Neville asked as he crawled out from behind an armchair, holding Trevor tightly. 

Harry shoved the cloak behind his back as we all turned to face him. "Nothing, Neville, nothing."

"You're going out again," he said slowly.

Hermione's voice was little more than a nervous squeak. "No, no, no, we're not. Why don't you go to bed, Neville?"

“You can’t go out. You’ll be caught again. Gryffindor will be in even more trouble.”

"You don't understand, Neville, this is important," Harry said. "We really have to go."

Neville ran to stand between us and the portrait hole. “I won’t let you do it! I’ll... I’ll fight you!”

“Neville, get away from that hole and don’t be an idiot!” Ron said.

“Don’t you call me an idiot! I don’t think you should be breaking any more rules! And you were the one who told me to stand up to people!”

“Yes, but not to us! Neville, you don’t know what you’re doing.” 

Ron stepped forward, and Neville dropped Trevor to hold up his fists. I darted after the toad to catch him before he got lost again, but he quickly disappeared under the couch. I dropped to my knees and snagged him by the back leg. 

Neville rocked slightly on his feet. “Go on then, try and hit me! I’m ready!” 

"No, stop," I said, standing between Neville and the others. I held Trevor out. "Neville, please let us go. I would explain to you what we're doing and why we have to do it, but we don't have time. If you take Trevor now and go to bed, we'll explain everything tomorrow."

He lowered his fists slightly. "But why should I let you get Gryffindor in trouble again?"

I opened my mouth to try to assuage his fears, but Hermione stepped up next to me.

"Neville, I'm really, really sorry about this, but we don't have any more time. Petrificus totalus!"

I lunged forward to catch him before he flopped to the ground, losing Trevor again in the process.

"Why would you do that?" I whispered in horror.

"What've you done to him?" Harry asked.

"It's the full Body-Bind. Oh, Neville, I'm so sorry," Hermione sighed.

"We had to, Neville, no time to explain, we need to go."

I dragged him to a rug. I didn't know how much he could feel, but I hoped it was more comfortable than the hardwood floor. "I'm sorry," I said, "I really am. We'll explain everything tomorrow." I glanced up toward the others. "Ready?"

I was next to Harry under the cloak. The halls were empty except for Peeves, who was fiddling with the carpet on the stairs. It wouldn't have been an issue if it weren't for the fact that he was between us and the door to Fluffy. We tried to move silently, but Peeves always did have a good ear for trouble. 

"Who's there? I know you're there even if you're invisible. Now, are you ghoulie or ghostie or we student beastie? Should call Filch, I should, if someone's a-creepin' around."

Harry's voice was deeper than I had ever heard it. "Peeves, the Bloody Baron has his own reasons for being invisible."

It worked. Peeves nearly tripped over himself in midair trying to appease the "Bloody Baron" with glasses beneath an Invisibility Cloak. Had the situation not been so grave, I would have found it hilarious. I couldn't wait to tell the twins, assuming I ever saw them again. But Harry wasn't done. 

"I have business here tonight, so stay away from here."

And just like that, the Peeves problem was gone. 

"That was bloody brilliant, Harry!" Ron whispered. 

"Was that a pun?" I asked, which earned soft snorts of laughter from the other three. But the laughter died as soon as we reached the door. 

"If you want to go back, I won't blame you," Harry said. "You can take the cloak, I won't need it now."

"Don't be stupid, mate, we're coming," Ron replied. With that, we pushed the door open.

"Whoa," I breathed. "Now _that's_ a dog."

"What's at his feet?" Hermione asked.

I squinted. "Some type of instrument. That must be what Snape used to get past Fluffy. I'm glad he didn't hurt him."

"Didn't hurt him?" Ron retorted. "I doubt Fluffy would think twice about hurting us." He had a point; all three massive heads were sniffing the air around us, and I could have sworn I heard his stomach growl.

"Well, only one way to prevent that," Harry whispered, drawing his Christmas gift from Hagrid and beginning to play some semblance of a tune. As soon as the massive dog was asleep, we shed the cloak.

"I'll take a turn," I offered, because I could see how red in the face Harry was growing from the nonstop playing. He passed it quickly, but even in the milliseconds of silence, the dog began to stir. But as soon as I puffed a note out, his eyes drooped shut again. I took a couple steps forward, and reached the hand not holding the flute to one of the heads. The content animal didn't even open its eyes, but it pressed its head ever so slightly into my touch. I smiled. Good boy. 

I couldn't hear the whispered debate occurring near the trap door, but I watched as Harry then Ron then Hermione jumped in. 

"Come on, Lucy!" came a call. "It's a soft landing!"

I backed toward the trap door, still blowing on the flute. I didn't stop playing until the last possible second. I shut my eyes tightly and jumped in.

The drop was far further than I was expecting, but I finally landed with a squish on something. I opened my eyes a crack and immediately gasped.

"Devil's Snare! Get out!"

Hermione and I scrambled to safety, but Harry and Ron were too tightly wound already. 

"What did Professor Sprout say?" Hermione wrung her hands. "It likes the damp-"

"And dark!" I added.

"So light a fire!" Harry shouted.

"There's no wood!" Hermione exclaimed. 

"There's no wood?" Ron cried. "Honestly! Are you a witch or not?"

"I got it," I said, whipping my wand out. "Incendio!"

The Devil's Snare immediately recoiled, and the boys were free.

"Lucky you two pay attention in Herbology," Harry remarked.

"Yeah, and lucky Lucy doesn't lose her head in a crisis," Ron added. "There's no wood? Really?"

"Down this way," Harry said, pointing down a stone passageway. We walked down, down, down. Harry led, whereas I brought up the rear. No one spoke until we heard the sound of thousands of wings flapping at once. 

"Do you hear that?"

"Is it a ghost?"

"I think it's wings."

"Are you sure?"

"There's light ahead, I can see something moving," Harry said. "Let's go."

Surely enough, we soon reached a room full of what looked like mechanical birds.

"Do you think they'll attack us?" Ron asked.

"Probably." Harry shrugged. "But, well, there's no other choice but to cross."

"I see a door on the other side," I said. "I'll run."

Before anyone could protest, I sprinted across the room, arms over my head. I reached the door without a scratch and pulled on the handle. 

"It's safe to cross!" I called to the others. "But it's locked."

I tried alohomora, along with another trickier spell Fred and George had taught me works on some doors in Hogwarts that really, really aren't meant to be opened, but to no avail.

"Know any explosion spells, Lucy?" Ron asked.

"There's got to be another way," Hermione said quickly before I could answer. Something told me she wasn't fond of using an explosion to open a door. "These birds have to mean something."

"Wait a second," Harry said, "those aren't birds! They're keys! Keys with wings! Oh, and look, broomsticks! We need to catch the key for the door!"

Ron looked at the lock. "I think we're looking for an old-fashioned silver one, and it's probably pretty big."

"Let's go!" I said, suddenly quite excited at the prospect of flying. I darted over and grabbed a broom, diving into the mess of keys. I looked for the key Ron described, but none of the ones I caught seemed quite right.

Harry, though, spotted it. "That one! That big one! With the blue wings! The feathers are crumpled on one side! We've got to close in on it!"

"On it!" I called, flying above the key and diving straight down at it. Hermione shot up from below, and Harry and Ron each chose a side. Harry pinned it against the wall, and I straightened myself out just before slamming into Hermione. We quickly dropped to the ground and rushed to the door. The key worked, and we stepped into the next room after taking half a moment to take a deep breath and gather our wits again. A brilliant light revealed the biggest game of chess I had ever seen.

"Now what do we do?" Harry groaned.

"I think we have to play our way across," Ron answered. "And I think we have to be chessmen." He stepped forward and touched a knight that sprang to life. "Do we have to join you to cross?" The knight nodded, and Ron rubbed his chin. "This will need some thinking about."

"Wish we had just brought brooms," Harry whispered to me with a grin. I smiled back just as Ron spoke again.

"Now, don't be offended," he said slowly, "but I'm the best at chess-"

"You definitely are," I agreed. "Just get us across. We'll follow your lead. Tell us where to go."

Ron had never played such a fantastic game. He guided us across the board expertly, never once losing his nerve, even as we watched pieces be smashed against the wall. 

"We're nearly there," he said after a while. "But... well, now I need to think." The white queen turned her blank face toward Ron. He swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes... it's the only way. I've got to be taken."

"No!" the other three of us shouted in unison.

"That's chess! You've got to make sacrifices! Once I make my move and she takes me, Harry is free to checkmate the king, and we win."

"Ron, no, there's got to be another way," I protested.

"Do you want to stop Snape or not? Look, we don't have time." He stopped Harry before a word could leave his mouth. "If we don't hurry, he'll get the Stone. So here I go."

He stepped forward, and the queen knocked him hard across the head. The three of us exchanged a horrified glance, and Harry slowly moved to checkmate the king. The king smashed his crown at Harry's feet, and the defeated pieces bowed and allowed us to pass. 

"He'll be okay," Harry assured us. "What do you reckon is next?"

"Sprout's was the Devil's Snare," Hermione said, counting on her fingers. "Flitwick must have been the keys, and McGonagall must have been the chess game. That leaves Quirrell, and Snape, and Babbling."

"What does Babbling teach anyway?"

"Ancient Runes," I answered. "My brother and his best friend take it together."

The stench of the next room nearly made me sick. An unconscious troll was sprawled on the ground. 

"Glad we don't have to fight that one," Harry commented as we stepped around it. We entered the next room to find a table filled with various glasses and vials filled with potions. "Snape's. I wonder what we have to do."

As soon as we stepped through the doorway, purple fire erupted behind us. An identical black fire filled the next doorway as well. 

"We're trapped," Hermione said in a small voice. "But there's this." She bent down and grabbed a scroll from beside the potions. Her face blanched. "I found Professor Babbling's."

She rolled it out on the ground, revealing line after line of runes. 

"We'll never get the Stone," Harry whispered, sounding near tears. "Unless you happen to know ancient runes, Hermione?"

"I don't."

"I do," I said, stepping forward. I ignored their bewildered stares as I studied the scroll. My suspicions were confirmed. It was the same passage given to me on my birthday. I reached into my pocket for the translation, but it was gone. I felt all of the blood drain from my face, but only for a moment. _Commit it to memory_ , the note had said. The author must have set something up that would magically remove any translations someone brought into this room. I swallowed hard and focused. 

"Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,  
Two of us will help you, which ever you would find,  
One among us seven will let you move ahead,  
Another will transport the drinker back instead,  
Two among our number hold only nettle wine,  
Three of us are killers, waiting bidden in line.  
Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,  
To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:  
First, however slyly the poison tries to hide  
You will always find some on nettle wine’s left side;  
Second, different are those who stand at either end,  
But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;  
Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,  
Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;  
Fourth, the second left and the second on the right  
Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight."

Hermione smiled. "I have no idea how you knew that, but we can talk about that later. This is brilliant! It isn't magic, it's logic! It's a puzzle! Most wizards don't have an ounce of it, some would be stuck here forever!"

"But how do we know which to drink?" Harry asked.

"Lucy, can you say it again?"

I repeated it twice more, as Hermione thought harder and harder.

She pursed her lips. "I've got it. The small one will get us through the black fire."

Harry grabbed the bottle. "There's only enough for one of us. Which one will get us through the purple fire?"

She pointed wordlessly to a round bottle at the end.

"You and Lucy drink that one." She opened her mouth to protest, but Harry didn't give her the chance. "No, listen, get back and get Ron. Grab brooms from the flying key room, they’ll get you out of the trapdoor and past Fluffy. Go straight to the owlery and send Hedwig to Dumbledore, we need him. I might be able to hold Snape off for a while, but I’m no match for him, really. But you and Lucy should be alright together."

"What about you, Harry?" Hermione's lower lip trembled. "What if You-Know-Who's with him?"

"Well, I was lucky once, wasn't I? Maybe I'll get lucky again."

Hermione flung her arms around him. "Harry, you're a great wizard, you know."

He flushed a bright red when she let go. "I'm not as good as you."

"Me? Books and cleverness. There are more important things, like friendship, and bravery, and oh, Harry, be careful!"

"You drink first, Hermione," Harry said. "Then I'll go, then Lucy can follow you. You're sure you know which is which?"

She nodded and grabbed her bottle. "Positive." She took a swallow and shuddered. 

"It's not poison?" I asked.

She shook her head. "No, but it's like ice."

"Quick, go, before it wears off," Harry said.

"Good luck, and-"

"Go!" we shouted at her in unison.

She disappeared through the flames, and Harry and I exchanged a long look, neither knowing what to say.

"I would go face Snape myself," I managed after a moment. "But I can imagine you wouldn't hear a word of it."

"You're right," he replied with a small grin. "I don't reckon your brother would ever forgive me if something happened to you."

"And I don't reckon _I'd_ ever forgive myself if something happened to _you_ ," I said, "but I understand. You need this more than I do. B-But I... I'd still rather you not go. But I'll be right here when it's all over."

"Oh, and Lucy. One more thing?"

"Mhm?"

A small smile made its way to his lips. "If I don't make it back, you can have my broom. I think you were made to fly, Lucy."

I tried to smile, but instead, tears rose to my eyes and I threw my arms around him the way Hermione had. "Oh, shut up," I said, half-sobbing and half-chuckling. "You'll make it back. Quidditch practice wouldn't be the same without you. Nothing would be." I released him, and he grabbed his potion.

He smiled back one last time before swallowing his potion and shuddering. "Hermione was right. It's freezing." With that, he turned and walked into the fire.

"I suppose it's my turn now," I said to myself, taking a long swig of Hermione's potion. I ran through the purple fire, knowing we didn't have a moment to waste. I nearly bowled Hermione over in my rush, but she quickly recovered herself and we hurried past the troll.

We didn't speak. We both seemed to understand that nothing we could say would make the situation any better. Once we reached the chess room, we rushed over to Ron. Hermione pressed a finger to his wrist as I drew my wand.

"He's alive," she said, her voice shaking with immense relief.

"Good. This should help." I twirled my wand above him. "Episkey!"

Golden sparkles showered around him, and he stirred slightly.

"It's okay, Ron," I said softly, helping him sit up. "You're okay. We're going to get you out of here."

"Where's Harry?" he asked, his words slurring together as his eyes adjusted to the light.

"Don't worry about that right now," she replied in the gentlest voice I had possibly ever heard her use. "He'll be alright, and so will we. But we need to hurry and get Dumbledore. Can you walk?"

Hermione and I helped him to his feet, and he immediately stumbled. I ducked under him to use as a human crutch; I was pretty substantially shorter than him after all. Once we reached the room with the brooms, we each grabbed one and made our way to the door at the other end of the room.

I swore under my breath. The door had locked once we had gone through, much like the purple fire. We needed another key.

"What do you reckon this key will look like?" I asked.

"The other one was just like its handle," Hermione said, "so this one is probably gold, and quite small."

"Okay," I said, throwing a leg over my broom and shooting up toward the ceiling. With no Harry to lean on, it seemed my senses were more alert than ever. Suddenly, a golden key with red wings flew right in front of my nose. I nearly punched myself in the face trying to grab it. It darted away, right into a particularly thick bunch of keys. I darted right after it, ignoring the way the keys dug at the skin of my face and hands, unable to get out of my way fast enough. I reached, reached, reached, and closed my hand around it.

"Yes!" I yelled. "I got it!"

We didn't even bother to dismount our brooms. I unlocked the door, and we flew out above the Devil's Snare and through the trap door. Fluffy barked and snarled at us, but he couldn't quite reach us. But we couldn't reach the door, either.

"Someone get the flute!" Ron shouted. "I... I can't keep flying much longer."

"We can't reach it!" Hermione shouted back.

"What else can we do?"

I groaned. "Godric, I can't believe I'm about to do this." I cleared my throat and began to sing, an old lullaby my mum used to sing me. It was far from beautiful, but it did the trick. I gestured for Ron and Hermione to fly lower and lower as Fluffy's eyelids drooped. I didn't stop singing until we were safely through the door and had closed it behind us.

"That was a nice song," Hermione said.

I flushed bright red. "Tell anyone about that and I'll kill the both of you. There's a reason I'm not in the Frog Choir. Let's go."

We sprinted as fast as we could do the owlery, but before we reached there, we ran into none other than Professor Dumbledore first, moving just as quickly as we were.

"Harry's gone after him, hasn't he?" he asked.

When we nodded, he rushed off in the direction of the third floor. We remained frozen in place for several seconds, none of us sure what to do next.

Ron was the first to find his voice. "What do we do now?"

"You should go to the Hospital Wing," Hermione said. "You too, Lucy, those keys cut you up the second time. You must have been flying incredibly fast."

"No, no, I'm fine," I said, though I did drag my sleeve across my face to try to wipe away the blood I felt trickling down. "I'm going to go check on Neville. I suppose we can tell him the truth now."

"He's fine, thanks to us," came a voice in the darkness.

"You three are coming with us to the common room, and while you're at it, you can tell us the truth too."

I spun around to see Fred and George lurking in the shadows. I glanced toward Ron and Hermione.

"Let me lead the way," Fred said. "I've got the best instincts. We need to get you three out of here before McGonagall or worse catches us all out of bed. You talk really loudly considering it's nearly three in the morning."

We followed Fred wordlessly through the castle to the common room, George bringing up the rear to make sure none of us tried to bolt. Neville was half-asleep on the couch when we stumbled through, but he jumped up when he saw us. I was afraid at first that he would be furious with us, but instead, he rushed straight to me and nearly plowed me over with a hug, then did the same to Ron and Hermione.

"I was so worried! Wait, where's Harry?"

"We're wondering the same thing," George said, "but we heard Filch coming and knew we needed to get you out of there before you got into more trouble."

"Thanks." My voice was little more than a whisper. My anxiety seemed to have coiled around my vocal chords like a snake. "We weren't thinking about that, really. And... and Harry... it's a long story."

The twins ushered the three of us to the couch. I curled up in the corner away from the other two, pulling my robes tightly around my shoulders. The twins and Neville had plenty of questions for Ron and Hermione, who answered as best they could, but I couldn't seem to make out a word they were saying. All I could hear was Harry's voice. _If I don't make it back, you can have my broom. I think you were made to fly, Lucy._

"Lululululululululu!"

I turned toward the twins, a reluctant smile finding its way to my face. "What?"

"Did you really get all cut up from flying keys?"

I blushed. "Yeah."

"Wicked," they said in unison.

"That's really the end of the story," Hermione said. "Once we were through the door, we flew over the Devil's Snare into Fluffy's room and were going to the owlery when we bumped into Dumbledore heading to get Harry. We... we don't know anything else."

"Harry will be okay," Neville assured us as best he could. "I mean, he's Harry Potter for a reason."

We all nodded slowly, a heavy silence falling over the room. I didn't remember falling asleep, but I woke to a stinging sensation on my face.

"Sorry," George whispered. "All three of you fell asleep and Fred and I figured we'd try to clean up those cuts. Don't worry, it's not dittany," he added quickly, holding up a wet towel. "Just water. But anything helps, eh?"

"Thanks." I pushed myself to a more upright position and glanced over to where Fred was trying to heal the bump on Ron's head. "Where's Neville?"

"We dragged him up to his own bed, but we figured you three would want to be down here so you were easy to find whenever someone comes with news."

It made sense to me, so I nodded silently. "How did you know about, well, all of this?"

"Freddie and I were going to head down to the kitchens for a post-finals feast," he explained with a grin, "but we were caught off guard by Neville's body on the couch. We performed the countercurse and he told us what happened, so we knew we needed to find you before anyone else did, especially since Harry and Hermione already got caught. What happened with all that, anyway? Was that related to the Stone too?"

I shook my head. "Not exactly. I was there that night too, but I got lucky. What happened with that was-"

I was cut off by the portrait hole swinging open to reveal a very troubled-looking Professor McGonagall. Her sharp eyes took in the scene, and she cleared her throat before speaking.

"The headmaster asked me to inform anybody awake in the common room that Mr. Potter is in the Hospital Wing now and will make a full recovery within a few days."

"Are we allowed to visit?" I asked. "What happened down there?"

"No visitors allowed yet, but he is in good hands so you needn't worry too much. And to be quite frank, Miss Diggory, I'm sure you have a better idea of what happened than I." She sighed. "It would seem you and the youngest Mr. Weasley should go to the Wing as well. Miss Granger too, I presume."

"Don't worry, Professor, we can take care of them," Fred said.

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips. "I don't even want to ask why you two are also awake and in the common room at this hour."

"I'm sure everything will be cleared up tomorrow," George replied. "Don't worry about these ones for tonight. It seems Harry needs you more."

"Professor McGonagall?" I asked as she turned to leave.

"Yes, Miss Diggory?"

I blushed and smiled. "If Harry wakes up when I'm not there, will you please tell him I knew I wouldn't need his broom? He told me I could have it if he didn't come back, but it sounds like he'll be flying it again someday."

She looked for a moment as if she'd cry, but she managed to return my smile. "I'll tell him." She disappeared through the portrait hole.

Fred swore loudly as soon as the hole closed.

"What?" George and I asked in unison. 

"The Quidditch match! Saturday!"

"Well," I said slowly, "I pity the poor soul who has to tell Skye her star Seeker is otherwise occupied."

* * *

I don't know who ended up telling Skye, because as soon as my face was more or less cleaned up, I woke Hermione and we staggered up to our dormitory together and didn't wake again for several hours. To be honest, the only reason I woke up was because Skye herself shook me awake.

"Heard you had a long night, but we've got a match tomorrow and I really need you at practice today," she said. "Sorry. I'm guessing you heard about Harry?"

I nodded as I sat up. "What are we going to do?"

"We'll figure it out at practice. Meet you down there?"

"Meet you down there." 

She left, and I quickly put on my practice clothes. Thankfully, Hermione was so deeply asleep she completely missed Skye coming and going, but I was careful to be quiet anyway. I threw my hair up in a ponytail, not bothering with my typical braids, and hurried down to the Pitch still wiping the sleep from my eyes. It felt weird walking alone, but I assured myself Harry would be okay and we'd walk down together again someday. I stopped in the locker room, but I didn't get Cedric's broom. I stepped out onto the grass with Harry's broom behind my back.

"Well, everyone," Skye said with a heavy sigh, "this isn't what we expected, but we're going to make it work. I mean, thank Merlin we have a reserve, eh? Couldn't imagine trying to win the game without a Seeker."

"Who will the Seeker be?" Oliver asked. "Because you and Lucy have both been primarily playing Chaser."

"I don't know," she admitted. "I don't know how we'll make do without Harry, or his broom, for that matter."

"Lucy should be Seeker," George said. "She caught a flying key in a room with thousands of them last night. She may prefer Chaser, but she is Cedric's sister. There's some Seeker talent there too."

"She is smaller than me," Skye mused, "which would help against Leo Wilde, who's built rather like a troll."

I cleared my throat, trying to sound braver than I felt. "There's something else that would help." I brought the Nimbus out from behind my back. "Harry said last night that if he didn't come back, I could have his broom. And, well, he did come back, but I don't think he'd mind if I borrowed it for this. Do you agree?"

Skye grinned. "Abso-bloody-lutely. Alright, team. Lucy's Seeker. Let's practice!"

As tired as I was, I came alive during practice. The Nimbus 2000 really was incredible. We practiced for a long time, and we practiced hard, and we missed Harry terribly, but our spirits were high as could be expected. When I headed back up to the castle, I had barely gone three steps before Cedric came flying at me out of nowhere and hugged me so tightly I thought I might burst. We talked for a little bit, and I gave him a shortened version of the night's events. It seemed he couldn't decide if he was horrified by how much danger I had put myself in or proud of the way I had handled everything thrown at me or both. But what I do know for sure is that he was incredibly relieved that I was alright, and he said in no uncertain terms that if I ever thought about doing anything like that ever again and didn't come back, there'd be hell to pay.

"Don't worry, Ced," I had assured him with a smile. "I'll always come back to you."

The night passed much less eventfully than the night before, and I was actually thankful for how exhausted I was; I was too busy sleeping soundly to really worry about the next day's match. As soon as I opened my eyes on Saturday morning, however, anxiety nearly overcame me. Like Harry on the day of his first match, I couldn't bring myself to eat a bite of breakfast. The Hall was full of speculation as to what Gryffindor would do. Nobody had found out about the reserve player all year. Slytherin looked particularly smug as they stared at the place at the table where Harry typically sat that was now empty.

Cedric offered a couple words of advice, one Seeker to another, and encouragement, one Diggory to another, before I headed down to the Pitch. I changed into my Quidditch robes in my locker, still not ready for anyone to see more of my scars than the ones I couldn't hide, and got Harry's broom out of his locker. My whole body trembled under the weight of the moment. I couldn't screw this up. Not for Gryffindor. Not for the team. Not for Skye. Not for Harry.

Even Skye looked somewhat nervous as she began her speech. "Well, this is it, everyone," she said. "Our chance to win the Quidditch Cup. We all know what we need to do, though some of us are taking on new roles." She fixed her hazel eyes on me for a moment before addressing the group as a whole again. "This is my last chance to win the Quidditch Cup. I don't want to ask you to do this for me-"

"We'll do it for you, Parkin," Fred interrupted with a grin. "You don't even have to ask."

"We'll do it for Harry, too," George added, and the whole team once again looked at me. I blushed fiercely and glanced toward Skye.

"For Gryffindor," Oliver said. 

"For all of us," Skye said, looking each one of us in the eyes. "We've all worked so hard to reach this point. So let's do this. For Gryffindor. For Harry. And for me." She cleared her throat, and I might have even seen tears in her eyes. "Alright, time to go. I'll lead the Chasers, then Wood, then the twins can be on either side of Lucy. She's our secret weapon," she said with a smile, "and I'd love to have a dramatic reveal. Let's go!"

We broke the circle and approached the field. Fred stood to my left, George to my right.

"Nervous, Cub?" Fred asked.

I nodded. "Of course."

"You shouldn't be," George replied. "You can do this."

"I'm no Harry. He can do it better."

"We only need one Harry," Fred said, "and he's great. But today, Cub, we need you. We need Lucy Diggory, because Harry isn't here."

I managed a smile. "I can be Lucy Diggory."

We stepped out into the stadium. The bright sun shining overhead made the scene appear like something out of a painting. I might have thought I was dreaming if not for the roaring of the crowd that made my ears throb. We took to the skies, and with the blow of Madam Hooch's whistle, the game began.

I tuned out the commentary. I tuned out the crowd. I ignored the uneasiness of my stomach and the way the sun beat down on the back of my neck. I watched the game below us with near-perfect focus, watching as my teammates below fought for every point they could and waiting for the golden fleck of the Snitch.

I also found myself having to ignore the smirks of Leo Wilde. It was obvious he was highly entertained by me, both my size and the fact that I was a girl. He didn't say anything, at least not that I heard, but he didn't need to. I could tell he saw me as no threat whatsoever. I hoped his cockiness would be his downfall.

The Ravenclaws were putting up a good fight. We knew we'd never be able to out-strategize them, but we hoped our aggression and unpredictability would at least faze them. It seemed to be working, but the score still remained close. It would come down to the Snitch, which was nowhere to be seen. 

After what felt like hours, I finally saw the Snitch. I hazarded a quick glance at Wilde, who was already staring at me. I smirked at him, then tore off down toward the Snitch. I had the feeling he was on my tail; the screams of the crowd confirmed it. But with the Nimbus beneath me, I flew faster and faster until it was within reach. 

"Just like the key," I whispered to myself as I extended my hand and closed my fingers around it. I pulled up, the Snitch still secure in my hand, and held my fist above my head.

A sudden force from my left nearly knocked me off of my broom.

"Whoops," Leo Wilde said, smirking. "Didn't see you there, little Gryffindor. You got lucky this time, but you won't again."

"Lucky for you, I'm not Seeker," I replied. "Next time, you'll be up against Harry Potter." I flew down to my team, who all looked very, very, very excited. 

The stadium was deafening at this point, so I couldn't hear a word they said, but I remembered their smiles. Skye especially seemed as if she'd explode from the joy of it all. 

"Party in the common room!" Fred roared as we filtered into the changing tents. "Let's go!"

"I'll catch up with you in a moment," I said softly to George. "I need to take care of something first."

He looked confused, but nodded regardless.

I put Harry's broom back in his locker, not bothering to change out of my Quidditch robes before slipping out of the tent and making my way up to the castle. Once in the Hospital Wing, and approached Harry's bedside. I gently took his bandaged hand in my own.

"We won, Harry," I whispered, "we did it. And we did it for you."

His eyes didn't open, and he didn't move at all save for the rise and fall of his chest. But I hoped that, somehow, he had heard me, because we _had_ done it. Survived final exams, and saved the Stone, and won the Quidditch Cup. 

"I can't wait until you wake up," I added, smiling slightly. "We've got celebrating to do, and I need you to be there for it."


	20. More Than When I Left

_Passing through darkness into my own world  
Will I be more than when I left?  
Never letting go of the lessons I learned  
This will make a change  
A change within me_

_"More Than It Seems"  
Kutless_

* * *

HARRY:

The first person I saw when I opened my eyes wasn't Quirrell, nor was it Voldemort. It wasn't Ron or Hermione or Lucy, either. It was none other than Dumbledore.

“Good afternoon, Harry,” he said, smiling.

Everything rushed back at once. "Sir! The Stone! It was Quirrell! He’s got the Stone! Sir, quick-”

“Calm yourself, dear boy, you are a little behind the times. Quirrell does not have the Stone.”

“Then who does? Sir, I-”

“Harry, please relax, or Madam Pomfrey will have me thrown out.”

I looked around for the first time. Was this the Hospital Wing? I noticed the table next to me was overflowing with... things.

Dumbledore followed my gaze. "Tokens from your friends and admirers. What happened down in the dungeons between you and Professor Quirrell is a complete secret, so, naturally, the whole school knows. I believe your friends Misters Fred and George Weasley were responsible for trying to send you a toilet seat. No doubt they thought it would amuse you. Madam Pomfrey, however, felt it might not be very hygienic, and confiscated it.”

I managed a smile. "Of course they did." I relaxed slightly, trying to compose myself. "How long have I been in here?”

“Three days. Mr. Ronald Weasley and Miss Granger and Miss Diggory will be most relieved you have come round, they have been extremely worried.” 

“But sir, the Stone-”

“I see you are not to be distracted. Very well, the Stone. Professor Quirrell did not manage to take it from you. I arrived in time to prevent that, although you were doing very well on your own, I must say.”

"You got there? You got Hermione’s owl?”

“We must have crossed in midair. No sooner had I reached London than it became clear to me that the place I should be was the one I had just left. I arrived just in time to pull Quirrell off you.”

I recalled the Snitch. Or, well, what I thought was the Snitch. "It was you.”

“I feared I might be too late.”

I sighed in relief. “You nearly were, I couldn’t have kept him off the Stone much longer-”

“Not the Stone, boy, you... the effort involved nearly killed you. For one terrible moment there, I was afraid it had. As for the Stone, it has been destroyed.”

Sadness settled in my stomach. “Destroyed? But your friend, Nicolas Flamel, he-”

“Oh, you know about Nicolas? You did do the thing properly, didn’t you? Well, Nicolas and I have had a little chat, and agreed it’s all for the best.”

“But that means he and his wife will die, won’t they?”

“They have enough Elixir stored to set their affairs in order and then, yes, they will die. To one as young as you, I’m sure it seems incredible, but to Nicolas and Perenelle, it really is like going to bed after a very, very long day. After all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure. You know, the Stone was really not such a wonderful thing. As much money and life as you could want! The two things most human beings would choose above all. The trouble is, humans do have a knack of choosing precisely those things that are worst for  
them.”

I didn't know what to say for several seconds. “Sir? I’ve been thinking… sir, even if the Stone’s gone, Vol-, I mean, You-Know-Who-"

“Call him Voldemort, Harry. Always use the proper name for things. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.”

“Yes, sir. Well, Voldemort’s going to try other ways of coming back, isn’t he? I mean, he hasn’t gone, has he?”

“No, Harry, he has not. He is still out there somewhere, perhaps looking for another body to share. Not being truly alive, he cannot be killed. He left Quirrell to die; he shows just as little mercy to his followers as his enemies. Nevertheless, Harry, while you may only have delayed his return to power, it will merely take someone else who is prepared to fight what seems a losing battle next time. And if he is delayed again, and again, why, he may never return to power.” 

I paused. Did I dare? Yes, I did. “Sir... there are some other things I’d like to know, if you can tell me, things I want to know the truth about.”

He sighed, as if he'd been expecting this but was not entirely glad it had come to pass. “The truth is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution. However, I shall answer your questions unless I have a very good reason not to, in which case I beg you’ll forgive me. I shall not, of course, lie.”

“Well, Voldemort said that he only killed my mother because she tried to stop him from killing me. But why would he want to kill me in the first place?”

He sighed the same sigh. “Alas, the first thing you ask me, I cannot tell you. Not today. Not now. You will know, one day. Put it from your mind for now, Harry. When you are older, and I know you hate to hear this, but when you are ready, you will know.”

“But why couldn’t Quirrell touch me?”

“Your mother died to save you. If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn’t realize that love as powerful as your mother’s for you leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign. To have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever. It is in your very skin. Quirrell, full of hatred, greed, and ambition, sharing his soul with Voldemort, could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good.”

For a reason I can't explain, a couple of tears leaked from my eyes. I dried them quickly and found my voice again. “And the Invisibility Cloak. Do you know who sent it to me?”

“Ah, your father happened to leave it in my possession, and I thought you might like it. Useful things… your father used it mainly for sneaking off to the kitchens to steal food when he was here.”

I smiled. I hadn't thought of that yet. But I still had more important matters on my mind. “Quirrell said Snape-”

“Professor Snape, Harry.”

“Yes, him. Quirrell said he hates me because he hated my father. Is that true?”

“Well, they did rather detest each other. Not unlike yourself and Mr. Malfoy. And then, your father did something Snape could never forgive.”

“What?”

“He saved his life.”

“ _What_?” 

“Yes. Funny, the way people’s minds work, isn’t it? Professor Snape couldn’t bear being in your father’s debt. I do believe he worked so hard to protect you this year because he felt that would make him and your father even. Then he could go back to hating your father’s memory in peace.”

“And sir, there’s one more thing."

"Just the one?”

“How did I get the Stone out of the mirror?”

“Ah, now, I’m glad you asked me that. It was one of my more brilliant ideas, and between you and me, that’s saying something. You see, only one who wanted to find the Stone, _find_ it, but not _use_ it, would be able to get it, otherwise they’d just see themselves making gold or drinking Elixir of Life. My brain surprises even me sometimes! Now, enough questions. I suggest you make a start on these sweets. Ah! Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans! I was unfortunate enough in my youth to come across a vomit flavored one, and since then I’m afraid I’ve rather lost my liking for them, but I think I’ll be safe with a nice toffee, don’t you?” He choked on the bean. "Alas, earwax!"

As soon as he left, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione rushed to my bedside.

“Oh, Harry, we were sure you were going to-" Hermione said, speaking incredibly quickly. "Dumbledore was so worried-”

"The whole school's talking about what happened. What really happened?" Ron asked.

I rubbed my aching head, then launched into my story. "Well, once I walked through the fire, it wasn't Snape or Voldemort on the other side. It was Professor Quirrell!"

All three of them gasped. 

"It turns out Snape was never trying to kill me. It was Quirrell all along. You knocked him out of the way at the first Quidditch match, Hermione, and Snape refereed the second match so Quirrell wouldn't try anything else. He let the troll in on Halloween, and Snape somehow figured it out. The Mirror of Erised was in the chamber, and Quirrell saw himself giving the Stone to Voldemort in it, but he couldn't figure out how it worked or how to get the Stone to give to Voldemort."

Ron looked nervous every time I said Voldemort, but I was too busy trying to recall everything to switch to You-Know-Who. 

"I would have tried to stand next to him in the mirror, but I was all tied up with rope. Then, he asked his 'master' for help with the mirror, and this... voice told him to use me. He snapped the ropes and pushed me to the mirror, when, all of a sudden, I felt the Stone fall into my pocket. He asked what I saw, and I said something about winning the House Cup. But the same voice knew I was lying somehow, and asked Quirrell to let him speak to me face-to-face. And you'll never guess what Quirrell was hiding under his turban --- Voldemort himself!"

Hermione screamed, and Lucy and Ron both gasped again. I nodded, then stopped, because nodding made my head hurt even more.

"I know. He tried to take it from me, the Stone I mean, and Quirrell tried to choke me, but every time he touched me, I burned him. For what it was worth, touching him made my scar hurt, a lot, and it still hurts, honestly. But I knew I had to keep touching him to stop him from firing a curse at me, so I did, and then I blacked out, and, well, now I'm here."

"Oh, Harry," Hermione whispered after a moment, thoroughly horrified. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"Everyone is," Lucy said, lowering herself onto the foot of my bed. She looked somewhat ill herself, but she smiled anyway. "Did you hear about the twins' toilet seat?"

"Yeah, I did," I chuckled.

Ron, however, was uncharacteristically serious and not about to be distracted. “So the Stone’s gone? Flamel’s just going to die?”

“That’s what I said, but Dumbledore thinks that... what was it? 'To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure.’”

“I always said he was off his rocker,” he replied with a disappointed shake of his head.

"I don't know," Lucy said, tossing one of her braids over her shoulder. "It makes sense to me. But for today, I'm glad that we're all alive, and together, not off on 'the next great adventure.'"

We all "Mhm!"ed our emphatic agreement

"What happened with you three?" I asked. 

Hermione shrugged. "Nothing terribly exciting. Lucy and I got back alright. We brought Ron back around and got to the room with the keys. But the door behind us had been locked again, so we had to catch another key. Without you to catch it, Lucy did, then we flew up to Fluffy's room, and-"

"And then we were heading to the owlery when we saw Professor Dumbledore," Lucy interrupted. Lucy was already blushing, but she turned beet red at the mention of Fluffy. Hermione bit back a giggle. "All he said was 'Harry's gone after him, hasn't he?' and raced up to the third floor. Then the twins took us to the common room, where they had already helped Neville."

"How did the twins know?"

"They said they were heading down to the kitchens for a post-exams feast and they found Neville in the common room instead."

"Oh, and Harry, you missed it!" Ron exclaimed. "Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup!"

"Because of you, really," Lucy cut in quickly. "Your quick catch against my brother in the Hufflepuff match really helped us in the standings."

"But wait, if I wasn't Seeker, who was?" Lucy's intensifying blush told me all I needed to know. I smiled. "How was it? Easier than catching a flying key, isn't it?"

"Definitely. The Nimbus was amazing," she said, quite starry-eyed as she glanced away with the ghost of a smile on her face. "I figured you wouldn't mind if I borrowed it for a match. Truly the best broom in the world. But I'm more than happy to replace Skye as Chaser. I'd rather be in the middle of all the action fighting for every goal. I didn't like feeling the weight of the game on my shoulders." She turned to face me, eyes serious again, cocking her head slightly. "You're the more natural hero, Harry. I'd follow you into fire, but I don't know if I'd be brave enough to walk into it by myself, for myself."

"I'm sure you would be," I said. "I'm sure all of you would be, but we don't have to worry about that ever happening. Or at least... I hope not."

"Not yet, anyway," Ron corrected, with a wry grin.

Madam Pomfrey shooed them away shortly after that, and I was finally left to my own silent thoughts. I laid back down and closed my eyes, visions of all I had seen the past year dancing through my mind. The Sorting. Lucy's accident in the Forbidden Forest. The troll on Halloween. My first Quidditch match. The incredible Christmas, followed by seeing my family in the Mirror of Erised. The second Quidditch match. Norbert the dragon, and getting caught after saving him. The weeks of shunning and studying that followed. Seeing Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest. And the Stone, and all that came before it. It was quite the year. And I was finally free to rest, it seemed, but I couldn't. My head seemed as if it would burst with all I had learned and experienced. Nevertheless, my eyelids were heavy, and I slipped into a deep and dreamless sleep.

After being released from the Hospital Wing, I couldn't go anywhere without being bombarded with awestruck stares and excited whispers. Dumbledore was right. The whole school _did_ know what had happened between me and Quirrell in the dungeons. Ron and Hermione and Lucy didn't receive nearly the same attention I did, but I think they were glad for that, Lucy especially.

Empowered by his victory over Professor McGonagall's chess set, Ron challenged anyone and everyone who dared to a game of wizard's chess in the common room. It was entertaining to see even seventh-years lose horribly to the freckle-faced first-year. It was even more entertaining to see Professor McGonagall herself lose to Ron, though she put up the best fight of any of the other competitors. 

Hermione didn't really know what to do with herself now that there were no ancient sorcerers to research or riddles to solve or even exams to study for, so she often spent her time asking Percy Weasley about O.W.L.s and what she should do to prepare, even though they were four years away. He took her completely seriously, to everyone's surprise and amusement, and she always left their conversations with a roll's worth of notes.

The twins had started talking to Lucy again, much to her delight, so they often disappeared from the common room, smirking and speaking in low voices, and returning several hours later with a couple new bruises and scorch marks but grinning from ear to ear. I had tried asking Lucy once what they were up to, because I hadn't heard about anybody being pranked as of late, but she just smiled and said not to worry, the twins knew what they were doing. She described it as "filling in the gaps" of her education. 

As for myself, I took all of this in silently. I played Ron a couple of times, but it was honestly more fun just to watch. I listened to Hermione's excited ramblings about the next year's coursework, though I didn't have the slightest clue what a Mandrake was or why it looked so... human. When she wasn't with the twins, Lucy was often sitting beside me watching Ron or listening to Hermione, though she did disappear once. When I asked Hermione where she had gone and if she was okay, Hermione just said the stress of the year had finally caught up with Lucy, and she needed a little while by herself to rest. The twins had nodded their agreement.

"Don't look so worried," Fred had teased. "It wasn't our fault."

"She just needs to be left alone sometimes," George said, "but she always comes back better than ever once she's had a chance to find herself again."

Hermione had bit her lip at this, but didn't disagree. She opened her mouth to say something else, but we were then distracted by the emergence of Dom with his enchanted record player that once belonged to my mother, and the subject was dropped. Lucy returned the next day, looking a little tired but otherwise acting as if nothing had ever happened, so I played along as well and challenged her to a broom race around the school. 

She laughed. "Once I get a Nimbus of my own, sure." She lowered her voice to a whisper. "Just between you and me, I've been saving every single knut and sickle I've been given in an envelope in the corner of my wardrobe back home since my seventh birthday so I could buy my own broom once I made the team. I think this summer will be the year I finally bring it with me to Diagon Alley." Her eyes widened. "Oh, that reminds me! I've been meaning to ask everyone for their birthdays! What's yours?"

"July 31," I answered. "Ron's is in March, and I'm not sure about Hermione's. What's yours?"

She smirked. "That's my secret. And don't try to ask Cedric, because I made him swear not to tell anyone under threat of glitter bomb. He knows not to tell."

I laughed. "Alright, alright, fine, keep your secret. I'll find another way."

"I wouldn't bet on it," she replied as she slipped away to ask Hermione her birthday.

* * *

The night of the farewell feast came altogether too soon. I groaned when we walked in to see the Slytherin colors hanging from the ceiling.

"I'm happy for Archie and Cam, at the very least," Lucy said, "and for the nice Slytherin that helped me with Cedric on Halloween. But everyone else..."

"I hear you," Ron agreed with a disgusted look on his face. It vanished quickly. "But oh well! I'm just excited for the feast!"

We settled into our table and watched as Dumbledore rose at the front of the room. The Hall fell silent.

“Another year gone! And I must trouble you with an old man’s wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are all a little fuller than they were… you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts. Now, as I understand it, the House Cup here needs awarding, and the points stand thus: In fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twelve points; in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two; Ravenclaw has four hundred and twenty-six and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two.”

Everyone in green robes cheered and hollered and stamped. Malfoy seemed particularly excited, slamming his goblet on the table and not seeming to notice nor care that pumpkin juice splashed everywhere.

“Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin. However, recent events must be taken into account.”

It seemed the whole room held its collective breath.

“Ahem. I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. First, to Mr. Ronald Weasley, for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award Gryffindor house fifty points.”

Ron was buried by his brothers, followed by whoever was close enough to jump on the dog pile. The roar from everyone else was deafening. When it finally died down, there was another announcement. 

“Second, to Miss Hermione Granger for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points.”

Hermione sobbed into her arms as another boisterous explosion of noise filled the hall. It went on and on, until finally Dumbledore spoke again.

"Third, to Miss Lucy Diggory for the wise use of gifts both given and innate, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Lucy's blush was so intense she looked near exploding herself. I laughed as the twins nudged her and pointed from her face to her robes and shouted that there was no difference. A third commotion seemed to nearly tear the ceiling off. But he was still not done.

"Fourth, to Mr. Harry Potter for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house sixty points.”

I found myself pulled in many different directions as everyone reached for me and tugged on anything they could grab. I couldn't stop smiling. It was unreal.

When the room finally returned to silence, there was one last announcement. Dumbledore smiled. "There are all kinds of courage. It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom.”

As Neville was buried under what looked like three dozen people all trying to hug him, I noticed the look on Draco Malfoy's face. I tapped Ron and Hermione and pointed, the twins and Lucy following my gaze. We all laughed and cheered even louder. The decorations overhead changed from green and silver to red and gold with a flourish as the plates before us filled with food. I don't recall a merrier meal in my entire life.

After the feast, Lucy, Hermione, Ron, and I happened to be the last ones in the common room. The twins left around midnight, jokingly warning us not to run off and defeat Voldemort without them again. Lucy had retorted that they were the ones who hit Voldemort in the face with snowballs unknowingly, which made us all laugh as the realization dawned on us. 

"I'm going to bed too," Hermione said with a yawn. "I don't want to go home a complete zombie."

"Me neither," Ron agreed. "The last thing I need is my mum fussing over how tired I look. She'll fuss enough over the whole Quirrell situation as is. Good night."

"Good night," Lucy and I called after them. And just like that, we were alone with our backs to the couch and our feet extended toward the fireplace, hers stockinged and mine bare. Finally alone, I could ask the question that had been bugging me for a week at that point.

"Hey, Lucy, I've been wondering."

"Mhm?"

"How on earth did you know that riddle? The one written in runes?"

She laughed breathily. "I was wondering when you'd ask that. Do you remember that book I got for Christmas? From Dumbledore, apparently?"

"Oh," I said, suddenly remembering. "Yeah, I do. It was in there?"

"Not exactly. Well, I got another note on my birthday, with the riddle on one side and a short warning on the front saying I needed to translate and memorize it. I did, and it ended up being useful."

"Life-saving, more like it."

"I suppose," she said in a small voice. She sighed. "I take it you're staying up because you don't really want to go home, either?"

"Yeah, you're right. I don't." I sighed as well. "I have to spend two miserable months with my Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon and cousin Dudley."

"It doesn't sound like you're overly fond of them."

I huffed a laugh. "They're not overly fond of me either. Or of any wizardkind, really. But to be fair, Hagrid did give my cousin a pig's tail on my birthday last year."

Lucy laughed for real at that. "That would leave a less-than-favorable impression, I take it."

"Yeah, it did. Why don't you want to go home?"

"Er... it's nothing. I mean, my family is pure-blood, so I don't have the same difficulties you do. I'm looking forward to spending more time with Cedric, and hopefully the Weasleys. We've lived near the same village all my life, but I've only ever visited the Burrow a couple of times. It should be a good summer, honest."

"But...?"

"But... I don't know. I don't know if Cedric will still want to spend time with me after a year in different houses, or if he does, if we'll be the same as we were last summer. I don't know if the Weasleys will want to spend time with me, or if my parents will even allow it."

"Why wouldn't they?" I didn't need to see Lucy's face to sense the smirk on it. I chuckled. "Right. Fred and George."

She giggled. "Bingo. They don't need magic to make mischief. To be honest, my parents aren't terribly fond of letting Cedric and I wander too far from the house anyway, but when Cedric came home from Hogwarts his first year talking about all of the shenanigans of the twins, my parents didn't want them to, ah, influence me." She giggled again. "If only they knew."

"I'd say you've mutually influenced each other," I posited. "You keep them out of trouble because they're teaching you advanced spells."

"How did you-"

"I may not be as brilliant as Hermione, but I saw that spell you used against the troll on Halloween. I know you didn't learn that from a book. Not to mention all of those unlocking charms you somehow knew down in the dungeons."

I also didn't need to see Lucy to know she was blushing. "In my defense, with a friend like you, I have to be prepared for anything from three-headed dogs to Voldemort himself."

It was my turn to blush. "Sorry."

"Sorry?" she asked incredulously. "Harry, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Think about it. Going home tomorrow, who can say they've helped raise a dragon? Who can say they've defeated a troll? Who can say they've literally walked through fire? Not even Fred and George can say that."

"It doesn't sound too bad when you put it that way," I admitted.

"Because it's not. You don't always seek out trouble, Harry, but whenever it comes, you rise to face it. And I think that's what Gryffindor is all about. Sorry," she said, suddenly shy and blushing again, "I don't know where that came from. I sure sounded like Dumbledore giving a speech there, didn't I?"

"No, Lucy, it's okay," I said, "honest. You're right." I sighed. "I still don't want to go back, but you are right. We're all going back with something new and different from what we had when we came."

"Besides," she added, no longer blushing as she turned to face me, "September will be coming soon enough, and something tells me the Stone was just the beginning."

* * *

The next morning, I was nearly to the train when Hagrid pulled me out of the crowd.

"Before yeh go, I've got you somethin'," he said, holding something behind his back.

"It's not a stoat sandwich for the trip back, is it?" I asked.

He chuckled. "No. Hopefully this is even better."

He pressed a leather-covered book into my hands and gestured for me to open it. When I did, there were several moving wizard photographs of my parents. Tears welled up in my eyes, but I forced them away so I could see the pictures clearly.

“Sent owls off ter all yer parents’ old school friends, askin’ fer photos. Knew yeh didn’ have any… d’yeh like it?”

"I do," I managed after a moment, talking around the massive lump in my throat. "So much. Thank you, Hagrid."

"It was the leas' I could do," he replied. "I told the evil git how to get past Fluffy, after all. It's all my fault."

"Hagrid! Hagrid, he’d have found out somehow, this is Voldemort we’re talking about, he’d have found out even if you hadn’t told him.”

“Yeh could’ve died!"

"But I didn't. It's alright, Hagrid, truly."

He sniffled then, and composed himself. "Be safe this summer, yeh hear? Or else I'll have ter give that porky cousin of yours another tail."

I grinned. "Noted." I hugged Hagrid one last time and scrambled onto the train, finding the car with Ron and Hermione and Lucy. We all leaned out of the window and waved farewell to Hagrid as the train pulled out of the station. 

The train ride passed peacefully and uneventfully, for which I was thankful. I thought Malfoy would come and bother us, but the only Slytherin who visited was Archie, who had heard about Ron's wizard's chess dominance and wanted to see for himself if Ron was as good as everyone claimed. Needless to say, Ron won easily, but it was fun to watch.

When we got off the train, several people, most of whom I didn't recognize, wished me a good summer and said they'd see me next year. Lucy wedged herself between me and Ron as we pushed through the crowded platform; I reckoned she was afraid of getting swept away in the crowd, and probably rightfully so. When we had nearly reached the barrier, I spotted Cedric and waved him over, and he smiled as he extended his free hand for Lucy to grab.

"See you next year, Harry," he said. "We'll have a rematch on the Pitch, yeah?"

I grinned. "Yeah, we will." I smiled at Lucy. "Replace me as Seeker, and we can see a Diggory face-off."

She blushed. "Chaser's all I ever want to play, trust me. Seeker was beyond stressful. See you next year, Harry. And Hermione, be sure to send me lots of-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, because Hermione threw her arms around Lucy and held on tightly, bags and all. Though initially startled, Lucy relaxed slightly and hugged back.

"It's only a couple months, Hermione," Cedric said comfortingly. "You'll see her again before you know it."

"Besides," Ron added, "you'll have to come to my house. All of you."

Hermione let go of Lucy and nodded, wiping away a couple of tears. 

I nodded too. "I'll need something to look forward to." 

The five of us passed through the gateway together. Lucy and Cedric waved at us one last time and headed over to who I assume were their parents. Their father had shoulder-length grey hair and spectacles that glinted when he clapped a hand on Cedric's back. Their mother smiled kindly as she swooped Lucy into a hug. 

“There he is, Mum, there he is, look!” I glanced over to see Ginny Weasley pointing and smiling and blushing. “Harry Potter! Look, Mum! I can see-”

“Be quiet, Ginny, and it’s rude to point.” Mrs. Weasley smiled at us as we approached. "Busy year?"

I nodded vigorously. "Very. Thanks for the fudge and the sweater, Mrs. Weasley."

“Oh, it was nothing, dear.”

"Ready, are you?" 

I jumped and turned to face Uncle Vernon. He looked increasingly angry as he glanced from Hedwig to my suitcases to the Weasleys behind me. In contrast, Aunt Petunia and Dudley looked terrified. I nodded.

Mrs. Weasley either didn't see their expressions or opted to ignore them. "You must be Harry's family!"

Uncle Vernon didn't like that very much. “In a manner of speaking. Hurry up, boy, we haven’t got all day.”

I hesitated. Then something wonderful occurred to me. I turned to Ron and Hermione. "See you over the summer, then.” I looked around for Lucy, but her family had already disappeared.

Hermione stared over my shoulder at my family. "Hope you have - er - a good holiday.”

I grinned. “Oh, I will. _They_ don’t know we’re not allowed to use magic at home. I’m going to have a lot of fun with Dudley this summer.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Well, there you have it! The end of Year 1 for Lucy Everlin Diggory! I hope you had as much fun reading about her adventures as I did writing about them.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me for twenty chapters! Every single like and comment and reader makes this story worth writing, and I appreciate each and every one of you more than words can say. You're truly the best!
> 
> I know a lot of creators on this website in particular divide their Harry Potter fanfics into different books by year, and I also am fully aware that my story is definitely long enough to do that. (Almost 300 pages for Year 1 alone? Yeesh.) But to be quite frank, I wasn't thinking about that when I began this story, so it'll end up being one massive book, Years 1-7 and beyond, so just be prepared for that!
> 
> Thank you again for all of your support! Summer of 1992, here we come!


	21. Feels Different, Doesn't It?

LUCY:

I'll admit that I missed my dog more than my parents when I was at school.

The second Cedric opened the front door, Tuck nearly barreled him over in his barking mad rush to get to me. I dropped to my knees as Tuck immediately began to cover my face in a layer of slobber. I didn't mind, though; I had missed him too.

"I missed you too, pal," Cedric teased, coming over to stroke the top of Tuck's head, "but I think you know Lucy missed you more."

"He was lonely with only your father and I for company," Mum chuckled. "Stand up, Lucy, you'll get your skirt dirty."

I blushed as I rose to my feet, Tuck still making happy barking noises as we stumbled inside. Cedric and I climbed the stairs to our bedrooms, Tuck close behind. 

The familiar scent of Mum's flowers hit my nose as I entered my room; one of her gardens was just below my window, which someone had opened for me already. I plopped my suitcase on my bed and opened it, but I wasn't quite ready to unpack yet.

I glanced around my room. It was the same as I had left it, as I expected, but it just felt different. The rays of the setting sun bathed my pastel yellow walls in a warm glow, but I found myself missing the vibrancy of the red Gryffindor walls, and the way the sunset made them look like they were on fire. My wardrobe in the corner of the room, which I once saw as a guardian protecting me from spooks in the middle of the night, now made my ribs ache with the pain of being crushed under a wardrobe not altogether unlike that one. I rubbed them out of habit and approached my window.

The view hadn't changed at all. My bedroom overlooked the nearby woods that stretched all the way to the village. I turned to the right; I knew the Weasleys' Burrow was that direction. I knew there was no way that I'd be able to see it from my window, but I squinted anyway. I missed the twins already, and Ron as well. I missed _all_ of my friends already. The stillness of my room, once a comforting escape, now seemed to mock me with how alone I was.

I heard a soft tap at the door, and I turned to see Cedric smiling knowingly. "Feels different, doesn't it?"

I nodded, and he joined me at the window, pushing it further open so we could both lean forward out of it ever so slightly.

"Hogwarts still has better sunsets," I remarked.

He laughed. "I agree. But this view isn't bad either."

Tuck came up behind me and nudged my leg, as if to remind me he was still there and still in desperate need of attention after my almost ten months away. I laughed and turned to scratch behind his ear, and he wagged his forked tail in satisfaction. 

"Cedric! Lucy! Dinner!" came a call from down the stairs. 

"Whatever happens, don't mention the Stone," I whispered quickly. "I think it's best if they don't know."

He nodded in silent agreement, and we headed down the stairs. 

"How were exams this year, my boy?" Dad asked as we took our seats around the table.

"Lucy and I both did well," he replied with a smile.

"Were they difficult this year? How was the Ancient Runes exam? Never took that class myself of course, my friends cautioned me against it, but I'm glad you took my suggestion and braved it anyway."

"It was difficult, but Henry and I spent a fair amount of time studying together and both did well."

Just the mention of ancient runes made a small amount of pride swell in my chest. I had never seen Hermione look so impressed with me as she had when I recited the riddle. I definitely planned to make more progress with the book this summer, as soon as I finished my required schoolwork.

"How about Quidditch? Hufflepuff won the Quidditch Cup this year, I'm sure?"

Cedric smiled and nudged me. "You talk about it, Lu. It's your news, after all."

My parents turned to me with raised eyebrows. I blushed and cleared my throat. "Gryffindor won the Cup."

I would have stopped there, but Cedric nudged me again. "There's a little more to the story than that."

I felt myself blushing even more. "I played Seeker in the last match, since Harry was injured. I caught the Snitch."

"Harry? As in Harry Potter?"

I nodded. "He was the team's Seeker, the youngest in a century, I think. But he got hurt two days before the match, so I filled in for him."

"I thought you wanted to play Beater," Mum said.

"I like Chaser best," I corrected in a softer voice, rubbing the back of my neck, "and that's what I'll play next year, since Skye Parkin graduated this year, but I played Seeker during practices as well so the team agreed I should play Seeker."

"Seeker is the most glorious position," Dad asserted. "I never was one for Quidditch, myself, but if I were to play, I would want to be Seeker."

"I was a Gryffindor Keeper in my day," Mum said, "like your friend Henry, Ced. Who's the Gryffindor Keeper, Lucy?"

"Oliver Wood," I replied. "He'll be Captain next year in Skye's absence."

"I met her father once," Dad said, always eager to make connections. "He was on campus the same day I was delivering creatures for Hagrid's birthday party several years ago."

"That's when you met Adalyn for the first time, right, Dad?" Cedric asked.

Dad nodded. "She helped plan the party. She truly had a special connection with Hagrid, it seemed, she was more or less in charge of everything. He certainly appreciates his creatures, that Hagrid."

I thought of Norbert, and for the first time, I didn't want to cry thinking about him. Instead, I smiled. "He really does. Whenever I visited his hut, we usually ended up talking about creatures."

"When did you visit his hut?" Cedric asked. 

I pursed my lips, trying to remember. I obviously couldn't mention the wolfsbane, or Norbert. Or the Stone. Or, well, most of my visits. "I think I went for the first time after a Quidditch match," I said. "The party was too loud for me, so I ducked outside and Hagrid saw me and invited me to his hut for tea. We ended up talking about dragons. Speaking of, Dad, have you had to handle any dragons for work lately?"

I was surprised by my own ingenuity sometimes. In this instance, I could both get the attention off of myself and potentially receive an update on Norbert. Dad seemed to like the idea, too, as he immediately launched into a long-winded story about having to chase a dragon across the English countryside with his entire team before it destroyed a small Muggle village.

"A couple of people saw it before we were able to capture it," he said, "and we started performing memory charms on them, but one of the people was... a special case."

He paused for dramatic effect. After a moment, Cedric asked, "How so, Dad?"

"She wasn't hysterical like the others. We weren't even sure she had seen the dragon at first, so we asked. She nodded and smiled, then she told us that she knew a boy who was turned into a dragon once, but he was changed back."

"Is that even possible?" I asked.

Dad sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Not that I know of. She was likely just old and a bit batty. She seemed to be a Muggle, at any rate."

"What was her name?"

"Ruth Byrne." Dad cocked his head. "Why so curious tonight, Lucy?"

I blushed. "Just that. Curious."

"Oh, and Cedric, that reminds me," Mum said, smirking slightly. "I worked with Elizabeth Chang in the Ministry greenhouses the other day, and she mentioned that her daughter, Cho, was hoping to play Seeker for Ravenclaw once the current Seeker graduates. Do you know when that will be?"

"I think he will graduate next year," he answered.

I nodded. "He will. He's a sixth-year."

"Did you catch the Snitch before him, Ced?" Dad asked.

He nodded. "He put up a good fight. I think Lucy had an easier time with him."

"It was the broom," I said quickly, feeling my blush return yet again. "I borrowed Harry's for the match. He said I could if-" I stopped myself. "He said I could."

I was worried my parents would press, but they didn't. 

"Is that the reason Harry beat you to the Snitch?" Dad asked instead.

I bit my lip before I could say something I regretted. Fire surged within me, but I hurriedly tried to stamp it down. 

"No," Cedric said, "he's truly the better Seeker. I need to practice more this summer."

I wished he had blamed it on the broom, but Cedric, too-honest Cedric, didn't. Dad nodded slowly and returned his attention to his dinner. I slowly nudged Cedric's foot with mine in what I hoped was a comforting gesture. He offered me his best "It's okay" look and busied himself with his dinner as well as a heavy silence hung over the table.

"Just the same," Mum interjected gently after a moment, "Mrs. Chang was wondering if you'd mind helping Cho prepare for her tryout whenever the time comes. According to her, Cho really looks up to you."

Cedric smiled. "Of course, I'd be happy to help. I'll send her a letter sometime."

A few more attempts at conversation were made as we finished, but Mum said we both looked tired and suggested we unpack at least our pajamas and toothbrushes before we turned in for the night. Once in my room, I closed the door behind me and took a deep breath to quench the last of the fire in my belly. 

As I lowered myself on my bed next to my suitcase, I glanced around my room again. Now bathed in candlelight, the pale walls still seemed to glow, but it didn't seem as inviting as it once did. I was more aware of the chill night air blowing through my open window than of whatever warmth the candles might have offered. I was more aware of the stars sprinkled across the dark sky than of the fires burning right in front of me. I was more aware of the energy within me than the attempts to calm it that surrounded me. 

I missed Hermione. I missed Harry. I missed the Weasleys. I missed Neville. I missed Archie. I missed everyone.

Tuck seemed to sense my sadness, as he came and laid his head on my lap. I sighed as I stroked his head and scratched behind his ears. He leaned into my touch, and we remained there for several minutes.

When he retreated to his bed in the corner and curled up in a ball to sleep, I opened my suitcase and set to work, organizing my books on my bookshelf and hanging my robes in the wardrobe. As I did, I spied the envelope with my broom savings buried in the back corner, but I merely shut the door and glanced into my suitcase. My ancient runes book was the only thing left inside. I considered putting it on my bookshelf with the others, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It seemed too special. Instead, I reopened my wardrobe and placed it on top of the envelope. I would grapple with those at a later date, I decided. 

* * *

As much as I missed my friends, I started to rather enjoy summer too. Cedric and I quickly settled into a routine, and being home almost felt normal again, except for the schoolwork. We spent our mornings gardening with Mum and practicing Quidditch before it grew too hot and sunny outside. We spent our afternoons at the kitchen table, toiling away at our summer work and sending letters to friends. I finished my own schoolwork within a couple of weeks, since I had so much less than my poor brother, so instead, I read Cedric's books from his second year and dreamed of the day I'd be able to actually use magic again instead of just reading about it. 

Nothing really remarkable happened until a week before the full moon. Cedric and I were flying in the backyard, tossing golf balls back and forth as "Snitches," when we heard two sets of female laughter coming from the house. I immediately descended and spied in a window to see who it was. 

"It's Mrs. Weasley!" I whispered excitedly. "I wonder if she's brought anyone else." 

"We'd know it by now if she had," Cedric laughed. "I'm sure the twins would have announced their arrival with no shortage of bells and whistles. Do you want to take to the skies again, or are you too excited?"

"No no, let's fly," I said, immediately shooting up again. I turned a loop and let the golf ball fly. Cedric caught it handily and smiled. I smiled back. "It was the broom. You're just modest. You bested Leo Wilde."

"So did you," he pointed out.

"On Harry's broom. It was the only time I've ever caught the Snitch. I'm no Seeker."

"Whatever you say." He tossed the golf ball back, which I managed to catch. He raised his eyebrows in a silent gesture of "I told you so," and I laughed.

"Perhaps we should both give ourselves more credit."

"Perhaps."

Cedric and I were outside for a while longer before Mum came outside and waved us down.

"Mrs. Weasley has just been by," Mum said, "and she invited you two for dinner, and asked if Lucy would like to sleep over with Ginny. I'm assuming that's alright with both of you?"

I barely managed to restrain my excitement as I nodded. "I'd love to! That's alright with you too, Ced, right?"

"Of course!" I knew he didn't know the twins --- or any of the other Weasleys, for that matter --- as well as I did, but he seemed excited nonetheless. "Sounds like I should start working on schoolwork now, while you pack a bag."

"She said that she'll send a couple of her boys down to pick you two up this afternoon," Mum explained, "so you both have time."

I furrowed my brow. "I don't know what to bring to a sleepover, though. I've never been to one."

Cedric took my broom from my hand and offered an encouraging smile. "You can start on that while I put these away and start on some work. I'll come up in a little while and help, okay?"

"Okay! Thanks, Cedric!"

I practically ran up the stairs to my room, trembling with excitement. A sleepover at the Weasleys! It seemed too good to be true. I considered writing to Hermione to tell her the great news, but the task of packing a bag seemed more important at the moment. Besides, I reasoned, I might as well wait until the day after the sleepover, so I could tell her about everything that we did. I pulled my suitcase out from under my bed and set to work as Tuck gnawed on a bone on my sunflower rug.

I opened my wardrobe and tried to decide on which pajamas to wear. My first instinct was to reach for the pajamas my parents had given me for my birthday that had a Welsh Green that breathed stitched flames and walked around the shirt, but since it had short sleeves, I wasn't ready to wear it yet. The scar-free image from the Mirror of Erised still haunted me. I hadn't worn short sleeves since.

That left my long-sleeved pajama shirts. I could wear the yellow and blue striped shirt with matching pants, but I was going to an all-Gryffindor house; it didn't seem right to wear Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff colors, even if the blue was magically altered to be the same shade as my eyes and made them practically glow. I considered the other matching set that was covered in daisies; I wore these most often at Hogwarts, because Lavender had a similar set that had, well, lavender flowers as opposed to daisies. But it still didn't seem quite right. 

At the bottom of my drawer, I found a long shirt that had once belonged to my grandmother, who my parents told me was something of a spitfire in her day. I found myself wondering if that was where I got it from as I studied the shirt. It had a large bear on the front, and two smaller bears that walked in circles around it. I dug a bit deeper and found red and black flannel pants that matched. I decided that those would do, and tossed them into my suitcase.

I scurried down the hall to the bathroom and grabbed my toothbrush and hairbrush. Those seemed important. When I returned my room, I had an important decision to make. I regarded the teddy bear guarding my pillow carefully. Did I dare to bring it?

I had brought Ursa with me to Hogwarts, but she had always remained firmly tucked at the base of my chest. If I had been a Hufflepuff, I might have considered sleeping with her, but being a Gryffindor, it seemed silly. I wondered for half a second what the twins would say if they knew I was even considering sleeping with a stuffed animal at the age of 12. I mean, I was almost a teenager. I was too old for that.

But at the same time, I had slept with Ursa every night since returning from Hogwarts. It helped dull the pain of missing my friends. I picked Ursa up, and held her over the suitcase, wracked with indecision.

Cedric poked his head in at that moment. "How's it going, Lucy?"

I jumped and hid Ursa behind my back. "Good," I squeaked. "I mean, it's going good. It's going _well_ , I mean."

He smiled and entered the room, taking the teddy bear carefully from my hands. "You don't have to hide Ursa from me. I'm your brother. I say you bring her, in case you miss home."

"Did you just read my mind?"

He laughed. "Of course not. I just know my sister." He gently placed Ursa next to my pajamas. "Look, now she'll have friends."

"Yeah," I agreed with a half-hearted laugh. "She will. What else should I bring, Ced? What do you bring when you sleep over at Henry's?"

"You have the basics already, which is great! And well, since Henry lives farther away than the Weasleys, I usually visit for a couple of days. I bring a deck of cards, and my broom, usually, and a book or two. But since you'll only be sleeping over the one night, it's up to you. What does Ginny like to do?"

"I have no idea," I admitted. "I've only ever talked to her when Ron was also around, so we didn't talk about much other than Quidditch- oh! She likes Quidditch, a lot!" I lifted a heavy stack of old editions of _Seeker Weekly_. "Should I bring these? Ron said they don't have a subscription."

Cedric chuckled as he removed the top half of the stack. "That's a great idea, but maybe you should only bring a couple. They're heavy, and we can't use magic."

I set the remaining magazines in my suitcase and sighed. "I miss using magic. It makes everything so much easier. I practically forgot how to braid my hair!"

Cedric chuckled again. "Just a couple more months, Lu. Hang in there. Besides, it's still good to know how to do certain things without magic."

I pursed my lips. "I wonder if the twins would be willing to teach me some of their magic-less tricks. Don't worry, I won't use them against you," I said quickly, "but like you said, it's still good to know, if I lose my wand in the future or something."

"There's wandless magic too. Now _that_ would be good to know, because even if you get disarmed in a duel, you wouldn't be helpless."

"Disarmed in a duel? How?" 

"There's a spell that ejects your wand from your hand. It's really useful if you ever find yourself overpowered in a duel. I learned it my first year from Diego Caplan. It's a good spell to cast nonverbally, though, because there's a way to protect against it if you can see it coming."

I bit my lower lip. "I have some work to do."

"What do you mean?"

"I want to be ready to fight Voldemort next to Harry when he comes back."

Cedric recoiled slightly. 

"I'm sorry," I stammered. "Harry says that instead of You-Know-Who. I wasn't thinking."

"It's okay," he said, relaxing a bit. "It's just a name. What do you mean, when he comes back?"

"Harry didn't kill him. Professor Dumbledore said so. But I want to be ready whenever he comes back again."

Cedric took a deep breath and released it slowly. "I want to tell you it'll be okay and that you don't have to fight that battle, but... when war comes, it comes for all of us. Adalyn was the one who destroyed the Cursed Vaults. Harry was the one who defeated Voldemort the first time, and again this year. And I want to say I'll always be able to protect you from everything that could ever try to hurt you, but I can't. I'll try, I'll try my best, but I don't want to make a promise I can't keep. I mean, you might have..." He lowered his voice to a whisper before continuing. "You might have died in the dungeons, Lu, and I had no idea you were even there."

"I'm sorry," I whispered back, face burning. "I just didn't want to worry you."

"I know, I know." He managed a smile. "And you did brilliantly, and got back just fine, so there was nothing to worry about. But, well, I guess what I'm trying to say is... well, don't worry about growing up too fast. Keep sleeping with Ursa. Keep working on your tickling charms, and practicing the silly flash-bang spells in that book I got you. You'll have plenty of time to learn how advanced magic without actively chasing after it."

I nodded. "I understand."

"Good." He smiled a genuine smile this time. "Now, for tonight, all you have to do is have fun. Think you can do that?"

"Are you kidding?" I laughed. "This is the Weasleys we're talking about. Fun is a given."

I had no idea how right I'd be. 

It seemed the twins had been the ones chosen to come pick us up. Tuck started barking when they knocked on the door, and I ordered him to sit before I opened the door. 

"Hi!" I said, hoping I didn't appear too enthusiastic. But the truth was that I was beyond excited to see them. Fred smiled, but George seemed frozen in place, his gaze locked on Tuck. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to laugh or cry. George was afraid of dogs. "I'll take care of him," I said quickly. "Be right back."

I passed my suitcase to Cedric and grabbed Tuck gently by the collar. "Sorry, boy," I whispered, "but I can't having you scaring one of my favorite people in the world. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

He tilted his head as if he couldn't understand how he could possibly frighten anybody.

"I know," I said, planting a kiss between his eyes. "It's okay. You'll win him over one day. I'll see you tomorrow."

I returned to the kitchen, where the twins were making pleasant small talk. I could tell Mum was mentally running through lists of all the pranks Cedric had mentioned, but she didn't seem to mind. What can I say, the twins are charming when they want to be. They just don't usually want to be.

As soon as we had left out our front gate, I turned to George. "You should have told me you were afraid of dogs!"

He smiled uncomfortably. "Me? Afraid of dogs? Why would I be afraid of dogs?"

"Come off it," I said, reaching up to punch his shoulder. I turned to Fred and Cedric. "What was his boggart?"

"A dog," Fred answered with a cheeky grin. "You nailed it, Cub."

"I knew it! Nothing to be embarrassed about, George. Everyone's got something. Come on, tell me, what's Fred's?"

He smiled for real this time. "It was the biggest troll I've ever seen."

"Aha! You must have been so jealous of us for defeating the one in the bathroom."

He shuddered. "I'll admit that even seeing that one knocked out was pretty horrible. What would yours be?"

I glanced toward my brother, who was absorbing our conversation with an amused smile. "I don't know. What do you think my greatest fear is, Ced?" 

"That's the thing. I don't think it would fit in the classroom. The boggart wouldn't be able to actually become it."

The twins were incredibly fascinated by his answer, but I was confused. I really hoped he didn't mean the full moon. Because yeah, the moon wouldn't fit in a classroom, but would he say that in front of them?

"Is she afraid of elephants?" Fred asked with a laugh.

"Dragons?" George guessed.

"Definitely not dragons!" I protested. "I love dragons. That reminds me, I never did finish telling you the full story of Harry and Hermione's, uh, other midnight escapade."

"That can wait," Fred said. "What'd her boggart be, Ced?"

"Water. I just don't know how a boggart would become that."

"Water?" they asked in incredulous unison.

"Oh, yeah, that makes sense," I said with a nod. "I hate large bodies of water. They scare me."

"Can you swim?" George asked.

"Well enough." I shrugged. "I just hate that you can't see what's beneath you. And the thought of drowning has never been a particularly pleasant one."

"Yeah, well, most people would agree that the thought of dying in general isn't terribly pleasant," Fred remarked. "But most people do like the thought of dogs, so I don't know what George is on about."

"At least I'm not Ron," he laughed. "Have you ever seen him around spiders, Lucy?"

"No! Is he afraid of spiders?"

Fred sighed. "You transfigure a boy's teddy bear into a spider once, and he never forgives you."

"You _what_? Without getting caught? How old were you?"

"Probably six or seven. We were too young to know any better."

"Oh, so it was an accident?"

"No, it was definitely on purpose, but the Ministry didn't care. We were just kids, and they make allowances for incidents that happen before you know how to control magic. Didn't you do something similar?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "Did I do anything that extreme, Ced?"

"Not that I can remember. You were more reserved than I was. I once fell off my broom and somehow transfigured the tree below me into a really springy net so I wasn't hurt. That's probably my wildest story."

I laughed. "I remember that! I was convinced you were going to die, then all of a sudden you bounced right back up into the sky!"

The four of us swapped accidental childhood magic stories until the Burrow came into view. I had forgotten just how large it was. Whereas my family's house was rather plain, square with white walls and dark brown wooden trim and surrounded by a white picket fence and several neatly-groomed gardens, the Burrow was nearly as chaotic as the twins. Just the same, it felt rather like home. 

As we entered the kitchen, the wonderful aroma of what smelled like shepherd's pie hit our faces. Ron and Ginny were sitting at the table, deeply engrossed in a game of wizard's chess. To my surprise, Ron actually glanced up from the game when we walked in.

"Hi, Lucy!" His whole face lit up. "Just in time to watch me beat Ginny!"

"Not if I can help it," she muttered, her face the picture of concentration as she glared at the board. I turned to the twins. 

"I see four of you. Where's Percy?"

"Doesn't leave his room much these days, our dear brother," George said, placing a hand over his heart. "We often do not know if he is dead or alive. Tragic, truly."

"We shall retrieve him by any means necessary, my lady." Fred lifted his hand in a mock salute and grabbed George by the arm before they marched up the stairs. 

"What have I done?" I wondered aloud.

"You've done Mum a favor," Ron answered, not looking up from the board. "Normally she's the only one willing to fetch him for dinner, and she hates going up and down the stairs."

When Ron had beaten Ginny, Cedric challenged him to a game. "After all, I hear you're the pride of Gryffindor as far as chess is concerned."

Ron grinned, the tips of his ears glowing with pride. "You're on. Hey Ginny, why don't you take Lucy to her room?"

"Good idea," she said with a nod, taking me by the hand. "Let's go."

I immediately saw what Ron meant about the stairs; it was a trek. Ginny's room was on one of the lower levels of the house, probably due to the fact that she was both the youngest and the only girl. I wondered if the twins, by that same logic, were on the top level. They didn't seem to be the favorites of the family.

"Here it is!" she said, smiling as she spun in a circle with her arms out. "When Bill's home, he sleeps across the hallway, so we pushed his bed in here for you. Between you and me," she added in a whisper, "Bill smells the best out of all my brothers. It's a good thing you have his bed."

"Good," I whispered back, smiling.

Ginny straightened up. "Well, this is my room. Do you like the Holyhead Harpies?"

"My family likes the Magpies, but it would seem you're a Harpies fan." It was true. Her bedroom was a mess of green and yellow from floor to ceiling, and she seemed to have acquired these colors however she could. Yellow daffodils here, a splash of green paint there, one yellow curtain and one green curtain. She followed my gaze and smiled.

"I got Charlie to enchant those for me last time he visited. Watch!" She clapped her hands twice, and the green curtain became yellow and the yellow one became green. She clapped again, and they switched back.

"That's wicked!" I exclaimed.

"I know!" she replied. "But watch what happens when I clap constantly." She smacked her hands together as rapidly as she could, and the curtains began to switch back and forth and back and forth and back and forth to the point where I couldn't distinguish the green from the yellow. "Keep watching," she grunted, clenching her jaw as she kept clapping. Then I realized what was happening. Where the curtains met, the yellow logo was emerging from a green background. "Do you see it?"

"I do! That's incredible!"

She stopped clapping and flopped backwards onto her bed. "Charlie's good for little charms like that."

"So are the twins. Did they tell you about the haunted house we tried to have?"

She nodded. "Can I help next year? I'm going to be a Gryffindor. I'm a quick learner, though! Having all these brothers helps."

"Sure! I'd love to have you helping. But don't be so sure you'll be a Gryffindor. I thought I was going to be a Hufflepuff for certain, but, well, here I am." I lifted my left trouser leg to reveal my Gryffindor socks.

"Why would you be in Hufflepuff?" she asked, wrinkling her nose. "I mean, all everyone's been able to talk about is how brave you are."

I felt my face grow hot. "What? Really?"

She sat up and cocked her head at me, her coppery hair swishing around her face. "Of course. The twins and Ron don't often shut up about you, from the Forbidden Forest to the troll to the Stone. Even Percy agrees, and he never agrees with any of us about anything anymore." She grinned and jumped off her bed to reach up and touch my flaming cheek. "They did mention the blushing thing, though. I think Ron thinks it's cute."

"What?" I asked again, feeling my blush grow hotter. "Cute?"

"Yeah. I think it makes you look like a tomato, personally, but I guess Ron likes tomatoes. Come on, I think dinner should be ready."

Surely enough, it was, and it was delicious. I found myself once again wedged between Fred and George, and instead of Harry and Hermione sitting on either side of Ron across from me, it was Cedric and Ginny on either side of his. Percy elected to sit next to Cedric, which seemed to be a relief to all of the other redheaded children at the table. It seemed Percy wasn't winning any Weasley sibling popularity contests lately.

Talk around the table primarily concerned Quidditch. Even Percy, to my surprise, seemed incredibly knowledgeable. When I asked him if he played at all, he laughed (actually laughed!) and said that Quidditch expertise was a side effect of sharing a dormitory with Oliver Wood for five years and counting.

After dinner, Percy challenged Cedric to a game of wizard's chess. "Since we've both lost to my brother, I reckon we might be a better match." Ron once again smiled proudly, and the two of them were soon hunched over the board. I wanted to watch, but the twins had other plans.

"Quidditch?" they asked Ron, Ginny, and me in unison.

"After dark? How will we see? And I didn't bring my broom."

"We have Charlie's old broom still," Ginny explained, "so you can use that one."

"You know, Lucy, I'm a little insulted you asked about how we would see," Fred said, pressing something into my hand and ushering me out the front door.

"Try those on," George urged from my other side. "And ask again."

I lifted the glasses to my eyes and blinked hard. I could see everything in perfect clarity.

"Night vision glasses?" I asked. "How? When? I-"

"The Map isn't the only help we have when it comes to getting around after hours," George whispered in a voice only I could hear.

Fred straightened up behind me. "So? Quidditch?"

I beamed. "Yes!"

It was Fred and Ginny against George and me, with Ron as Keeper. We all had our glasses on (conveniently, there were enough pairs for all of us --- I guess the nighttime Quidditch match was a long-standing Weasley tradition) so it was just like playing in the light of day. It was a surprisingly competitive match; Ginny was a talented player.

By the time Mrs. Weasley called us inside, Cedric had been walked home by Percy, who was back up in his room --- his natural habitat, it seemed. We all began to get ready for bed, but the twins had one last thing up their sleeve. While Ginny chased Ron upstairs to try to steal back the blanket he had apparently "borrowed" off of her bed, the twins flagged me down and led me up to their room.

It was something of a war zone. It smelled faintly of smoke, and a mysterious orange haze hung near the ceiling. The floor was littered with long pieces of parchment and open books and various vials and spare parts and powders. I would have gasped at the sight of it, but I feared that breathing too deeply would turn me into a frog, or something along those lines. Their bedroom was a magical lab, no doubt about it.

"Cub, we need your help," George whispered.

"Mum put us in charge of planning Ginny's birthday this year," Fred explained.

"The big one-one."

"Percy's useless, he just sits in his room all day-"

"And Bill and Charlie aren't even in this country-"

"So it's our job."

"And we'd really appreciate your help."

"I'm absolutely willing to help," I agreed immediately. "What do you need me to do?"

"Your job will change as it gets closer-"

"Her birthday is August 11, so we have a little over a month-"

"But for now, we need the scoop on what she wants."

"Cake, brownies, ice cream?"

"What color decorations?"

"That kind of thing."

"You know, girl stuff."

I rolled my eyes. "Girl stuff?"

"We can't ask!"

"It'd be suspicious!"

"We're boys, we don't care about any of that!"

"Alright, alright," I relented with a laugh. "Merlin, I can do that tonight. What next?"

"That's all for now."

"But we'll tell you more as it gets closer."

"Thanks for helping, Cub, we owe you one."

I snorted. "Nonsense, I'm happy to help, you don't owe me anything."

"No, we're being serious."

"Let us pay you back somehow."

"What magic do you want us to teach you?"

"That's the most feasible favor we can repay you with, honestly."

"Unless you want us as your bodyguards or something, of course."

"Which we could definitely do."

"Oh, Merlin, no!" I giggled. "No, it's fine. If you're sure you want to do me a favor..." I thought for a second. A sudden thought occurred to me. "Do you two know anything about nonverbal spells?"

They exchanged a glance, smirking. "No, but we'd love to learn."

"We'd work best as a team," I reasoned. "Instead of you two teaching me new spells, we can work on mastering the ones we already know. Deal?"

"Lucy! Where'd you go?" came Ginny's voice from downstairs.

"Deal," the twins whispered quickly, and we shook hands before I raced down the stairs.

"Sorry about that," I said, entering her room and closing the door behind me. "I had a question for them." Lying on my feet was becoming easier and easier. For a second, I was concerned with how easily it slipped out, but I forced the thought from my mind. She wasn't supposed to know the truth, so what was the harm in lying?

"What about?" she asked, reaching into her dresser for pajamas.

"Oh, they just agreed to teach me some more advanced magic," I replied. "With a friend like Harry Potter, it can't hurt to know more and more."

She immediately spun around. "What's he like? Harry Potter, I mean. Is he really as incredible as everyone says he is?"

"What do you mean?" I sat down on the corner of the borrowed bed and began to untie my shoes.

"He's Harry Potter!" she squeaked. "Is he... well, is he extraordinary?"

I wasn't quite sure how to answer her question. He was, but he was also just Harry. He didn't carry himself like he was Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived. He didn't carry himself like he was Harry Potter, the youngest Seeker in a century. He was just Harry, and I liked him just as he was. "He is," I answered slowly, "in the most ordinary way. He's talented, of course, but he's also kind, and humble, and he works hard, and he takes care of the people he loves."

Her eyes grew starry. "So he _is_ extraordinary."

I nodded. "Yeah, I guess he is."

I didn't end up finding out what kind of desserts Ginny loved that night, but I did have something to report to the twins the next morning when I crept down the stairs.

"Nice bear," George said through a yawn.

"Wrong type of cub, though, Cub," Fred teased. "Did you learn anything, ah, useful?"

"Green and yellow and red," I answered. "Green and yellow for the Harpies. Red and yellow for Gryffindor."

"Excellent," they said in unison. "Anything else?"

"I think, no, I _know_ she wants Harry Potter there."

Fred groaned. "She never shuts up about him."

"Well, last night was no exception," I said as I flopped down on the couch in between them. "She's fallen for him, and she's fallen hard."

"Speaking of Harry, have you heard from him, Lucy?" George asked. "None of us have, and we're getting a bit worried."

I shook my head. "I was going to ask your family if you've heard anything. I haven't gotten any letters, though I've sent a couple at this point."

"Hope he's alright," Fred said. "I'm sure he is. Will you sleep over again tonight, Lucy? We do need more information than green, yellow, red, and Harry."

I laughed. "I don't think I can, but I'll come back soon."

"Why not?" he asked, pouting.

"I have my own brother to spend summer with," I pointed out. "He's not used to being an only child the way I was for the better part of two years."

"Can we trade you for Percy? They seemed to enjoy their game last night. They could entertain each other."

"Tempting," I retorted, "but I do love my brother. I mean it when I say I'll come as often as I can."

George sighed. "Alright, alright. But we'll hold you to that."

I grinned and leaned back into the couch. "You better. This has been the most fun I've had all summer."

"And the party will be even better," George said.

"If," Fred added, "you come back for more information."

"Consider it done," I said as I yawned and rubbed my eyes. "August 11 will be a day to remember."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thank you for sticking with me this far into the story, and I hope you like this official introduction to Lucy's home life, and especially Tuck!


	22. Eleven Years Old

_Once I was eleven years old  
I always had that dream like my daddy before me  
So I started writing songs, I started writing stories  
Something about that glory just always seemed to bore me  
'Cause only those I really love will ever really know me_

_"7 Years"  
Lukas Graham_

* * *

LUCY:

The next time the Weasleys asked if I could spend the night, Mum had to say I was sick and hadn't left my room in a couple of days. It was true; it was the day before the full moon, and now that I was home and had no classes to attend, I had no reason to leave my room. Mum placed charms on the curtains to block out all light and on every wall to block out all sound. I spent my time either pacing around the room or curled in a ball on top of my bed. I was relieved to not need to go to classes or attempt to hide how truly awful I was feeling, but I missed the words of comfort Hermione would offer in a whisper every month to get me through the days. And I was bored, horribly bored, but being unable to use my wand as a light, I had nothing to do but pace back and forth and attempt to sleep. 

When night fell, I couldn't help it anymore. I needed to leave my room. I needed to see the stars. I needed to feel the cool night air on my skin, my bare skin, scarred though it was. I waited until I suspected my whole family would be asleep, then crept down the hallway and made my way down the stairs silently. My time with Fred and George had paid off; I didn't make a sound. I slipped out the front door, and took a deep breath. I was free. I had nearly reached the front gate when I heard the front door open behind me.

I wanted to turn around and see who it was, but I didn't want to risk blowing my sleepwalking cover. So I approached the gate, and intentionally bumped into it. I reached down and pretended to fumble with the latch as the footsteps approached. I smelled books and soil and evergreen-scented soap, and surely enough, it was Cedric's hand that reached forward and undid the latch for me. I wasn't sure what to do for a moment. Cedric was letting me out instead of trying to bring me back? But, like I hoped any sleepwalker would do, I walked through the gate without looking back. I heard the gate close behind me, and Cedric's footsteps following me. I kept staggering forward, not sure where to go or what to do. So I kept walking forward, across the dirt road and across the meadow that separated our house from the woods. I stopped at the edge of the forest, and when I heard Cedric stop too, I turned and reached my hand out, keeping my face a perfect blank as he took it. He seemed both amused and touched by the gesture.

"Come on, Harry," I said, turning back to the forest and leading Cedric in, "Hagrid is waiting for us."

I had been debating whether or not to tell Cedric about Norbert for a while. I had told the twins, as promised. They thought it was wickedly cool that I had actually helped raise a dragon, and they were amazed that I had managed to save the Invisibility Cloak _and_ sneak into their dorm _and_ borrow the map _and_ return everything without getting caught. But they didn't worry about me the way Cedric did. Cedric was my brother after all, the twins were my friends. Cedric was my brother after all, I decided, and he deserved to know. I didn't want my mother overhearing anything I said, but she'd never overhear us here and Dad was away on a work trip. Now was the perfect time to come clean, while asleep of course. 

"I hope he has another dragon for me!" I exclaimed.

Cedric sounded amused. "Another dragon for you?"

"Well, Norbert wasn't really for me, but I did help a lot. That was one of the best things to ever really happen to me, you know?"

"Really?" Now Cedric was genuinely curious. "I'm sorry, Lucy, my memory is failing me. Who's Norbert?"

I fought the urge to laugh. Cedric was really adopting the role of Harry in this stage play I was performing. "Norbert is the dragon Hagrid won from somebody just this last April. I happened to be walking by his hut when he was heading up to the library to look for books about how to raise him, but based on the times my father's brought them home from work, I knew what to do. I put the egg in the fire, and I think I was still helping when you and Hermione and Ron came. But he got too big, so we had to get him out of Hagrid's hut without getting anyone in trouble. You and Hermione successfully got Norbert away, but you got caught on the way down." I turned around and cocked my head. "You believe me, right?"

I could tell Cedric was still processing what I had said, but he seemed convinced. I had tried to include enough details to make it believable while excluding details like the Invisibility Cloak. "I remember now." I turned back around and kept walking. He cleared his throat. "Do you actually think Hagrid would get another dragon?"

I shook my head sadly. "Probably not." I stopped. "I don't see him. Do you?"

"I don't see him either. Do you want to head back to the house? The castle, I mean?"

"I'm going to wait for Hagrid, just a while longer. You can go back up to the castle if you want."

Cedric sat beside me. "It's okay. I don't want to leave you out here alone."

"Okay." I sat down a little too heavily, directly on a very sharp rock. "Ow!" 

"You alright, Lu?"

"Lu?" I asked, reaching up to rub my eyes. I figured having one's arse impaled by a rock would be enough reason to wake up, so that's what I pretended to do. "Only Cedric calls me Lu." I opened my eyes again and glanced up as Cedric sat beside me.

He grinned. "Good morning, sleepwalker."

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Good morning. What time is it?"

"Probably about midnight. I couldn't sleep, so I was reading on the couch when you, ah, left. I wanted to see where you'd go."

I glanced around. "Looks like the forest to me."

"What was your first hint?" he teased.

I smiled. "Very funny."

"Do you want to head to the house, since you're not actually waiting for Hagrid?"

"It's nice out here, honestly." I rested my head against Cedric's shoulder. "I always get so hot before the full moon. My room is dark and quiet, but there's nothing quite like the night air, you know?"

"I understand," he replied. "Besides, you can't see the stars from your room when the curtains are charmed shut, can you?"

"No, I can't. I do love the stars. Hey, that's another thing that never changes, like you said before we left. The stars are always there, even if we can't see them."

"You're right, Lu. I hadn't even thought of that." He wrapped a gentle arm around my shoulders and rubbed his hand up and down my arm. "So, Norbert?"

I grinned sheepishly. "I guess when I was talking to Harry, I was actually talking to you, huh?"

"I guess so."

"It's best that you know," I said. "I was planning on telling you this summer anyway. I would have told you sooner, but I didn't want anyone finding out the truth about Harry and Hermione because it would get Hagrid in trouble. It _was_ illegal."

"You did always have a soft spot for dragons," he chuckled. 

"Someone has to, since you're scared of them," I retorted.

Cedric shuddered, and not from the cold. "You know I've never been fond of fire. Dragons are just sentient matchboxes."

I laughed then, and I honestly couldn't remember the last time I laughed the day before a full moon. 

* * *

_The girl was breathing heavily by the time she reached the forest. She had sprinted all the way from her house, consumed by a restless and manic energy. She ran and ran and ran until the first moonbeams filtered through the trees. She screamed in pain as the transformation began, and when it was over, the wolf let loose a chilling howl before taking off in the direction of a snapping branch._

_The werewolf knew these woods. It had been many months since it was last there, but it knew the woods. It knew where little animals liked to sleep, and where they liked to hide if they happened to be awake when the prowl began. The wolf went hungry in the Shrieking Shack and the Forbidden Forest; in these woods, it was closer to a true werewolf than anywhere else. It was wild. It was free. But at what cost, she would wonder in the morning, once the night was behind her? At what cost?_

* * *

The last week of July passed in a whirlwind of activity. I had started growing a red-and-gold flower for Neville, one of Mum's unique creations, but when the time came to try to send the plant, I hadn't the slightest clue to get it to him in on time, let alone in one piece. Furthermore, I needed Malachi, our owl, to return quickly enough to be able to send Harry's birthday gift the very next day... not that anyone had heard from him. His gift was a glass jar with a model Nimbus 2000 inside that swirled around cotton ball clouds. I was worried about the safe transport of his gift as well, but I was worried about _him_ primarily. We all grew more and more worried as the summer progressed, but I turned my worry into productivity as best I could.

Just the same, I managed. Neville's flower fit nicely in a small mug that Cedric and I filled with soil. Mum strengthened it with a couple of charms so it wouldn't break as easily as a typical mug, and we tied both the flower and the accompanying letter around Malachi's legs late on the night of July 29. Thankfully, he had returned by the time I woke up the next morning, and after a day of rest, he was ready to deliver Harry's gift as well. When he returned without the jar or the letter, I had hope Harry had received them both, but the lack of response still disturbed me. 

I voiced my concern at the Weasleys' house later that day, as I helped them assemble their own gift for Harry around a table in Fred and George's room. They all spoke at once, which made us all laugh in spite of the gravity of the situation.

Ginny said, "He'll be okay, he's Harry Potter!"

Ron said, "I know, I'm worried too."

Fred said, "Don't worry, Cub, we'll figure something out."

And whatever George said was lost in the commotion of the other three, but whatever it was made Ginny giggle.

"We'll wait and see what happens after we send this," Fred said once we all stopped laughing. "Then we'll figure out what to do."

"Will we need to save Harry Potter?" Ginny asked, making her brothers all laugh again.

"I'm sure he's alright," I assured her, fighting hard not to laugh as well, "but I think we're all at least a little worried. He seemed excited to send us letters and the like."

"Yeah, and you didn't see the way his family acted at the station," Ron said, looking increasingly troubled. "And you didn't hear what he said about them. He said that they didn't know he wasn't allowed to use magic over summer, as if he might need to use it to threaten them, or something."

I rubbed the back of my neck gradually, not knowing what to say.

George taped the last corner of the gift and tossed the box in the air. "I think this is ready to go. Want to go fetch Errol with me, Gin?"

She nodded, and the two of them disappeared down the stairs. As their footsteps faded, Fred turned to me. 

"If we don't hear back from Harry over the weekend," he said in a low voice, "we're going to go get him."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "How? Don't get me wrong, I want to rescue him too, I'm just as worried as you are, but how?"

"I said we should take our brooms," Ron said.

"We'll need to bring his school things too, though," I pointed out.

Fred grinned. "We?"

"Oh, come on, you can't honestly expect me to not go with you, I-"

"I know, I know," he interrupted. "We were hoping you'd come with us. George will be glad you are. We just need a plan."

"And you think _I_ have one?"

Ron and Fred looked at me expectantly.

I sighed. "How do we get from here to Little Whinging without being seen in something large enough to fit five people and his school stuff?"

A grin spread across Ron's face. "Dad's car."

Fred's eyes widened, and he pumped his fists in the air. "Yes!"

"Oh no," I muttered. "You mean the flying one you showed me last week?"

They nodded excitedly. 

I pursed my lips. "I think it's our best option. Not a good one, but our best one."

"It's settled, then," Fred whispered, a glitter of mischief in his eyes as he rifled through the trunk at the end of his bed. He spread a map out across the table, shoving the leftover wrapping paper onto the ground. He grabbed a quill off of his desk and drew a straight line from Ottery St. Catchpole to Little Whinging. "Sunday night, if we haven't heard anything, we fly to the rescue."

About an hour before midnight on Sunday, I was puzzling out a page of the ancient runes book --- so far, I was about halfway through a biography of Godric Gryffindor, and I was guessing that the other founders of Hogwarts would follow --- when I heard a persistent tapping on my window. I jumped up, slipped behind the checkered red curtains, and inched the window open, hoping it would be the Weasleys in their flying car. Instead, it was Errol, who dropped a note into my hands before flying away.

I closed the window and scanned the scrap of paper.

_Our parents are still awake. Can't get out. We'll go tomorrow night - Dad's working anyway._

I sighed. The fun would have to wait. I blew out the candles in my room and crawled into bed, but I couldn't sleep. My head hurt with how worried I was. About Harry's safety, about the last-minute details of Ginny's party, about the year ahead, about the approaching full moon.

I rose and pushed the curtains all the way open. The moon was little more than a sliver in the sky, but I knew it was growing. I knew that in less than two weeks, I would return to the woods and try to survive. So close to Ginny's birthday --- I hoped I would be okay enough to enjoy the party. I knew what the twins had in store; I knew I would most likely be overwhelmed by the various, ah, spectacles they had arranged.

Just the same, I was terribly excited. Bill and Charlie were both hoping to take the weekend off to surprise their sister, and I was looking forward to meeting them. And I knew Harry would be there, since we would go fetch him the next night. There was much to look forward to, even with the knowledge that the full moon would follow.

I don't know how long I stood there, tracing constellations in an attempt to calm my thoughts, but I was jerked from my reverie by running footsteps in the hallway. For a second, I stood frozen in place in terror, but when I saw the Gryffindor scarf hanging on the back of my door, I took a deep breath and opened my bedroom door.

I cringed as a retching sound met my ears. Cedric emerged from his room the same time I did, and we ran down the hallway to see what was going on.

"I'll get you a glass of water, Mum," Cedric said quickly as I pulled her hair back from her face. She started to say something, but she clutched the toilet bowl again. I held my breath and closed my eyes, trying my hardest not to flinch or show any sign of any of the disgust I was (obviously) feeling. Cedric returned soon with the water, and we helped Mum to her feet before handing her the glass. Dad stumbled down the hallway, looking as if he were still half-asleep, but his eyes widened as he too lunged for the toilet bowl.

"I'll get the water this time," I squeaked, running down the stairs and into the kitchen. I hurriedly filled a glass at the tap and had barely made it back up the stairs when Cedric started throwing up. I handed Dad the glass and sprinted down the stairs again.

We reasoned pretty quickly that it was food poisoning. I was the only one not affected, so I spent the night running up and down the stairs fetching glasses of water and cool towels for the rest of my family. It was truthfully one of the longest nights of my life.

Mum and Dad felt better first, so I led them to their bedroom and closed the door before returning to Cedric, whose face was still drawn and pale. I sat beside him and rested my head on the bathroom counter.

"Is there anything I can do to help, Ced?" I asked softly.

He shook his head. "It's okay. I'm okay. Thank you."

"It's not and you're not," I argued, "but I'm right here until you are."

He managed a small smile. "What do you think it was?"

"Must have been the strawberries. I didn't eat any." I shuddered. "I hate strawberries."

"Must have been," he replied before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

"That's it," I whispered. "Just breathe. It's okay. Just you and me."

"You and me," Cedric repeated, taking another deep breath.

I rose shakily on my tired legs. "I'll go get you a glass of water, alright?"

He managed a nod, rubbing the back of his neck. When I returned, he opened his eyes and accepted the glass. "Thanks."

"Of course." I pushed his sweaty hair off of his face. "Are you feeling well enough to try to sleep, Ced?"

"I don't know," he admitted. 

"That's okay," I said. "I'll stay up with you."

"But you've been up all night-"

"So have you. I'm used to it. I don't mind, honest. I'm not leaving."

He didn't try to protest. I eyed the amount of water in his glass. "Try to drink less," I suggested. "If you drink too much too quickly, you'll get sick again. I know it helps your throat feel better, but do the best you can, okay?"

He nodded sullenly. My heart twisted. He looked so miserable. He shivered on the cold tile, so I dashed off to his room and grabbed a bright yellow blanket out of his drawer. I returned to the bathroom and wrapped it around his shoulders. 

"Thank you," he managed. "I'm sorry."

"What? Why? What for?"

"This," he said, gesturing in a circle.

"Ced, I do this to you every single month. I'm happy to return the favor. Don't apologize again or I might just... oh, I don't know, I can't threaten you without magic, I'm just sorry you're sick and I wish I could make it better."

"You feel like this every month?"

I shrugged. "Not specifically like _this_ every month. When I took the wolfsbane Professor Snape made, I felt like this for a few days. But I don't feel very great in general for about a week before the full moon."

"How does it feel, Lu?"

"Is now really the best time...?"

"I want to know. I want to think about something other than how I feel."

"Let's talk about something happier, then, Ced," I insisted. "What about Henry?"

"What about him?"

"Oh, I don't know, he always makes you feel better."

He smiled. "He _is_ my best friend. I would hope so."

"See? Just thinking of him made you smile."

"I guess you have a point."

"Tell me about the last letter you got from him."

"Hm... he complained about summer work. He said his little sister is trying to convince their parents to get a pygmy puff."

"How old is she?"

"I think she's eight, so she'll enter Hogwarts in my seventh year and your fifth year."

"What's her name?"

"Gretchen. Any more questions?"

"Would _you_ want a pygmy puff?"

"Oh, definitely. They're adorable. I'm guessing you do?"

"Definitely. What color would you want yours to be?"

"Yellow."

"Typical Hufflepuff," I teased. "Boy or girl?"

"Doesn't matter to me."

"What would you name it?"

"A boy, Apollo. A girl, Daffy, short for daffodil."

"Apollo?"

"God of the sun. It makes sense."

"That does make sense, yeah, I wouldn't have thought of that."

"Would you want a pygmy puff?"

"I would take one of every creature in existence if I could, you know that."

"Even a dragon?"

"Especially a dragon."

"What would you name a dragon?"

"Not Norbert, that's for sure. Something cool."

"Like what?"

"Oh, I don't know. Something related to fire."

"'Something related to fire' is very specific."

I laughed. "Cedric? Being sarcastic? You must either be feeling a lot better, or you're definitively losing it."

"I get punchy when I'm tired," he explained with a chuckle. "But I am feeling better."

"Good." I rose to my feet and extended a hand. "As fun as you are when you're punchy, you would probably rather sleep in your own bed than on the bathroom floor."

"I'd have to agree," he said, taking my hand and standing up. He blinked rapidly a couple of times, and I was worried he'd faint, but he straightened up and pulled the blanket around his shoulders. "No need to look so worried, Lu. It takes more than a little food poisoning to keep me down."

I nodded, reaching forward for a hug. He hugged back, and we walked quietly down the hall to his room. Once the door was shut behind him, I slipped into my own room and sighed. _That_ night had gone far differently than I had expected. Instead of flying across the country to rescue Harry Potter, I spent the night running up and down the stairs to help my puking family. I was exhausted, but I didn't want to sleep, just in case my family needed me again. Instead, I grabbed my ancient runes book and tiptoed downstairs, settling on the couch near our front window and pulling a blanket around my shoulders.

I don't remember falling asleep, but I awoke to a loud knock on the door. I jumped up to answer it before any of my other family members were awakened.

"Cub? What happened?"

"You look awful."

I rubbed my eyes and ran a hand over my hair; there was more hair out of my braids than in them, it seemed. "You should be used to that by now. The rest of my family had food poisoning all night," I explained through a yawn. "I was the only one not throwing up every five minutes, so I was just trying to take care of everyone else."

"In that case, we'll take care of Harry," George said. "You focus on your family. We'll tell Mum you'll come over tomorrow. You coming over will probably help save us from getting in trouble for borrowing the car, honestly, she doesn't get as mad at us when you're around."

I cocked my head. "She gets mad at you?"

Fred laughed. "See? Case in point." He reached forward and ruffled my already-wild hair. "Get some sleep, Cub. We'll send you a coded message tomorrow when we get back with Harry." 

"Coded message?"

"You'll see what we mean. See you tomorrow!"

When they had hopped over the gate and headed in the direction of the Burrow, I grabbed my book and trudged up to my room, dropping off to sleep again the second I hit my bed. I woke up an hour before sunset and made my way downstairs in a sleepy daze. Cedric was half-asleep and reading a book on the couch, Mum and Dad playing a game of chess at the kitchen table. No one acknowledged me, so I made my way outside and started pulling weeds in the garden. It was calming, which was good; as the sun sank lower and lower, I grew increasingly worried for the rescue mission that would be taking place that night. I wanted to go, but the twins weren't coming to pick me up, and I knew there was no way my mum would let me leave after the night we'd all had. Sneaking out wasn't an option, either.

The night passed in a hazy blur. Having slept the entire day, I couldn't sleep at all that night, so I decided to write letters instead.

I wrote to Hermione first, telling her that, as I was writing, the Weasleys were going to get Harry and explaining why I wasn't with them. I wrote to Neville next, saying I hoped he had a good birthday and telling him about Mum's latest plant hybrid. He loved hearing about those. My last letter for the night went to Hagrid. I told him how excited I was to see him again in a month and promised I'd ask about Norbert when I saw Charlie.

The next morning, we were all starving and ready for breakfast. Halfway through my stack of pancakes, Hedwig burst through the open window and dropped a scrap of paper onto my lap.

"Thanks, Hedwig," I said, stroking her feathered head gently. She affectionately leaned into my hand and cooed. "I missed you too." She flew off as I opened the note. 

"What does the note say, Lucy?" Dad inquired.

"'Hopefully you recognized the owl, because there's someone here who really wants to see you. Round of Quidditch after lunch?'" I grinned. "Hedwig is Harry's owl. He must be safely at the Weasleys' now. Is it okay if I go?"

"Of course," Mum answered immediately. "I know how worried you've all been for him. You can go as soon as the gardens are weeded."

Needless to say, I had never weeded so quickly in my entire life. I devoured a quick lunch before I headed off to the Burrow with my broom over my shoulder and a spring in my step. My timing couldn't have been better; four very tired-looking boys were heading out of the front door with their brooms as well.

"What happened, boys?" I teased. "You all look terribly tired. Bad strawberries for you, too?" I glanced toward the garage, where the blue Ford Anglia was safely on the ground. "I'm impressed, the car is all in one piece. Miracles do happen."

"Would have been more fun with you, Cub," George said with a sigh, "but yes, aren't you proud of us? All here by sunrise without a single scratch!"

While it was true that no one had gotten hurt, I couldn't help but notice how horribly thin and worn Harry looked. But still, he smiled when he saw me, and I smiled back. "Good to see you, Harry. I'm glad you're safe."

"I'm glad I'm here!" he exclaimed as we walked side-by-side to the Quidditch spot. "You wouldn't believe what it's been like since my birthday. It's okay now," he added quickly, "now that I'm here, but I didn't know if I would ever get here." Harry then went on to tell me all about Dobby and the failed business deal and even the bars on his bedroom window. I was horrified, but I tried to stay calm for his sake. Like he said, it was okay. He was here and not there. And I knew from experience that there are few things worse than overreacting to an already-horrible situation, especially one that has already been resolved.

Since Harry's broom was so much faster than ours, we ended up spending more time taking turns on his broom than actually playing Quidditch. It was fun, for sure, but the relief of knowing Harry was safe at the Burrow was the best feeling of all.

* * *

I spent a lot of time at the Weasleys' the next week, sleeping over several nights as the final party preparations fell into place.

I slept over the night of August 10. Mr. Weasley wasn't getting off of work until noon, so my job was to keep Ginny upstairs and distracted until he arrived and activated the Portkeys for Bill and Charlie. The twins brought her breakfast as soon as I yelled down the stairs she was awake, singing a birthday song they had written themselves that rhymed her name with "winny" and "ninny." I think she liked it, or at least what little she could hear with her hands clamped over her ears.

Ron took his turn next and let her beat him at wizard's chess. Knowing he had let her win, she demanded a rematch, which he won handily. She was about to demand a third game when Harry entered and she went silent, blushing as red as her hair. He asked if she wanted to play chess with him, which she accepted. In all honesty, she would have won the game, but two moves before she could have checkmated his king, Harry commented that she was nearly as good a chess player as Ron was and she was so frazzled she gave the whole game away.

Once they left, I gave her my gift, which was a collage of all of the Holyhead Harpies features in the past five years of _Seeker Weekly_. She was extremely excited, and we talked about Quidditch until Percy came up to get her.

He smiled a rare smile, and for once, he didn't have a prefect badge on. Instead, he sported a red Gryffindor t-shirt; I didn't even know he owned t-shirts, honestly. "Happy birthday, Ginny," he said. "Your birthday celebration awaits downstairs."

She beamed and raced down the stairs. Percy and I lingered behind her for a moment, watching her red hair fly behind her as she went.

"In case the rest of my family forgets to say this in the excitement of the day," he said softly, "thank you for all of your help. We try to be the best brothers we can, but there are some things only sisters can really do. I'm glad you've been here so often. Ginny needed a friend, and you're a good example."

I blushed. Percy gave compliments sparingly, so I knew he really meant it. "I was happy to help," I stammered. "I just hope she enjoys it."

A delighted squeal could be heard from the bottom of the stairs, followed by running footsteps. "Bill! Charlie! You're here!"

Percy smiled. "I think she already does. Let's go."

I soon learned that I enjoyed Weasley birthday parties a lot more than Gryffindor Quidditch parties. Cedric was there too, as were a few extended family members who were available. I followed Cedric around at first and talked to Bill, who was very much interested in the Stone. He had played a pivotal role in helping Adalyn Benson with the Cursed Vaults, and he was a curse breaker for Gringotts, so he certainly knew his way around the topic. But when he and Cedric began discussing a complex new discovery in the field of transfiguration Bill had learned about in Egypt, I made my way over to Charlie, who was entertaining Ginny and Ron with tales of dragons from the sanctuary in Romania. When he saw me, his eyes lit up and he beamed.

"You're the other dragon enthusiast here, aren't you?" he asked.

"I think so," I chuckled. "I was definitely Norbert's favorite, but don't tell Hagrid. How is he doing, by the way?"

"He's fantastic! The whole team loves him, and we all like to think he loves us too. He's one of the most friendly dragons I've ever seen. How did you do it?"

"I talked to him a lot while he was in the egg," I said, blushing slightly. "I know it sounds silly-"

"Not at all!" he exclaimed. "It makes perfect sense! Dragons are meant to be wild, but I think we'd see far fewer villages attacked by wild dragons if we tried doing what you did with more eggs before releasing them from the sanctuary."

I nodded enthusiastically. "As long as it doesn't interfere with their ability to hunt, I don't see a downside to making dragons less hostile toward humans."

"Exactly! Well, Ginny, while we're on the topic, I suppose now's a good time to give you your gift. Close your eyes and hold out your hand." She obeyed, a wide smile on her face as she waited. Charlie reached into his pocket and drew out the smallest Hungarian Horntail I'd ever seen. He placed it in her hand, and she gasped when she opened her eyes. "Don't panic! It's not a real dragon. We've been experimenting with smaller models to see if they can be charmed to accurately mimic dragon behavior. This is one of our more refined prototypes of the Hungarian Horntail. I hope you like it."

"I love it!" she squealed, shoving it into my hands so she could hug her brother. "Thank you, Charlie!"

Harry came over then, half-smirking and half-laughing. "The twins sent me over here to grab Ginny for her first surprise. And they'll need your help, Charlie."

Charlie drew his wand and adopted the same look of mischief Harry had. "I'm ready. This should be fun."

The first surprise was a small fireworks display that vaguely resembled a dragon. Charlie was needed to actually set them all off properly, since the twins couldn't use magic, but the entire party was impressed nonetheless with the twins' genius. Several more surprises followed that afternoon, and I swear I never saw Ginny stop smiling. She seemed on top of the world.

When her Hogwarts letter came, the party was kicked up a notch. The firewhisky came out for those of us of age, and the butterbeer flowed for those of us that were not. Ginny's cake wished her a very loud happy birthday, and it was truly one of the tastiest treats I had ever put in my mouth.

I slipped outside with Harry and Ron a while later. The sun was setting; Mum and Dad had said Cedric and I could walk home after dark as long as we had at least two other people with us. The twins, Ron, and Harry had all willingly volunteered, so Cedric and I planned to make the most of it and go home as late as possible. But in the meantime, I wanted to be alone with my friends my own age for a bit.

"Your family is the best, Ron," Harry said. I laid back in the grass and locked my fingers behind my head, and the boys on either side of me did too. "Dudley was the only person who remembered my birthday this year, and all he did was mock me for not getting any presents. Say, that reminds me, when's your birthday, Lucy?"

"I don't have one," I replied. "Can you imagine me being the center of attention at a party like this?"

"No," they admitted in unison.

Harry laughed. "It's funny to imagine how red you'd be, though. Gryffindor red, I reckon."

"I'd like to see it," Ron said, and I was reminded of what Ginny had so cryptically mentioned a month ago about how Ron thought my blushing was cute. "I should find it out just to throw you a party like this just to see how red you turn."

"Oh, Merlin," I sighed. "That sounds like my worst nightmare."

We all laughed, then lapsed into comfortable silence. We watched as the sky turned purple then gave way to a deep navy blue. When the stars began to emerge, Harry pointed up at the first visible constellation.

"You like the stars, don't you, Lucy?" he asked. When I nodded, he traced the constellation with his finger. "Which one is that again?"

I was halfway through my explanation when three owls dropped letters onto our chests. Holding them up so the glow of the house behind us illuminated the words, we scanned our second-year booklist. Another owl arrived while we looked at those, dropping a letter from Hermione on Ron's lap. He scanned it quickly.

"She said she'll be at Diagon Alley on Wednesday," he said, "and that she's excited to see all of us."

"I can't wait for the four of us to be together again," I remarked, leaning back against the grass and hugging my letter to my chest.

The boys "Mhm"ed their agreement, and we watched more and more stars peek through the dark curtain of the night sky.

* * *

"Ready, Lu?" came a voice at the door. "Lu? Where are you?"

"In a second!" I squeaked from inside the wardrobe.

"What are you doing?" Cedric asked as he entered the room to see where I was. 

"Just getting something in order," I replied, filling the pouch on my hip with all of the money I had saved for so many years. I shook the last pieces out and straightened up. "Ready!"

He raised an eyebrow in silent question.

I blushed. "I... there's just something I plan to do in Diagon Alley today. Something special. I-I just forgot about it until Harry asked about it at the party and I forgot until just now and-"

"You don't have to look so nervous, Lucy," he chuckled. "You didn't do anything wrong. What are you getting?"

"You'll see," I said with a smile as we headed down the stairs.

Dad was waiting on the porch, a small pouch of his own in hand. "So, just to review the plan, since your mother and I both have work today, I'll apparate you two to Diagon Alley, then get Lucy's medicine before heading to work." He handed Cedric the pouch and placed his other hand on his shoulder. "You two can use this to Floo back here once you're done shopping. You have the money you'll need already?"

Cedric nodded, and Dad beamed. "Alright! Grab my arms, then, very tightly, and don't let go until we're there."

Cedric and I complied immediately. I shut my eyes tightly and waited for the jolt.

It felt as if my body was being squeezed through a pipe. I hated the sensation, but I found myself smiling when we landed in the sunny cobblestone street. 

"Alright, I'm going to go get Lucy's- oh, Ced, look!" Dad said. "There's Henry and his father!"

Cedric immediately took off in their direction, arms flung wide for an excited hug. Dad hurried away in the other direction, and I was soon swallowed by the crowd. I knew I should follow Cedric, or look for the Weasleys or Hermione, but I realized this may be my one chance to find out what made Dad's wolfsbane better than the school one. I decided to follow him instead.

Most of the people around me paid me no mind as I weaved through the crowd. I followed Dad at a distance down the busy street, but I hesitated when he slipped into Knockturn Alley. Just looking at it sent a shiver down my spine. Whereas Diagon Alley gleamed in the sunshine, Knockturn Alley seemed like little more than shadows and dingy buildings. I glanced down at the bulging pouch on my belt loop, and quickly stuffed it into a pocket. If I was going in, I wasn't going to be displaying my life savings for the world to see. 

In the five seconds I looked down, my dad had disappeared. I gulped and plunged into the alley, trying to keep my head down and my wits about me. Everyone around me was speaking in low and gravelly voices, as if no one was supposed to hear a word said. One voice, however, seemed different from the others. I pressed my back to a brick wall and listened. It was definitely my father.

"You do have it, don't you?"

"Half a supply," a gruff voice replied.

"I need a full supply! It doesn't work without the week's worth!"

"What do you need it so much for anyway, Diggory? You got a werewolf on the job site or somethin'?"

"Don't use my name," Dad growled in the most sinister voice I had ever heard him use. "I work for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, and you have no reason to know why we need wolfsbane potion, Fletcher."

"Oh, so you can use my name but I can't use yours? Whoa, whoa, no need to pull your wand. Do you want the wolfsbane or not? Because you can get it at St. Mungo's, but we both know how expensive they are compared to me."

Before I could hear my father's response, I felt a rough hand on my shoulder. "Lost, little girl, or bait?" I whirled around to see a wizard sneering under a frizzy black beard. "So? Which are you?"

"Neither," I stammered, backing away slowly. "Just looking for the way out."

"This is no place for little girls," he said, approaching me again. "But since you're here, why don't you stay a while?" 

When he lunged forward, I took off running, not caring which direction I was headed as long as it was away. I ducked around a corner and stood panting in the shadows for a moment. And not a moment too soon --- Draco and his father walked out of a store and directly through where I had been running mere seconds prior. I read the sign above the door: Borgin and Burke's. I was about to turn to a kind-enough-looking witch nearby and ask how to get out when none other than Harry Potter emerged from the same store, dirty and with broken glasses.

"Harry?" I called.

"Lucy? Lucy!" He rushed toward me, looking relieved, and smoothed his hair down over his scar.

"What are you doing here?" we asked each other in unison. We both cracked small grins.

"Never mind, we need to get out of here," I said. "I'm glad you're here with me."

"I'm glad you're here with me too," he replied. "Do you know the way out?"

"I think so. We'll figure it out together." 

"Let's go," he said with a nod. We ducked out of the shadows and began making our way down the dark street, keeping our heads low.

We were nearly out when a witch grabbed Harry's shoulder. "Lost, my dears?"

"No, we're alright," Harry replied, trying very hard not to sound as nervous as he certainly felt. "But thank you."

"Oh, but surely you two need the help," a deeper voice behind us said, and a heavy hand gripped my shoulder. I whirled around, with the fiercest look I could muster, and the middle-aged wizard recoiled for a moment before an oily grin spread across his face. "A lost pup, perhaps?"

"We need to go," I said, reaching for Harry's hand, which he grabbed firmly. We took off sprinting, and didn't stop until we reached Diagon Alley. We dropped hands as soon as we stepped into the sun, and exchanged a long glance full of emotions I couldn't really identify. We both knew that it could have gone much, much worse for both of us without the other.

"What were you doing there?" he asked finally.

"Following my dad," I answered, choosing my words carefully. "I got separated from my brother, so I decided to follow my dad, but I got lost, and someone grabbed me so I took off running. Then I saw Mr. Malfoy and Draco leaving Borgin and Burke's-"

"I Floo-ed there by accident," he explained in a low voice. "Malfoy's dad was trying to sell something."

"Mr. Weasley mentioned that his work has been cracking down lately," I mused. "I wonder if he's worried about being targeted."

"Must be," Harry agreed. "Say, is that Hermione flying towards us?"

I didn't have time to reply before she launched herself on top of me, squealing. I hugged back, sending Harry a "Help me" look over her shoulder that made him laugh. She released me and did the same to Harry, who shot me the same look.

"It's wonderful to see you two!" she gushed. "Are you going into Gringotts?"

"As soon as I've found the Weasleys," Harry said.

"Cedric has the money we need, but I need to find him," I replied.

"Here he comes!" Hermione remarked brightly. "Along with a fair number of Weasleys, and another boy who I think is in Hufflepuff."

Surely enough, Cedric was sprinting up the street with the twins, Ron, Percy, and Mr. Weasley. Cedric and Henry reached us first, and Cedric wrapped me in a tight hug.

"Where on earth were you?" he asked. "I turned around, and you and Dad were both gone."

"I got swept away in the crowd," I lied, "so I tried to follow Dad and-"

Mr. Weasley reached us next, panting and wiping his forehead. “We hoped you’d only gone one grate too far, Harry. Molly’s frantic, she’s coming now.” 

"Lucky you two were together, at least," George commented.

"Where did you end up, Harry?" Ron asked.

"Knockturn Alley," he answered.

Cedric turned to me with wide eyes. "That's where Dad-?"

I cut him off with a nod as Mrs. Weasley and Ginny hurried over. As Mrs. Weasley began fussing over him, Cedric, Henry, and I excused ourselves with a promise to meet at Flourish and Blotts in an hour. 

"How'd you land yourself in Knockturn Alley with Harry Potter, Lucy?" Henry asked as we headed toward Wisacre's Wizarding Equipment.

"I was following my dad," I explained, "or at least trying to. By the time the crowd cleared, I was in Knockturn Alley, and when I tried to leave, someone grabbed me and I panicked and ran further in by accident. I bumped into Harry, since he made a mistake with the Floo system, and we got out together."

I could tell Cedric knew this wasn't the whole story, but with Henry around, he didn't want to ask what Dad was doing looking for wolfsbane in Knockturn Alley. I wasn't sure yet what to make of it, myself, so I was more than glad for the extra time to process what I had witnessed. After getting the new cauldrons we all needed, we naturally headed toward Quality Quidditch Supplies.

Ron was outside with Harry and Hermione, practically drooling as he admired the Chudley Cannons robes in the front window. I rolled up my sleeve a bit to show him the Magpies watch my parents had gotten me for my birthday and teased him ever so slightly about his choice of team.

Cedric and Henry went to go get new robes, since both of them had grown even more in the past year, and Ron and Harry and Hermione wanted to get ice cream, so I reached into my pocket and drew out the pouch of coins.

"I'll catch up with you later," I said vaguely, smiling at the Quidditch store. "There's something I need to do first."

Ron and Hermione looked confused, but Harry remembered. He grinned and led Ron and Hermione away as I slipped into the store. I approached the counter nervously; the store was crowded, but nobody seemed to actually be buying anything.

"Hello there," the clerk said. "How can I help you?"

"Hi," I squeaked, suddenly incredibly shy as I fiddled with the jingling pouch in my hands. "I'm going to be on the Quidditch team next year, at Hogwarts I mean, and I've been using my brother's broom, but now I need my own." I set my pouch on the counter with a trembling hand. "This is all of the money I have. I've been saving since I was seven. What's the best broom I can get?"

The clerk counted all of the coins carefully, then flipped through the catalog. "Saving since you were seven, you said?" she asked with a smile.

I nodded. "Yes ma'am. I hope it's enough for a good broom."

"It definitely is," she replied. "Follow me. I'll show you what you can get."

I complied as she guided me into the back of the store.

"This wouldn't be enough for a brand-new Nimbus 2000," she explained as she led me down aisles and aisles of brooms, "but the Nimbus 2001 prototype has just been released, and you have the perfect amount for it. It may not be a perfect broom, since it is still just a prototype, but between you and me," she said with a wink, "it's very, very close. So what do you say?"

"I'll do it!" I exclaimed.

"Great! The only catch is that you wouldn't actually receive it until September, when the official Nimbus 2001 is released, since you're a student. They don't want anyone getting overly excited and flying over a Muggle city and the like."

"I understand," I replied immediately, "and that's perfect anyway. My parents don't know I'm doing this. Having it sent to Hogwarts would be great."

"Excellent." She smiled as she summoned a piece of parchment and a quill. "Just sign your name here and write Hogwarts as the destination, and it should arrive your first week of school. What team will you be playing for?"

"I'll be the new Gryffindor Chaser," I said as I scribbled my name. "I was the reserve player last year, but with Skye Parkin graduating, I'm taking her place."

I handed her the parchment, and she smiled. "Those are big shoes to fill, Lucy Diggory, but I'm sure this broom will serve you well."

"Thank you!" I said, shaking from head to toe with excitement and feeling as if I might burst. I emerged from the shop still grinning from ear to ear and found my friends quickly.

"What's so exciting?" Ron asked.

"You'll see in September," I said mysteriously. Then I laughed. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'm too excited!" I lowered my voice to a whisper. "I got the prototype for the Nimbus 2001. The real thing would be too expensive, but I had the perfect amount for the cheap prototype. And the shopkeeper said it was a good broom, too!"

They all shared my excitement as we made our way to Flourish and Bott's. As agreed, Cedric and Henry were already waiting nearby.

"Why on earth is it so crowded?" Henry asked as we approached the bookstore, which was busting at the seams.

"Read the sign, genius," Cedric teased, bumping his shoulder against Henry's and pointing up. He cleared his throat and said in his best pompous voice, "GILDEROY LOCKHART will be signing copies of his autobiography MAGICAL ME today 12:30 P.M. to 4:30 P.M."

Hermione was the most excited out of all of us by far. “We can actually meet him! I mean, he’s written almost the whole booklist!”

"Indeed he has, Hermione, indeed he has," Cedric said, scanning the piece of parchment in his hand.

"Let's just get in and out as quickly as possible," Harry muttered, and we all nodded our agreement.

"There's my mum and Ginny," Ron pointed out, "with your parents, Hermione."

"Mine are there, too," Henry added. "Let's go."

We all grabbed the books we needed and joined them closer to the front of the very, very, very long line. I could tell Cedric, sweet and honest and conscientious Cedric, wasn't too keen on the idea of cutting the line, but when he seemed to get over it when he saw exactly how long it really was. He didn't love crowded spaces any more than I did, either, so I knew he, too, wanted to get out as fast as possible.

Soon enough, Gilderoy Lockhart himself emerged from behind a curtain. It seemed like every witch in the room swooned at the sight of him except for me. Ron and I exchanged a bit of an eye roll; even Harry and Cedric and Henry seemed somewhat enraptured by his presence. A photographer came around mid-eye-roll and stepped on Ron's foot.

"Ow!" he protested. 

Rather than apologizing, the photographer scowled at Ron. “Out of the way, there. This is for the _Daily Prophet_!”

"Big deal," Ron muttered, heading off with Hermione to get out of the smoke from the camera.

Lockhart seemed to have heard him, though. He looked at Ron's retreating form, then at me, then his gaze landed on Harry. “It _can’t_ be Harry Potter?” he exclaimed, lunging forward and dragging Harry to the front of the room before I could even register what was happening. The bookstore shook with applause, but I just felt horrible for Harry. He looked rather like he wanted to just sink into the floor. He tried to come back over to us after having his picture taken, but Lockhart stopped him, and cleared his throat for an announcement. “Ladies and gentlemen, what an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I’ve been sitting on for some time! When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography, which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge, he had no idea that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, _Magical Me_. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!”

As the crowd gasped and cheered and applauded again, Harry managed to slip away over to us, tipping the books into Ginny's cauldron, murmuring, “You have these, I’ll buy my own-”

Draco Malfoy sauntered over, a smug look on his face. “Bet you loved that, didn’t you, Potter? _Famous_ Harry Potter! Can’t even go into a _bookshop_ without making the front page.”

I opened my mouth to defend him, but Ginny beat me to it. “Leave him alone, he didn’t want all that!” she snapped, fixing him with a glare I thought she only reserved for Ron when he beat her at chess.

“Potter, you’ve got yourself a girlfriend!” Draco exclaimed gleefully, making Ginny blush red.

"Jealous, Draco?" I retorted.

"Not at all," he replied, flashing a false smile at me. "I'd much rather have a pure-blood girlfriend who isn't a blood traitor. Even you would do, Diggory, if need be. Father might even approve of it, if you weren't so ugly."

Ron and Hermione made their way over before I could fire something back of my own. Ron scowled. “Oh, it’s you. Bet you’re surprised to see Harry here, eh?"

“Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley. I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those.”

Ron dropped the books into Ginny's cauldron and lunged, but I stood between them as Harry and Hermione yanked on his jacket. I turned to Draco.

"Give me another black eye, I dare you," I said, narrowing my eyes. He might have, but at that moment, Mr. Weasley and the twins headed over. Cedric pulled me out from in between the boys as the twins muttered something about "Not again," grinning nonetheless.

“Ron, what are you doing?" Mr. Weasley asked. "It’s too crowded in here, let’s go outside.”

Mr. Malfoy came to stand behind Draco, wearing the same smug sneer as his son. “Well, well, well, Arthur Weasley.”

"Let's leave, Lu," Cedric whispered in my ear. "This might get bad."

I nodded and reached forward to grab Hermione's shoulder. "Cedric and I are heading home. See you soon, though, yeah?"

She nodded and hugged me quickly before Cedric, Henry, and I slipped out of the shop.

"What a day," Henry sighed. "You two Floo-ing home?"

"Yeah, are you?" Cedric asked.

"Yes, sir!" he replied. "Let's go."

We headed down to the Leaky Cauldron and made our way to the fireplace. 

"You can go first, Hen," Cedric offered.

"So eager to get rid of me," Henry said, placing his hand over his chest in a gesture of mock hurt. "I see how it is."

Cedric laughed and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "See you soon, mate."

"I'll talk to my parents about you coming over. You can come too, if you want, Lucy," he said, turning to me, "but it sounds like you have your hands full chasing after Harry."

I blushed. "I'll admit I do a fair amount of that, even accidentally. But thank you for the offer, I'd love to visit sometime."

Once he vanished in a flash of green flame, Cedric glanced at me. "You want to go first, or should I?"

I shuddered, remembering the heaviness of the man's hand on my shoulder. "Can I go first?"

"Of course," he said, holding out the pouch. I took a handful of powder and stepped into the fire.

"The Diggory estate!" I shouted. I shut my eyes tightly, hugging my arms tightly to myself and waiting to crash down in our own fireplace. Once I did, I hurriedly clambered out of the fireplace and waited for my brother. Thankfully, it seemed we would be home alone for a little while. I knew he still had plenty of questions about Knockturn Alley.

Surely enough, once my brother landed in the living room, he asked if we could talk about what exactly happened in Knockturn Alley. I nodded, and he helped me put my new books on my bookshelf as we talked. When I was done, he sighed and settled on my bed.

"That's strange," he said, "but it makes more sense than anything else I've thought of in the past... eleven months, has it been?"

"I think so," I replied. I walked over to the small mirror on my nightstand and lifted my scarred hand to my scarred face. "But what do you mean, it makes sense?"

"Well, if Dad was getting a cheap wolfsbane in Knockturn Alley, it's possible it's made without dittany, the most expensive ingredient in the potion."

I bit my lower lip and turned to face him. "That does make sense," I said slowly. I sank down on my bed next to him.

"I guess we just need to figure out a way to ask the Fletcher man what exactly is in the potion, then replicate it as best we can. But actually, he sounded more like the middle man between the person _actually_ making the potion and Dad, so we need to figure out who's making it and ask him or her what's different about it."

"Easy," I replied in the flattest, dullest voice I could muster.

He laughed humorlessly. "Not necessarily easy, but it _is_ possible." He put an arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. "I'm glad we're closer to answers about you, Lu. Now we're one step closer to making it better for you."

I flinched away slightly, ducking under his arm. "Sorry," I said softly. I felt sudden tears rise to my eyes, and I couldn't will them away before he saw them.

"Hey, don't be sorry," he replied. "What's bothering you?"

"Someone grabbed me by the shoulder," I explained. I huffed, smiling even as a tear raced down my cheek. "He didn't do anything else once he saw my face."

Cedric didn't know what to say for a moment. "I'm glad nothing happened," he said slowly. "But I did hear what Draco said to you in the bookstore, and I know you've heard it before. And whatever happens, just know it's what's on the inside that counts."

I nodded. "Thanks, Cedric. I guess I'd prefer my problem to yours."

"Mine?" he asked jokingly, though he knew full well what his problem was.

"I won't ever have girls throwing themselves at my feet and slipping me love potions," I replied. "Honestly, you should have seen Wood and his girlfriend, too, on Valentine's Day." I shuddered. "Yeah, I like my problem. I wouldn't want Draco Malfoy marrying me anyway." I shuddered again. "That would be a nightmare."


	23. Lilac

LUCY:

On the last night of the summer holidays, I found myself trying to finish _Wandering with Werewolves_ far too late into the night. I had read the rest of the booklist already, of course, but given the contents of all of Lockhart's other books, I didn't want to read that one. But it was required reading, and I didn't want to try to read it on the train the next day.

I began to cry when he described the way he pinned the werewolf against the wall of the telephone booth. I wanted to scream that it wasn't the werewolf's fault he was who he was. I cried even harder when he held his wand to the werewolf's neck. I couldn't take it anymore. I slammed the book shut and stared up at the summer stars, blurred though they were by my tears.

The door creaked open slowly. "Lu? What are you still doing up?"

I turned my tear-stained face to Cedric. "Just on time, as always. What are _you_ still doing up?"

"I woke up a few minutes ago and figured I'd make sure my bag was packed when I heard a book slam shut and saw light beneath your door. What's wrong?"

I held the book up. "I waited until the last possible second to read this, and now I know why. I left off with the werewolf cornered in the phone booth. I don't want to read about Lockhart taking care of him the way he 'takes care' of every other monster he fights. Reading this, I know it could just as easily be me in that phone booth."

"Lu, that werewolf did horrible things. You haven't."

"I could," I whispered.

"But you wouldn't. I know you wouldn't."

"You don't know that," I whimpered, sniffling and leaning into his shoulder. I began to cry harder. "I have no control over myself without wolfsbane. Ced, I've known all my life I'm a monster. It was nice this summer to be able to hide in my room when I felt bad and go into the woods knowing I'd come home to see the light on and you sitting on the front porch waiting for me with a glass of water and a smile and a blanket, but going back to school, I won't have that. I'll have to go to class every day regardless of how I feel. I'll be in the Shrieking Shack by myself every month because everyone's scared of me. And on top of that, I'll have a teacher that would kill me if he knew who I was, just like he killed this poor werewolf who didn't know any better!"

He let me cry for several minutes, rubbing his hand up and down my arm wordlessly. "He didn't kill the werewolf, Lu," he said after a moment. "He used a homorphus charm to turn him back into a man."

I sniffled. "That's a nearly impossible charm. How did he manage?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "Probably both luck and skill. Don't finish reading the book, Lu. It's not good for you."

"Okay," I said softly, burying my face against Cedric's chest. "Thank you for coming to check on me."

"Of course. It's our last night here until Christmas. I wanted to do what I could to help."

"You're the best," I murmured, my eyes sinking shut.

"To quote Henry every time I tell him that, 'I try to be, but _I_ think _you're_ the best.'" I could hear the smile in his voice as he scooped me up and carried me to my bed. He tucked a blanket around me and blew out the candles. "Good night, Lu. Love you."

"Good night, Ced," I replied. "Love you too."

He smiled and shut the door softly. I heaved one more shuddering sigh and fell asleep.

* * *

I didn't need to hold Cedric's hand to enter the platform that year, though I did let him go first. I scanned the crowd for any tall redheads, but I couldn't see them, and Cedric couldn't either. He spotted Henry right away though, and was careful to make sure I followed him, after the Knockturn Alley incident. I spotted Hermione after a couple of minutes, and darted over to her.

"Lucy! Hi!" she squealed, throwing her arms around me. I hugged back, and followed her onto the train as she spoke rapidly about the books she had read this summer. My mind was somewhat distant though, and my eyes kept wandering to the window, where I hoped to see the Weasleys and Harry any moment. 10:55 passed, then 10:56. Hermione followed my gaze and frowned. "I sure hope they don't miss the train."

"They won't," I said, though if it was to myself or to her I cannot say. 10:57. "Not with Percy as prefect."

As soon as the words left my mouth, Percy burst through the barrier, looking rather frazzled. 10:58. The twins, Ginny, and their parents soon followed. But Harry and Ron were nowhere to be seen.

"You don't suppose they're ill, do you?" Hermione asked, now looking as worried as I felt.

"I slept over two nights ago, and they were all alright," I said. "Mrs. Weasley looks worried, too. Where are they?"

"Lucy!" a voice exclaimed at the door. Ginny Weasley hurried in, all red hair and red cheeks. "Thank Merlin you still have seats, practically everywhere else was full. We were almost late! Is it okay if I sit here? Fred and George were the last two to fit in their car. Will Harry come sit with you? They said he would but he's not here yet."

"Of course, you can sit next to me. And yeah, he and Ron would both be here, but I... I don't see them yet. Did they make it through the-"

The train lurched forward out of the station, giving me my answer. My stomach dropped to my toes. Hermione and I both pressed our faces to the window, but the boys were nowhere to be seen. They had missed the train.

"That's odd," Ginny commented, fanning herself with her hand. "They were right behind us. Maybe one of them forgot something in the car."

"Maybe," I said, anxiety gripping me. We watched out the window until the station disappeared entirely. No Harry. No Ron. Hermione and I settled back against our seats, sharing a worried glance.

"I'm assuming they'll just owl the school," Hermione suggested, taking a book from her bag and trying to appear nonchalant. "Nothing we can do to help."

"Yeah," Ginny agreed, turning to me. "Do you have any more Quidditch magazines to look at?"

I smiled and nodded. "You bet. Let's take a look."

After about two hours of talking Quidditch, my late night caught up with me. Ginny left to go talk to Fred and George and look for Harry while I curled up in the corner of the car and closed my eyes, dropping off into a deep sleep. I was interrupted some time later by a knock at the door. Rather than Ginny, however, Draco Malfoy was peering through the window with a scowl on his face.

He opened the door and stepped inside, Crabbe and Goyle just behind him. "Where's Potter?" he inquired, glancing from me to Hermione and back to me. "Too big and important to sit with the likes of you two?"

"What does it matter to you?" Hermione snapped, not even looking up from her book.

"It doesn't," he insisted quickly, "I'm just curious. It would seem his fame has gotten to his scarred head. Funny. You'd think he'd like spending time with you, Diggory, with your face."

I grabbed my wand and pointed it at him lazily. "Leave us alone, Draco, or I'll decorate your face to match."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "You wouldn't. You're cowardly, for a Gryffindor." But despite his confidence in my cowardice, he turned around and left, slamming the door behind him.

I yawned. "I've had some rude awakenings in my day, but waking up to his face has got to be among the worst."

Hermione was so engrossed in her book all I got was an "Mhm" in response. I reached up to grab my robes to change into, ducking through the hallway until I reached the bathroom. I changed quickly and decided to pay Cedric a quick visit.

His car was full to the brim with Hufflepuffs, though I spied Archie and Cam in the mix as well. My brother and Henry waved me inside, pointing to the massive Exploding Snap game happening in the center.

"Join in, Lucy!" Henry called. I tried to protest, saying I wasn't any good, but he shook his head and pulled me down between him and Cedric anyway. Despite my lack of confidence, I held up pretty well. To my surprise, some of the Hufflepuffs were just as --- if not more --- competitive than Archie and Cam. I stayed there far longer than I originally intended, making my way back to Hermione's car only ten minutes before we arrived at the school.

Hermione and I crammed into a thestral-drawn carriage with Archie and Cam, Neville squeezing in at the last possible second.

"Hi, Hermione! Hi, Lucy!" he said, clutching tightly to Trevor. "Say, where are Harry and Ron?"

"We don't know," we said in unison.

"Oh." Whatever answer he had been expecting, it wasn't that one. "Did they miss the train?"

Hermione nodded. "I'm sure they'll turn up," she said, though she didn't sound convinced.

The thestrals carried us dutifully to the castle. When we climbed out, I reached up to pet the skeletal horse before catching up with the twins. 

"Excited to see your sister get sorted?" I asked.

They nodded. "Gryffindor, no doubt," Fred said.

"Bet the Sorting Hat will be relieved," George quipped. "Last Weasley until Bill has a kid. After sorting seven of us kids, it finally gets a decade or so off."

I laughed as I took my typical seat between the two of them. Without Harry and Ron, Hermione found herself between Neville and Seamus Finnigan. She looked less than thrilled, but she still had her book from the train, so she busied herself by reading it under the table while we waited for the first years to enter.

As they did, I scanned the wave for Ginny's fiery red hair. She found my eyes quickly, and I shot her an encouraging thumbs-up. She replied in kind before fixing her eyes upon the Sorting Hat. The seam ripped open, and it sang its annual song. We all clapped politely, and the Sorting began.

I'll admit I was still fairly tired from my late night, so I didn't pay nuch attention until I heard Ginny's name. As expected, she was Gryffindor, and she slid in between George and me at the table as the feast began.

Rumors coursed up and down the table about the missing boys, but I paid them no mind. Ginny was bursting with questions, and her brothers and I answered them as best we could. Her eyes positively shone all night long; she was clearly thrilled to finally be at Hogwarts like all of her brothers before her.

But I was still immensely worried for the boys. I saw Professor McGonagall leave the feast briefly, along with Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape, but none of them said anything about Ron or Harry. When we headed up to the common room, I found myself praying they'd somehow be waiting on the couch, waiting to tease me for being so worried, but they were nowhere to be seen.

The rumors picked up speed. Something about a flying car. The twins and I exchanged a glance. It was entirely plausible.

Some people began to head up to their dormitories, but a fair amount remained to see if Harry and Ron would show up. When the portrait hole finally swung open to reveal the two of them, looking worse for wear but undoubtedly alive, I sprinted over to hug them as those left in the common room cheered.

"Bloody hell, Lucy, where'd that come from?" Ron asked, looking quite red all of a sudden.

"Sorry, I'm just so glad you're safe," I sighed in relief. "I was so worried."

"Sorry," Harry said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "We couldn't get onto the platform, so we took the flying car."

"Fill me in tomorrow?" I asked, spying a very-angry Percy approaching the pair. Harry followed my gaze and nodded.

"Tomorrow. Good night!"

After the boys disappeared into the crowd, I headed up to my dormitory to tell the others what had happened.

Hermione clucked disapprovingly. "They got rather lucky, didn't they?"

I laughed. "Don't we always?"

* * *

Hermione and I arrived early to the Great Hall, eager to see what our schedule would look like. I could tell she was still mad at Ron and Harry, but I was just relieved to see them alive, so I greeted them much more warmly than Hermione's flat "Morning."

"Which one are you reading, Hermione?" Neville asked as he sat next to Harry. "They're all brilliant."

" _Voyages with Vampires_ ," she said, holding it up so he could see the cover. "It's probably my favorite."

"Mine would be _Wanderings with Werewolves_ ," Neville replied. "Have you read it, Lucy?"

Hermione stiffened next to me. I nodded. "I stayed up too late trying to read it on the last night of summer, which is why I was so tired on the train yesterday."

"I think I left it at home by accident," he said, blushing slightly. "But mail's due any minute, and Gran always sends whatever I forget." He turned to Ron and Harry. "Have you two read _Wanderings with Werewolves_ yet?"

They shook their heads.

"Oh, it's terribly exciting!" Dean gushed as he and Seamus sat next to me. "He saved a village from a werewolf by-"

Before he could go on, the mail arrived. Being the first day of term, the delivery was more chaotic than usual as dozens upon dozens of owls poured into the room. Neville's book bounced off his head, and he yelped. A grey mass of feathers collapsed into Hermione's jug, and she ducked behind her book to stop the milk from spraying all over her. I reached forward and gently extracted the owl.

"Errol!" Ron gasped. His face blanched when he saw the red envelope his owl carried. "Oh no..."

"It's alright," Hermione assured him, "he's still alive. Just a rough landing."

"I don't think he's worried about Errol," I said slowly, taking the owl onto my lap and handing the envelope to Ron. Neville and I exchanged a worried glance.

Neville swallowed hard. “You’d better open it, Ron, it’ll be worse if you don’t. My gran sent me one once, and I ignored it and... it was horrible.”

"What is it?" Harry asked. 

"It's a Howler," Seamus answered.

Dean backed away slightly. "What's a Howler? I'm guessing it's bad since you all look like you expect it to attack you, but-"

It started smoking at the corners.

"Cover your ears!" I shouted as Ron slit the envelope. I pressed my hands over the unconscious Errol's ears instead as the shrieks of Mrs. Weasley filled the Hall.

"-STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY’D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON’T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE! WHEN WE RECEIVED A LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME! WE DIDN’T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED! ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED! YOUR FATHER’S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT’S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE, WE’LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME.”

The envelope burst into flames, and the Hall was silent for a moment before a wave of giggles and whispers filled the room again.

"I didn't believe Fred and George when they said your mum got mad sometimes," I admitted with a breathy laugh. "Are you alright?"

Hermione snapped her book shut as he managed a weak nod. “Well, I don’t know what you expected, Ron, but you-”

“Don’t tell me I deserved it."

Harry pushed his porridge away. He didn't look angry, necessarily, but his face took on a slightly green tinge. I nudged his shin with my foot and raised my eyebrows in a silent gesture of "You okay?" when his stormy eyes met mine. He shook his head and turned to accept his schedule from Professor McGonagall.

Hermione, seemingly satisfied with Mrs. Weasley's Howler, was incredibly talkative as we headed down to the greenhouses for double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. Professor Sprout was a little late, carrying masses of bandages and her robes full of dirt. I glanced over toward the Whomping Willow, which I regarded now equal parts guardian and menace. Many branches were resting in slings. I found myself wondering where I would have to transform that month, but my thoughts were interrupted by arrival of Gilderoy Lockhart alongside the professor. I backed up a couple steps involuntarily, the account of his werewolf encounter lingering in the back of my mind. Hermione started to turn to me to see what was wrong, but she whirled back to face her idol when he spoke.

“Oh, hello there! Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! But I don’t want you running away with the idea that I’m better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met several of these exotic plants on my travels-"

“Greenhouse three today, chaps!” Professor Sprout interrupted. I bit back a snicker at the offended expression that flickered across Lockhart's face as we turned to follow her, his spell over us broken. Harry and I were almost to the door when he was yanked backward.

“Harry! I’ve been wanting a word! You don’t mind if he’s a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?” Without waiting for an answer, he flashed a grin her way. "That's the ticket!" He practically shoved me inside and slammed the door before Professor Sprout could protest. Harry sent one last despairing glance my way before he had to follow the turquoise-robed man.

I turned to Professor Sprout. "I've never been a fan of turquoise, myself. I've been told it clashes with my eyes. Wouldn't you agree sky blue is a much prettier shade?"

She chuckled and laid a gentle hand on my shoulder. "I'd have to agree, Miss Diggory. Run along with Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger, now, and be sure to save a spot for Harry. We'll be working in groups of four today, and while I hope it really is just a 'couple of minutes,' I have a feeling it'll be a bit longer."

I grinned and nodded, hurrying over to the others while Professor Sprout put the bandages away.

Surprisingly true to his word, Lockhart really did keep Harry only a couple of minutes, and he slipped into the greenhouse just as the lesson began. 

“We’ll be repotting Mandrakes today," she said as she pulled her gloves on. "Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?”

Neville and I exchanged a smile as Hermione's hand shot into the air.

“Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative. It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state.”

“Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor. The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?”

“The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it.”

“Precisely. Take another ten points. Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young. Still, everyone should take a pair of earmuffs."

I got stuck with a pink fluffy pair that tickled my cheeks. I turned to Harry, who still looked quite upset between the Howler and the Lockhart, and held my ear muffs out, eyeing his sleek black pair with the most dramatic wistful look I could muster. "Want to trade, Harry? I think pink is more your color than mine."

He rolled his eyes and smiled. "I'm fine, but thanks for the offer."

"If you're sure," I sighed.

“When I tell you to put them on, make sure your ears are completely covered. When it is safe to remove them, I will give you the thumbs-up. Right, earmuffs on!"

We all secured ours over our ears as she plunged her hands into the soil to grab the first Mandrake. It was bigger than it had been in June, now looking like a newborn baby rather than just a seedling. My heart twisted slightly as it wailed, though I couldn't hear it. It looked enough like a baby to have my sympathy. When he was once again submerged in soil, Professor Sprout gave us the thumbs-up and we took our earmuffs off. 

“As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won’t kill yet. However, they will knock you out for several hours, and as I’m sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up. Four to a tray. There is a large supply of pots here, compost in the sacks over there, and be careful of the Venemous Tentacula, it’s teething.” She swatted it away, and it retreated slowly.

I shuddered. "I wasn't watching where I was going once when I was helping Mum in the garden and it grabbed me by the ankle. She was able to get off a severing charm pretty quickly, but I had nightmares of being strangled for weeks."

"And that's not the worst of it!" Neville declared from the tray across from us. "Its bite is highly poisonous, too!"

He was working with Susan Bones, Hannah Abbott, and Justin Finch-Fletchley. Justin turned to see who Neville was talking to, and his face lit up. 

He reached forward to shake Harry's hand. "Don't think we've ever officially met, Harry, but I'm Justin Finch-Fletchley. Know who you are, of course, the famous Harry Potter." He turned to the rest of us and shook our hands too. "And you’re Hermione Granger, always top in everything, and Lucy Diggory, Cedric's sister, and Ron Weasley. Wasn’t that your flying car?"

Ron nodded, looking rather glum still after the Howler.

Justin didn't seem to notice. "That Lockhart’s something, isn’t he? Awfully brave chap. Have you read his books? I’d have died of fear if Id been cornered in a telephone booth by a werewolf, but he stayed cool and zap! Just fantastic."

I snapped my earmuffs on and busied myself with the dragon dung compost as he kept talking. Soon enough, everyone else's earmuffs were on too, and we set to work. Planting babies was far harder than planting seeds, I learned. All four of us had to work together on a particularly chunky one, who absolutely refused to fit into the pot. 

As soon as we were allowed to take our earmuffs off, I dragged the sleeve of my robe across my face. They had been _so_ itchy. 

Ron laughed for the first time that day. "Lucy, you just got dirt _all_ over your face."

I reached forward before he could react and rubbed part of my sleeve against his freckled nose. "Well, now you've got dirt all over your nose, so I guess we both need to wash up now."

He turned red, but smiled. "I guess so."

We hurried up to the castle for a quick wash before Transfiguration. Hermione and I were among the only successful students in class. Ron appeared to have broken his wand in the Whomping Willow incident, so a foul-smelling smoke hung around him and Harry for the better part of the lesson. Hermione showed off her buttons during lunch, which didn't help.

"What've we got this afternoon?" Harry asked.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hermione read off her schedule.

I wrinkled my nose. "Wonderful."

Since she didn't happen to be looking at my face, she missed my sarcasm.

Fred and George settled on either side of me then. 

"Why the face, Cub?"

"Do you smell that, too?"

I glanced toward Ron, who turned red and closed the flap of his bag over his smoking wand.

"I don't smell anything," I lied, biting back a grin at the relief on Ron's face. "Just thinking about the fact that I have Lockhart next."

Fred laughed. "You're probably the only witch at this school not looking forward to having to see his perfect face-"

"-and perfect teeth," George added.

"-and perfect robes-"

"-and perfect hair-"

"-for several hours every week."

Ron reached over and snatched Hermione's schedule. “Why have you outlined all Lockhart’s lessons in little hearts?” 

Hermione blushed bright red as the twins roared with laughter. George clapped my shoulder. "See, Cub?"

I rolled my eyes, laughing too. "No offense, Hermione," I said, "nothing against him, turquoise just isn't my color."

She snorted and took a bite of her sandwich. Once we were done eating, Hermione rose to her feet. "I'm going to go get some fresh air. Would anyone like to go with me?"

"Sure," I said with a shrug, also standing. "Catch you two tonight?" I asked the twins.

"Assuming you survive your Lockhart lesson, you bet," Fred said with a smirk.

"In that case, this is farewell forever," I retorted. I ruffled George's hair on the way out. Hermione got _Voyages with Vampires_ back out as Harry and Ron talked about Quidditch. I spied Cedric across the way reading by himself, so I headed over to talk to him.

" _Magical Me_ by the one and only Gilderoy Lockhart?" I asked, wrinkling my nose again as I read the cover. "Wouldn't you rather read something interesting, like a list of everything Professor Snape has ever eaten for breakfast?"

He laughed slightly. "I heard that his first class has a quiz all about him, sao I figured I might as well, er, _study_ ," he replied with a somewhat pained expression.

"I have him next," I sighed, spinning my wand in a circle. "I want to try to sit next to Hermione. It should be funny. She's obsessed with him. Fred said I'm probably the only witch in school who hasn't fallen head over heels for him."

"He _is_ rather impressive," Cedric said.

"Yeah, I know, it's probably why he was hired. I just don't like... well, how he handles things. And well, he said that the homorphus charm permanently cured the werewolf, which it doesn't. If it did, wouldn't there be no more werewolves?"

Cedric pursed his lips. "I've never thought about that. He does say it's incredibly difficult to master-"

"But surely someone would have mastered it by now. And if he really was the only one, why isn't he walking around saving people every full moon? Sorry," I relented, "I just... something doesn't sit right with me."

"No need to apologize, you definitely have a point," he said. He lowered his voice. "Just be careful this year, alright, Lu? I don't want him trying to, well, 'fix' you."

Before I could reply, Draco Malfoy's voice cut through the courtyard. “ _Signed photos_? You’re giving out _signed photos_ , Potter?” Satisfied when everyone's heads turned toward him, he cackled. “Everyone line up! Harry Potter’s giving out signed photos!”

"I should go," I muttered to Cedric, jumping to my feet and rushing over to the scene.

"Oh, Potter, you've got a customer!" Draco crowed. "She's running, she's so excited!"

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry and I said in unison.

"You're just jealous!" a small boy I recognized from the Sorting as Colin Creevey said. 

Draco snorted. “Jealous? Of what? I don’t want a foul scar right across my head, thanks. I don’t think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself.”

"Neither does being a Malfoy, but here you are anyway, acting like you own the school," I retorted. 

"Eat slugs, Malfoy," Ron snarled, hand going toward his wand. I slowly and subtly reached for mine too when Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle began to clench their fists.

“Be careful, Weasley. You don’t want to start any trouble or your Mommy’ll have to come and take you away from school. ‘If you put another toe out of line!'” A lot of people laughed at this as Ron and Harry both flushed furiously. "Weasley would like a signed photo, Potter, it’d be worth more than his family’s whole house-”

Ron whipped his wand out, but before he could fire off a spell, a voice that was already getting on my nerves interrupted. “What’s all this, what’s all this? Who’s giving out signed photos?” Gilderoy Lockhart floated past me to get to Harry and threw an arm around him. "Shouldn’t have asked! We meet again, Harry!”

Draco smirked and retreated into the crowd, but not before I fixed him with my best glare and made a point of lowering my hand from my wand. He seemed to get the message; his smirk faltered ever so slightly, and he turned and walked away.

“Come on then, Mr. Creevey. A double portrait, can’t do better than that, and we’ll both sign it for you. Oh, you there!" He took the camera from Colin and shoved it into my hands. "Come get in the picture, Mr. Creevey, while she takes it."

I masked my gritted teeth with a smile and snapped the picture as the bell rang. Colin snatched the camera from me, shaking with excitement, and darted off to class.

“Off you go, move along there,” Lockhart said to the courtyard. He looked at me when I started to follow him and Harry. "You can go, too."

"I'm going to your class next, sir," I replied, trying to flash my best smile. Truthfully, I didn't want Harry to have to be alone with him again, and Ron and Hermione had already scrambled away. "Would it be alright if I walked with you and Harry? You're both wonderful, after all."

As I had hoped, my flattery appealed to him. "Oh, very well. You wouldn't mind if I spoke to Harry, though, would you?"

"Oh, of course not, Professor Lockhart," I said, slinging my bag over my shoulder as we started walking to his class. I wiggled in between them, shaking his arm off of Harry, and clung onto Harry's arm. "Just pretend I'm not here."

Harry seemed to be trying very hard not to laugh at my antics, but Lockhart was --- thankfully --- completely oblivious. “A word to the wise, Harry. I covered up for you back there with young Creevey. If he was photographing me, too, your schoolmates won’t think you’re setting yourself up so much. Let me just say that handing out signed pictures at this stage of your career isn’t sensible; looks a tad bigheaded, Harry, to be frank. There may well come a time when, like me, you’ll need to keep a stack handy wherever you go, but I don’t think you’re quite there yet.”

Lockhart had taken a shortcut, so Harry and I were the first to class. We took seats at the back of the room and busied ourselves with our massive stack of books. When the rest of the class came filing in, Ron and Hermione came over. I surrendered my seat to Ron when Hermione dragged me up to sit next to her at the front of the room.

"I don't know what you were thinking, coming up with Lockhart," she whispered. "It looked like he had something important and private to say to Harry!"

"Exactly," I replied, fighting the urge to roll my eyes for the umpteenth time that day.

She opened her mouth to defend Lockhart, but he spoke first, and she snapped to attention. He grabbed poor Neville's _Travels with Trolls_ and pointed to his beaming face on the cover. “Me! Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award, but I don’t talk about that. I didn’t get rid of the Bandon Banshee by _smiling_ at her!” He paused, as if expecting applause, but no one even huffed a laugh. He cleared his throat and continued, “I see you’ve all bought a complete set of my books; well done. I thought we’d start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about, just to check how well you’ve read them, how much you’ve taken in-”

I bit back a groan. Cedric was right. I bit back a sigh as well once I actually saw the test.

Question 1. "What is Gilderoy Lockhart’s favorite color?"

I resisted the urge to just crumple up the parchment and throw it at his face. I was a Chaser, I knew I could hit it, and hard. I didn't even know my own favorite color. I scribbled down "lilac," thinking I remembered him mentioning that, and moved onto the next question.

Question 2. "What is Gilderoy Lockhart’s secret ambition?"

As much as I wanted to write "to make a complete arse of himself... oh wait, he already has," I wracked my brain for the real answer. Hermione was scribbling feverishly next to me; she had clearly memorized every word of his books. I wrote down the best answer I could manage and proceeded through the rest of the test. Hermione was the only person to get a perfect score, but Lockhart informed me with a wink that I had only missed one question and that I would be an expert in no time.

"Great," I managed weakly, feeling myself turn red from head to toe. Seamus and Dean snorted behind me, but Lockhart paid them no mind.

"To business!" he declared, lifting a massive cage onto his desk. “Now, be warned! It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourselves facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm. I must ask you not to scream. It might provoke them.”

I reached slowly for my wand as he yanked the covering off, expecting something terrible. But instead, we were met by the unmistakable blue of Cornish pixies.

"Does anyone know what these are?" he asked, sweeping the room.

Hermione's hand shot up. "Those are Cornish pixies, Professor."

"Correct! But not just any Cornish pixies, _freshly caught_ Cornish pixies."

Behind me, Seamus and Dean snorted much louder, and Lockhart heard them that time. "Yes, boys?"

"Well," Seamus replied, attempting to reign in his laughter, "they're not exactly dangerous, are they?"

“Don’t be so sure! Devilish tricky little blighters they can be!”

I turned my head toward the boys and shook my head ever so slightly. "Not dangerous," I mouthed. "Just annoying."

But Lockhart wasn't done. "Let's see what you make of them!" he announced, opening the cage with a flourish.

"No!" I shouted, whipping my wand out. "They'll wreck the classroom!"

It was too late. The bright blue pixies flooded the room. They flew out the windows, smashed ink bottles, even grabbed Neville by the ears.

"Come on, now, round them up!" Lockhart yelled over the chaos. "They're only pixies!"

I launched myself onto the desk nearest Neville's dangling form and shot two immobilizing spells at the pixies that clutched his ears. He dropped to the desk, touching the bloody tips of his ears. "Thanks, Lucy," he choked out. "That hurt."

"No problem," I said quickly, straightening back up to survey the damage. Lockhart lifted his wand to the sky and shouted, "Peskipiksi pesternomi!", but nothing happened. A pixie snatched his wand and chucked it out the window. "That's not even a real spell, as far as I know," I muttered to Neville. "But this is. Episkey!"

The wounds on his ears healed instantly. He sighed in relief. The bell rang over the sound of screams. "Thank you. Much better."

"Of course. Now you should probably leave with, well, everyone else." It was true. More than half of the class had left the room in a frenzied panic. Neville nodded and joined the rush toward the door. I shot off as many immobilizing charms as I could. 

"Well, since you four seem to have it under control," Lockhart said, straightening his robes, "I'll ask you to nip the rest of them back in this cage." Before we could protest, he was gone.

A pixie latched itself onto Ron's ear. "Can you believe him?" he asked, yanking it off his ear.

"Episkey!" I said, pointing the wand his direction before I immobilized more pixies. 

Hermione was again quick to defend Lockhart. "He just wants to give us some hands-on experience." She immobilized two at once and shoved them into their cage.

Harry snorted. "Hands on? Hermione, he didn’t have a clue what he was doing-"

“Rubbish. You’ve read his books. Look at all those amazing things he’s done!”

“He _says_ he’s done,” Ron pointed out.

I bent down to pick up the frozen pixies that littered the floor and tossed them one by one to Harry, who stuffed them in the cage. Harry sighed. "How are we going to get the ones outside?"

"They'll probably go to the magical creatures reserve," I replied. "That's probably where Lockhart got them all anyway. I'll check with Hagrid tomorrow to make sure." I echoed Harry's sigh. "Has anyone actually ever heard of that spell he tried to use?"

"He probably learned it on one of his adventures," Hermione said, slamming the cage shut and gathering her belongings. "The pixie launched his wand out of the window before it had time to work."

"I'm going to ask Professor Flitwick tomorrow if he's ever heard of it, just the same. If anyone would know it, it would be him."

When the Charms professor laughed and asked me to repeat the incantation the next day, my suspicions were confirmed. No such spell existed.

* * *

I knew that Oliver Wood's leadership style would be different from Skye's. But having to wake up at the crack of dawn was the first unpleasant change. 

I changed quickly into my Quidditch robes and hurried down the stairs. Oliver was already in the common room, just about to leave through the portrait hole.

"Good morning, lass!" he chirped. "Glad to see someone starting so strong!"

I smiled and shouldered my broom. "I just can't wait to get on my new broom."

His eyes bugged out of his head. "New broom?"

"Oh blimey, I guess I forgot to tell you. Yeah, I have a Nimbus 2001 prototype. It was delivered just last night, right to my dormitory window."

He pelted me with questions as we made our way down to the Pitch. We were the first two there, followed soon by the sleepy twins and the exhausted Angelina and Alicia. Harry arrived last, looking incredibly annoyed. 

"Didn't realize Lockhart was a morning person," I quipped.

He grinned ruefully. "It was Colin Creevey this time."

Oliver hurried over, dragging a blackboard with him. “There you are, Harry, what kept you? Now, I wanted a quick talk with you all before we actually get onto the field, as your new captain, because I spent the summer devising a whole new training program, which I really think will make all the difference!”

And so began his discussion, vibrantly illustrated with arrows that danced across the board. At one point, Fred's head sank onto my shoulder, and I could have sworn he was snoring. I propped him up as best I could so it at least looked like he was awake. As soon as I did, George drooped onto my other shoulder, so I had to prop him up too. I wished for my wand; a good old-fashioned tickling spell would wake them up in no time.

They jerked awake with a start as soon as he finished. "So! Is that clear? Any questions?”

George forced away a yawn. “I’ve got a question, Oliver. Why couldn’t you have told us all this yesterday when we were awake?”

His eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'm the captain now, and I intend to make Skye proud. We got lucky last year --- no offense, Lucy, but we all know Harry is the better Seeker --- so this year, we train harder than ever before. Any other _relevant_ questions?"

"Not sure if this is relevant," I said reluctantly, offering a shy grin, "but will you teach me that spell sometime? The one you used on the board?"

"Of course, of course," he replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Assuming we have no other questions, let’s go and put our new theories into practice!"

"Nimbus 2001 time!" I cheered, jumping up and eagerly following Oliver onto the Pitch. I kicked up into the sky and took a couple of practice laps. The sun had fully risen, but a couple small patches of mist lingered over the field. I inhaled the cool morning air and exhaled with a stupidly big smile on my face. Harry flew up next to me, also smiling and looking much more awake now that he was in the sky.

"Race you, Diggory!"

"You're on, Potter!"

Fred and George hopped in halfway through our first lap, laughing at how seriously Harry and I were taking the race.

On our second lap, I saw Ron and Hermione watching in the stands, and I was startled by the flash of Colin Creevey's camera. “Look this way, Harry! This way!” he called.

"You might want to watch me instead, Colin!" I shouted back, blocking Harry from view temporarily as I shot forward. 

"Oh no you don't," Harry laughed, trying to catch back up. "You're my shield from the camera."

"I saved you from Lockhart already, Colin is nothing compared to him!" With that, I gave the broom everything I had and reached a speed I'd never achieved on any broom before.

Oliver was less-than-amused by Colin's presence. “What’s going on? Why’s that first year taking pictures? I don’t like it. He could be a Slytherin spy, trying to find out about our new training program.”

"He's in Gryffindor," I said as the other three flew up behind me. "He's just a fan of Harry's."

George groaned. “And the Slytherins don’t need a spy, Oliver.”

“What makes you say that?”

"Because they're here in person."

Surely enough, an army clad in green robes marched onto the field. I scanned them. I didn't see any girls, but I did see unmistakable white-blond hair. Frustration clenched in my gut. Of course Malfoy had wormed his way onto the team.

Our new captain looked fit to explode. “I don’t believe it! I booked the field for today! We’ll see about this!”

He shot off toward the ground, the rest of the team following in his angry wake.

He landed hard, but still stomped up to the Slytherin captain, who wore a cruel smirk on his face. “Flint! This is our practice time! We got up specially! You can clear off now!”

“Plenty of room for all of us, Wood," he said coolly.

“But I booked the field! I booked it!”

“Ah, but I’ve got a specially signed note here from Professor Snape. ‘I, Professor S. Snape, give the Slytherin team permission to practice today on the Quidditch field owing to the need to train their new Seeker.'”

Oliver seemed stunned. “You’ve got a new Seeker? Where?”

When Draco stepped forward, smug as ever, I slapped my palm to my forehead. Of course Draco was Seeker of all things.

Fred looked toward me, then turned to Draco. “Aren’t you Lucius Malfoy’s son?”

Marcus Flint chuckled. “Funny you should mention Draco’s father. Let me show you the generous gift he’s made to the Slytherin team.” They all presented their brooms. Nimbus 2001s. “Very latest model. Only came out last month. I believe it outstrips the old 2000 series by a considerable amount. As for the old Cleansweeps, sweeps the board with them.”

"But when I was in Diagon Alley, the clerk told me the 2001 hadn't come out yet," I stammered, holding my broom in front of me.

"We've got connections," Flint said with a shrug and a smirk. 

"Cute broom, though, Diggory." Draco's eyes were alight with a cocky fire. "Cuter than-"

"Oh look, a field invasion," Flint nodded over our shoulders, and we turned to see Ron and Hermione heading over to see what was going on.

“What’s happening? Why aren’t you playing? And what’s _he_ doing here?” Ron asked, glaring at Malfoy.

“I’m the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley. Everyone’s just been admiring the brooms my father’s bought our team. Good, aren’t they? But perhaps the Gryffindor team will be able to raise some gold and get new brooms, too. You could raffle off those Cleansweep Fives; I expect a museum would bid for them.”

I glanced toward Fred and George with concern, but they stared only at Draco, jaws and fists clenched.

Hermione stepped forward. “At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to _buy_ their way in. _They_ got in on pure talent.”

Draco's eyes narrowed dangerously. "No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood.”

I instantly jumped in front of Hermione as chaos unfolded around us. The twins dropped their brooms and lunged for Draco, but his teammates were quick to stop them. Angelina and Alicia both screamed "How dare you!" and tried to wrestle the Slytherin team off of Fred and George. I reached for a wand I didn't have; Ron drew his, though, and leveled it at Draco, whose eyes were wide with fear.

“You’ll pay for that one, Malfoy!” he shouted, and a green light filled the stadium, shooting Ron backward.

Hermione, Harry, and I raced over to him. 

“Ron! Ron! Are you all right?" Hermione asked, helping him sit up.

His only response was a massive burp that spewed slugs all over the grass. The Slytherins immediately erupted into laughter. 

"Wand please, Hermione," I said calmly as the rest of the Gryffindor team crowded around us. She handed it to me with a shaking hand, and I fired a silencing spell at the Slytherin team. They didn't seem to notice or care, as they were all still twitching with their silent laughter, but at least Ron couldn't hear their laughter. I handed Hermione's wand back to her. "Thank you, very helpful. Let's get him to Hagrid's, it's closest."

Harry and Hermione nodded, and we all helped hoist him to his feet. The Gryffindor team parted to let us through, and none other than Colin Creevey caught up to us.

“What happened, Harry? What happened? Is he ill? But you can cure him, can’t you?” 

Ron retched, and more slugs poured from his mouth. Colin lifted his camera, looking both mortified and fascinated. “Oooh! Can you hold him still, Harry?”

"Not the best time, Colin, sorry," I said, trying to figure out how to get rid of him. "Would you like to help Harry, though? We have something else you could do."

"Of course!" he exclaimed, as Harry muttered, "We do?"

"We left our brooms on the Pitch. Would you mind making sure Fred and George put them in our lockers?"

"I can do that!"

"Great! Thanks, Colin!" I called after him as he raced away.

"Good thinking, Lucy," Harry said with a sigh. "He refuses to leave me alone."

"This world is brand new to him," I explained, "and he's going to school with a celebrity. Just try to be patient with him. He doesn't seem to have made friends yet."

Ron belched again, spewing more slugs, and Harry laughed. "My thoughts exactly, Ron."

Hermione rolled her eyes at us. “Nearly there, Ron. You’ll be all right in a minute, we're almost there-”

The front door opened, and, of course, Gilderoy Lockhart strolled out.

"Quick, behind here," Harry hissed, pulling us all behind a bush.

Ron heaved again, and it was my turn to laugh. "I couldn't agree more, Ron. Just hang on, he'll be gone soon."

Lockhart's voice carried unfortunately well. “It’s a simple matter if you know what you’re doing! If you need help, you know where I am! I’ll let you have a copy of my book. I’m surprised you haven’t already got one, I’ll sign one tonight and send it over. Well, good-bye!”

Harry and I exchanged an eye roll before helping Ron back to his feet. Hermione knocked urgently, and poor Hagrid looked upset when he opened the door until he saw it was us. 

“Bin wonderin’ when you’d come ter see me, 'cept you, Lucy, saw yeh yesterday. Come in, come in, thought you mighta bin Professor Lockhart back again."

"Ron's wand backfired and he won't stop vomiting slugs," Harry explained as we lowered Ron into a chair.

Hagrid set a bucket in front of him. “Better out than in. Get ‘em all up, Ron.”

Hermione wrung her hands as she watched. “I don’t think there’s anything to do except wait for it to stop. That’s a difficult curse to work at the best of times, but with a broken wand...”

"I don't think there's a counter-curse in the book Cedric got me for my birthday," I mused, "otherwise I'd try it."

"Hermione, how long has she had that book?" Ron asked hoarsely, grinning slightly despite the greenness of his face.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said slowly.

"If she got it for her birthday-" he started, but he burped again and ducked back over the tub.

"Don't worry about it," I said with a sigh. "What did Lockhart want with you, Hagrid?”

“Givin’ me advice on gettin’ kelpies out of a well, like I don’ know. An’ bangin’ on about some banshee he banished. If one word of it was true, I’ll eat my kettle.”

I laughed in surprise, and I laughed even harder when I saw the same surprise written all over Harry's face. Hagrid never spoke about staff that way, not even Snape.

Hermione was not at all amused. “I think you’re being a bit unfair. Professor Dumbledore obviously thought he was the best man for the job-”

“He was the _on’y_ man for the job, an’ I mean the _on’y_ one. Gettin’ very difficult ter find anyone fer the Dark Arts job. People aren’t too keen ter take it on, see. They’re startin’ ter think it’s jinxed. No one’s lasted long fer a while now. So tell me,” Hagrid said as he set a plate of treacle tart down beside us, "who was he tryin’ ter curse?"

“Malfoy called Hermione something," Harry said, "and it must’ve been really bad, because everyone went wild.” 

Ron lifted his head again. “Malfoy called her ‘Mudblood,’ Hagrid-" He ducked back down, and Hagrid's face became the picture of rage.

“He didn’!”

I nodded. "He did. Fred and George would have killed him if his team hadn't protected him. I would have liked to hit him with a spell myself, but I don't keep my wand in these robes."

"I don’t know what it means," Hermione said softly. "I could tell it was really rude, of course, but I don't know why-”

Ron came back up. "It’s about the most insulting thing he could think of. Mudblood’s a really foul name for someone who is Muggle-born. You know, nonmagic parents. There are some wizards, like Malfoy’s family, who think they’re better than everyone else because they’re what people call pure-blood. I mean, the rest of us know it doesn’t make any difference at all. Look at Neville Longbottom, he’s pure-blood and he can hardly stand a cauldron the right way up.”

“An’ they haven’t invented a spell our Hermione can’ do,” Hagrid said, clapping her so hard on the shoulder she lurched forward and nearly fell.

“It's horrible," I said, reaching forward to lay a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "And it's a dangerous way to think."

"Most wizards these days are half-blood anyway," Ron explained. "If we hadn’t married Muggles we’d’ve died out a long time ago."

“Well, I don’ blame yeh fer tryin’ ter curse him, Ron. Bu’ maybe it was a good thing yer wand backfired. ’Spect Lucius Malfoy would’ve come marchin’ up ter school if yeh’d cursed his son. Least yer not in trouble. And as fer you, Lucy, well, I heard from Ginny Weasley yesterday after you left that you know a fair few mischievous spells. You may yet have yer chance." Hagrid sat up suddenly and looked at Harry, chuckling. "Harry, gotta bone ter pick with yeh. I’ve heard you’ve bin givin’ out signed photos. How come I haven’t got one?”

Harry's face contorted in irritation. “I have _not_ been giving out signed photos! If Lockhart’s still spreading that around-”

Hagrid patted him on the back and sent him face-first into the table. “I’m on’y jokin’. I knew yeh hadn’t really. I told Lockhart yeh didn’ need teh. Yer more famous than him without tryin’.”

Harry sat up and fixed his glasses, smiling a bit now. "Bet he didn't like that."

“Don’ think he did. An’ then I told him I’d never read one o’ his books an’ he decided ter go." Ron reappeared again and wiped his mouth. "Treacle fudge, Ron?”

"No thanks, better not risk it."

We sat in comfortable silence for a couple moments before Hagrid said, “Come an’ see what I’ve bin growin’.”

"Oh, the pumpkins!" I exclaimed, hurrying outside. They had all grown to the size of a boulder. "Whoa."

Hagrid seemed pleased with my reaction. “Gettin’ on well, aren’t they? Fer the Halloween feast; should be big enough by then.”

“What’ve you been feeding them?” Harry asked.

Hagrid shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I’ve bin givin’ them, you know, a bit o’ help.”

Hermione sounded torn between pride and disappointment. “An Engorgement Charm, I suppose? Well, you’ve done a good job on them.”

“That’s what yer little sister said, Ron. Met her jus’ yesterday. Said she was jus’ lookin’ round the grounds, but I reckon she was hopin’ she might run inter someone else at my house.” Hagrid nudged Harry. “If yeh ask me, she wouldn’ say no ter a signed-”

"Oh, shut up," Harry sighed, grinning nonetheless. Ron sputtered slugs when he laughed, and Hagrid yanked him away from the pumpkins. We headed back up to the castle shortly after that, Ron feeling somewhat better. We had barely made it to the castle when we were stopped by Professor McGonagall.

“There you are, Potter, Weasley. You will both do your detentions this evening.”

“What’re we doing, Professor?” Ron asked.

“You will be polishing the silver in the trophy room with Mr. Filch, and no magic, Weasley. Elbow grease. And you, Potter, will be helping Professor Lockhart answer his fan mail.”

Harry sounded almost panicked. “Oh n- Professor, can’t I go and do the trophy room, too?”

“Certainly not. Professor Lockhart requested you particularly. Eight o’clock sharp, both of you.”

I tried to cheer them up as we entered the Great Hall, but both felt they had the harsher punishment. After lunch, we made our way up to the common room, but we hadn't quite made it when we ran into the twins.

"There you are, Cub!" George called. "And hey Ron, how are you feeling?"

"Not great," he said miserably. "First slugs, now detention with Filch tonight polishing cups."

"Just be careful not to puke slugs all over them and you'll be fine," Fred said. "Anyway, Cub, we're ready to start our, ah, project, if you are."

I cocked my head. "Starting on the haunted house already?"

"Yeah." He winked, and I suddenly understood. Wandless magic.

I nodded excitedly. "I've been waiting for this. Let's go. Catch up with you three later!" I called over my shoulder as the twins whisked me away. We hurried to our favorite abandoned classroom and closed the door behind us. George grabbed three feathers from his robes pocket. He explained that he grabbed them from Charms, and figured that wingardium leviosa would probably be a good place to start. Fred and I agreed, and while we spent several hours in the classroom, trying to levitate the feathers without wands, the only time a feather moved was when Fred sneezed and sent all three flying off the desk.

"Don't look so discouraged, Cub," George said as we headed down to the Great Hall for dinner, completely unsuccessful. "There's a reason practically nobody can do wandless magic."

"It would have come in handy against Malfoy earlier," I protested. "I really wanted to hex him."

"The silencing charm was perfect," he assured me. "They looked so ridiculous, but they couldn't actually complain about it to a teacher since it was harmless."

"If Ron had actually made Draco burp slugs, we might have all gotten in trouble," Fred added.

I raised my eyebrows. "You two, glad you didn't get in trouble? Who are you, and what have you done with the Weasley twins?"

"Oh please," George laughed, "we just don't want to give Malfoy the satisfaction of being the one to get us in trouble."

"Fair enough," I replied with a shrug as we entered the Great Hall. "Now we just need to keep Harry and Ron's minds off detention."

"Consider it done," Fred said. "I'm sure they'd love to hear about the prank we have planned for Slytherin as revenge for this morning."

They were right; the boys probably would have forgotten about detention altogether if Hermione hadn't reminded them at 7:55 that they had to go. I wanted to stay up with Fred and George working on wandless magic some more, but they disappeared up the stairs with Lee Jordan a little after eight and didn't reappear again that night. Hermione headed to bed after finishing _Voyages with Vampires_ for what she told me was the third time, leaving me alone in the common room. I tried to read the latest edition of _Seeker Weekly_ , but since I had been awake since dawn, my mind wandered so I wandered to the window instead to stargaze until the boys were back.

Harry came back first, his hands covered in ink and his face completely pale. I wanted to ask if he was okay, because I could tell immediately something was wrong, but I instead hugged my knees to my chest and patted the other half of the window seat.

"The stars are pretty tonight," I said as he settled in across from me. "How was detention?"

He sighed shakily. "You're not going to believe this."

I stared at him, quirking my eyebrows slightly. "Tell me anyway."

Harry looked away and out the window, his glasses glinting as he looked up at the stars. "I heard a voice while I was working with Lockhart. It said something like 'Come, come to me, let me rip you, let me kill you.'"

My blood chilled instantly. "Did Lockhart hear it?"

He shook his head.

"I believe you, Harry," I said softly. "I don't know who or what that was or why you heard it and he didn't, but I believe you."

"Thanks," he replied, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes with his ink-stained fingers. 

I quirked a smile. "You just got purple ink all over your face."

"Not purple," he sighed, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Lilac."

"Oh, my bad," I giggled. " _Lilac_." I paused. "What's your favorite color, Harry?"

"What?"

"I mean, lilac is Lockhart's apparently. What's yours?"

"Um... red?"

"Gryffindor. Good choice."

He shrugged. "I haven't really thought about it, I guess. Red is better than green. What's your favorite color?"

"Not turquoise or lilac," I retorted, rolling my eyes. "Lockhart's ruined those for me. I guess I'd have to say red too, like a good Gryffindor. But I do still love yellow, just don't tell anyone."

"Your secret's safe with me," he chuckled.

Ron climbed in the portrait hole then, clutching his right arm. I brought my legs even closer to my chest to make room for him too. He sighed. “My muscles have all seized up. Fourteen times he made me buff up that Quidditch cup before he was satisfied. And then I had another slug attack all over a Special Award for Services to the School. Took ages to get the slime off. How was it with Lockhart, Harry?”

As Harry recounted the story, Ron's sleepy eyes grew wider and wider. "And Lockhart said he couldn’t hear it? D’you think he was lying? But I don’t get it, even someone invisible would’ve had to open the door.”

Harry turned to the window again. “I know. I don’t get it either.”

* * *

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brain Dumbledore considered asking Gilderoy Lockhart to perform his famous homorphus charm on a student afflicted with lycanthropy. He entertained the thought with Minerva McGonagall at the staff table the night before the full moon as they watched the girl with the braids trying to act like she didn't feel like she was on fire from the inside out, trying to act like every light and sound and aroma didn't overwhelm her, trying to smile and laugh like everyone around her._

_He expected to be chastised by his colleague, as he often was, but the witch actually chuckled as she glanced down the table at the man in question. Poor Professor Sprout next to him was attempting to feign polite interest, but she was no more successful than the small girl at the Gryffindor table. The professors took turns sitting next to him at meals. Dear Gilderoy thought it was because they all wanted to hear about his adventures; the true reason was that none of them could stand to listen to him more than two meals in a row._

_"You know, Albus," Minerva said. "Of all the awful ideas you've had over the years, that might just be my favorite."_

_"A chance to prove himself." A chance to have his ego checked. "A chance to prove all those stories he tells." A chance to possibly rid us of his delightful presence._

_"I might actually consider giving my approval if I didn't worry so much for the girl in question," the witch sighed, once again her serious self. "She has seemed happier since arriving here this year. I would hate to rob her of that just to prove a point about Gilderoy. A point she already understands, I hear." The wizard raised his eyebrows in silent question. The witch smiled. "She was ranting about him to the Weasley twins in the hallway the other day. Something about a factual inaccuracy in one of his books that her friend Miss Granger was willing to forgive but she was not."_

_Albus smiled. "Wise girl."_

_As they spoke, Lucy Diggory rose from the table and said something quickly to her friends, smiling and waving as she left the room. Minerva and Albus watched her leave in solemn silence. Minerva glanced down the table; Gilderoy Lockhart hadn't noticed a thing. She almost found herself wishing he had._

_Twenty-four hours later, Minerva was the one with the misfortune of sitting next to Gilderoy, good old Gilderoy. She noticed that the Weasley twins were sitting with their youngest sister for a change, trying to make her laugh with their nonstop antics. But something seems to be bothering her, and she can see the disappointment on her brothers' faces. Her sharp eyes also catch her brother, Percy, watching the scene intently from his seat between fellow prefects, a look of concern on his face._

_The voice of Gilderoy Lockhart, which was quite quickly becoming unbearable, snapped her back into the conversation at hand --- to use the term "conversation" loosely. It was closer to a Gilderoy Lockhart presentation with an occasional "Mhm" or "I see" or (very sarcastic) "How fascinating" from Minerva._

_"Those Weasley boys are really something, aren't they?" he asked._

_Minerva blinked in surprise. He was actually talking about something other than himself. She nodded. "They get in their fair share of trouble, but the boys are very bright."_

_"I heard them talking about the Ford Anglia in my class once, trying to figure out a way to fix the invisibility feature." Minerva smiled to herself. Of course they were. "I offered the best advice I could, of course, I told them to..." She returned to ignoring him, watching as Ginny Weasley finally cracked a grin and punched Fred (or was it George?) on the shoulder._

_That night as she tried to fall asleep --- she hadn't slept well on a full moon in more than 20 years; she worried too much about Remus Lupin, and now Lucy Diggory --- she found her mind wandering once again to the proposal of the headmaster the night prior. Perhaps it was a good thing she hadn't allowed him to send Gilderoy Lockhart after the werewolf. She had a feeling he'd make himself useful sooner than later._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed the different perspective for the full moon! I wanted to mix it up a bit, and I plan to continue to experiment in the future, so that it's not the same perspective every time. If you enjoyed it, or if you hated it, please comment and let me know! I'm hoping to include a different perspective every couple full moons. Not that Lucy's is boring, but... I know it can be. Sorry about that.
> 
> As always, thank you for being amazing! I love you all so much! Thanks for everything, my lovely readers!


	24. Branch Within My Reach

_In this sea of change, understanding is our shore  
I disappear with no control  
The current is strong, my arms are weak  
But you are the branch within my reach  
Though I cannot catch my breath_

_"Currents"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

Hermione's birthday in 1992 fell on a Saturday, which meant I tossed and turned the night before, trying to decide if I should wake her up before I left for Quidditch practice to steal a couple quiet moments with her to give her my gift or if I should just wait until after practice and have it be less rushed.

But since I was still awake at midnight, I grabbed the small package out from under my pillow and tucked it into my pajama pants pocket before sliding out of bed.

"Hermione, Hermione, wake up, it's urgent!" I whispered.

Her eyes fluttered open slowly. "Lucy? What's wrong, are you okay?"

"Just follow me," I urged, grabbing her hand and pulling her down to the common room, careful not to wake our roommates up with our commotion. I led her to my favorite window seat and patted the cushion next to me.

She now looked wide awake and worried. "What's the matter? What's going on?"

"It's your birthday!" I exclaimed, throwing my arms around her.

"Oh," she said, giggling and blushing ever so slightly. "I suppose it is, yeah."

"I wasn't sure if you'd rather have me wake you up before I left for Quidditch practice or wait until after I got back to give you your gift, but since I realized it was after midnight and therefore technically your birthday..." I drew the small box from my pocket and handed it to her. "Happy birthday, Hermione."

She tore the paper off and popped the lid open. She smiled. "It's beautiful," she said in a hushed voice, drawing the silver ring from the box and putting it on. She blinked in surprise as it instantly became half-purple and half-green. "What do the colors mean?"

I lifted my hand to show that the ring on my finger was also half-purple and half-green, purple on the left and green on the right. "I heard that Muggles like to wear rings that change color and call them mood rings. I asked Dean Thomas about them, but he laughed and said they change color because of temperature, not mood. But I enchanted these to match our moods, for real. I'm on the left and you're on the right, since I'm left-handed and you're right-handed, and as long as we wear these, we'll always get to see what the other is feeling."

"Whoa," she said, holding her hand up next to mine. "So you're purple? What's purple?"

"Nervous, I think. I haven't figured all the colors out yet," I admitted. "I haven't personally been able to test the extent of the ring yet, because the magic works best when we're both wearing them. But I think purple is nervous, and green is excited. Does that sound right?"

She nodded, and the entire ring glowed yellow. She gasped. "What's that one?"

"Happiness," I said with a smile. "And I think that the stronger the emotion, the more the ring glows."

"This is the best present ever!" she exclaimed, hugging me tightly. "Thank you, Lucy!"

"Of course," I replied. "I'm so glad you like it. We can head back to bed now, if you'd like. I just wanted to take the time to explain the rings to you, rather than trying to leave a note or letting you think I forgot about your birthday."

"I know you wouldn't," she said with a confident smile. "You're my best friend. But you do know that now I need to find out your birthday, right?"

I laughed. "I intend to keep that secret as long as possible."

In the weeks that followed, we figured out more and more about the colors of the rings. Hermione's half turned faintly red whenever she was around Professor Lockhart; I reasoned pretty quickly that red meant love, and she tried and failed to deny it. The ring turned pink when I brought it up, and we realized pink must be embarrassment. She told me that any time I disappeared with the twins, it flickered between green and white. I speculated that one was amusement and one was focus, but I wasn't sure which was which until Fred pranked George during dinner one night and both sides of the ring turned a brilliant green as we howled with laughter.

But for the most part, our rings were yellow. We were happy. Quidditch practices were hard, but I loved my broom, and I loved the camaraderie I could finally begin to build as an official member of the team. I didn't spend as much time studying by myself in the stands. It wasn't worth running through the rain, and I was actually starting to enjoy studying with other people anyway. I didn't like studying in the library very often, either, but I often made myself comfortable in a corner of the common room, surrounded by other second-years that would ask me for help from time to time (since most of them found Hermione intimidating and me significantly less so). I still sat with Fred and George at meals, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione across the table, but on the nights Percy asked Fred and George to sit with Ginny, I found myself in good company with other kids my age.

Of all of our friends, Archie of all people was the first to notice the rings. The two of us were stuck working across the table from Draco Malfoy in Potions, who was droning on and on about how he'd love to drink his strengthening solution and use it to hit a Bludger at me so hard I'd go flying through the goalposts. I was trying to drown him out, but I snapped back into focus when Archie said my name.

"Nice ring, Diggory, where'd you get it?"

I blinked in surprise and glanced down. My half was a dim scarlet, a color I hadn't seen before. Hermione's half was white; the lucky girl was working with Neville at another table, so she was actually able to focus on her potion. 

"It was my birthday present for Hermione," I explained. He watched as the scarlet faded to a subtle orange. "Huh, I've never seen that color before. Anyway, Hermione has one, and I have one."

"Why?" Draco asked. "You two getting married or something?"

"I thought you said I was too ugly for that. No, we're not getting married, we're just friends."

"Not that I think you know what those are," Archie added.

"I have friends!" he protested.

Professor Snape swooped by then with a judgmental glare my direction, so I quickly went back to work as if nothing had happened, but the ring glowed pink out of the corner of my eye. Draco huffed and returned to his potion. "I still want to knock you off your broom with a Bludger, Diggory," he mumbled.

"Be my guest." I looked up at him and smirked. "I'd love to see you try."

"Give it a month or so, and you will."

"I can't wait, especially considering you're a Seeker."

Archie snickered and added more salamander blood to his potion. "She got you there, Draco."

Draco scowled, not bothering to reply. His eyes strayed to my ring, which had returned to a subtle shade of orange on both sides. "What does orange mean?"

"I've never seen orange before," I admitted. "The magic knows better than I do."

I waited for a sarcastic comment, but none came. He merely nodded slowly. "How did you do that?"

"A couple different charms," I replied with a shrug. "It was a lot of trial and error, but I'm happy with how it turned out." The orange on my half of the ring glowed brighter.

"Yeah, well," he said as he sprinkled some powdered griffin claw into his potion, "maybe you should just stick to charms. You're better at those than Quidditch anyway. I mean, you covered my whole team with a silencing charm a couple weeks ago."

I raised my eyebrows at him. "Was that almost a compliment?"

"Didn't know you knew what those were, either," Archie sassed.

"No, it wasn't almost a compliment," Draco spluttered, stirring his potion faster. "I just think the ring is neat, that's all. And such a big silencing charm would be hard but I could probably do it if I-"

"I get it," I interrupted. "Thanks, Draco. Hermione thinks the ring is neat as well, and the silencing charm was fun. Now you might want to stop stirring so quickly, you'll splash it all over Crabbe, and he doesn't need it. He has to hold up that thick skull somehow, I'm sure he's plenty strong."

Crabbe grinned and cracked his knuckles. "You bet I am."

Draco elbowed him hard in the ribs. "She just insulted you, dimwit."

Crabbe's face fell. "Really?"

"I'm just joking around," I said with an inkling of a smile. "I meant nothing by it. If anything, it was half of a compliment, saying you're strong. Draco was the one who called you a dimwit, which isn't a compliment at all."

Before anyone could respond, Snape swooped by again, and we were silent the rest of the class. But as I left, I noticed Draco looking at me with a new interest. I watched his eyes wander again to my ring, and he stared at it for a moment before turning to someone else. I shivered involuntarily and ducked out of the classroom before he could look further.

* * *

_A thirteen-year-old girl sat on her bed fighting tears the night of the full moon, nervously twisting a ring around her finger. The right half of the ring was a brilliant shade of purple; the other half was just its natural silver. An identical ring rested in the drawer of the nightstand between her bed and the empty bed of her best friend._

_"Everything okay, Hermione?" a curly-haired girl asked as she slid between her sheets._

_Hermione stopped twirling the ring and nodded. "Yes, of course. Thanks, though, Lavender."_

_"Lucy's sick again?" the other girl in the room asked, glancing up from her magazine._

_Hermione nodded again. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind you two knowing the truth, if you'd like to know. We've been roommates for a year now, and-"_

_"Oh, we know," Lavender said. "We figured it out a while ago, didn't we, Parvati?"_

_Her friend nodded. "We did. It's okay."_

_"You did?" Hermione asked, her voice a nervous squeak. The ring on her finger nearly burned her with the intensity of the dread flowing through it. She wasn't planning on telling the true truth, that her best friend was a werewolf. She was just going to let them think they knew the truth by feeding them a convincing lie, one she and Lucy had decided upon telling the other girls over summer._

_She was still reeling when Parvati nodded. "Disappearing every month? Looking really sick for a week? It's related to her period, isn't it?"_

_"Oh." Hermione breathed a small sigh of relief. "Yes, it is." She sighed again. "I always just tell the boys she's sick, because it's rather personal that she has to leave every month for that, but I was hoping you two would understand."_

_"Oh, we understand," the other two girls said quickly._

_"What's wrong with her?" Parvati asked after a moment._

_"She doesn't like to talk about it," Hermione lied. The lie came easily; she had rehearsed it for many weeks at that point. "But she told me that it's extremely painful for her after the incident in the Forbidden Forest last year, and since she's allergic to dittany, Madam Pomfrey gives her something else that actually helps. She always stays the night, just in case something goes wrong or she needs a higher dosage."_

_The other girls nodded their solemn understanding, and Hermione's gaze drifted toward the window. The full moon was obscured by clouds, but she knew it was there._

_"It'll be okay, Hermione," Parvati said. "Lucy's strong. She'll be okay."_

_Hermione tore her eyes away from the window and sucked in a deep breath. "I know, she always is. I just worry." She laughed, but there was no humor in it. "But I suppose you two have learned that by now."_

_They smiled and nodded. Hermione smiled as well and laid against her pillow, lacing her fingers behind her head and tangling them in her bushy hair as the room lapsed back into comfortable silence save the flipping of magazine pages._

_It was the most she had talked to her roommates other than Lucy in weeks; she found Harry and Ron far more interesting. Hermione knew that Lucy preferred their company to anyone else's, too, but ever since returning to school, she had noticed her friend making new connections everywhere she went._

_Lucy was by far the most patient of anyone with the starry-eyed Colin Creevey and the well-intentioned Neville Longbottom. When it came to the Weasleys, she could just as easily talk to Percy about classes as she could laugh with Fred and George about their Zonko's discoveries. And when it came to talking to girls, well, Hermione knew Lucy was better at that than she'd ever be, and that was fine with her. Her lack of connection to the other girls in her dorm only ever bothered her when Lucy was gone, as she was that night._

_But for all of her connections new and old, Lucy was alone that night in the Shrieking Shack._

_Rain poured down in sheets outside the dilapidated house; unfortunately for the werewolf, the roof was rather leaky and the floor quickly became more wet than dry. The wolf slipped through puddles as it searched the house desperately for something, anything to eat, but when it slid straight into a door frame and got a nasty bruise on its hip, it whimpered and retreated to the bed in the corner, hiding beneath it and waiting impatiently for the dawn._

_Sleep did not come easily to Hermione that night, but it did come eventually. And when she dreamed, she dreamed that she was running through the Forbidden Forest with Lucy sprinting in front of her. But no matter how hard Hermione tried to keep up, Lucy ran faster and faster until she disappeared into the darkness. A scream echoed in the distance, and Hermione jolted awake._

_She sat up, her hands reaching forward for a friend whose bed was empty. She heaved a dry sob, raising her shaking hands to her face in horror, and took a deep breath to gather herself._

_It was just a dream. It was just a dream._

_Unable to go back to sleep, Hermione grabbed a set of robes at sunrise and slipped off to the shower, the warm water washing away the uneasiness of the night. She returned to the bedroom silently, and before she descended the stairs to make her way to the Hospital Wing, she reached into the drawer between their beds and grabbed the other half-purple and half-silver ring._

_Lucy was soaking wet, shivering, blue in the face, and buried in blankets when Hermione arrived, but she was sitting up in bed, and she smiled when she saw her friend. Hermione sprinted across the room and flung her arms around the swaddled girl as best as she could._

_"Good morning." Lucy wrestled her arms free of the blanket mountain to hug her back. "Miss me more than usual?"_

_Hermione nodded as they pulled away. She reached for Lucy's hand and placed the ring in her palm._

_Lucy's blue eyes twinkled when she smiled. "I was hoping you'd bring that. Thank you." Lucy slipped the ring on, and Hermione's purple half was joined by a soft yellow._

_Hermione laughed, and it sounded watery and weak to her ears. "How can you possibly be happy right now?"_

_"You're here," Lucy replied simply. Her brother, looking concerned but trying not to show it, appeared at her bedside and handed her a steaming mug of something golden and shimmering. "And Cedric's here." She took a sip of the potion, and the yellow of the ring glowed brighter. "And this tastes really good, somehow. And I made it through the night. And I know Harry and Ron will be happy to see me later, and I hope to finally beat Ron at wizard's chess this afternoon after I take a nice long nap in my own bed. Why wouldn't I be happy?"_

_Cedric placed a hand on his sister's forehead and managed a smile. "Possibly because you spent several hours in the freezing rain last night on top of the dozens of hours you already spend outside practicing in the daytime, but just the same, I'm glad you're happy."_

_Hermione lowered herself onto the foot of Lucy's bed, fiddling with the fringe on the top blanket._

_"Did I miss anything exciting?" Lucy asked after Cedric had walked away for a moment._

_Hermione shook her head. "I told Parvati and Lavender the story we talked about."_

_"How did that go?"_

_"They believed it, easily," she replied. "They already suspected something like that."_

_"Well, that's good." Lucy took another long sip from the mug. "What's wrong?"_

_Hermione shrugged. "Nothing."_

_Lucy held her fist up so the ring was plainly visible, the yellow half still clashing with the blue and purple of Hermione's half. "Your half looks like a bruise. What's wrong?"_

_"Lucy, it's nothing," she insisted with a half-hearted laugh. "You're the one who's buried in blankets and probably covered in bruises, not me."_

_"And I almost considered giving you a book for your birthday instead." Lucy rolled her eyes and sipped the potion again. "Hermione, please."_

_"Fine, fine," she relented. "I had a bad dream last night. But that's all."_

_Lucy raised her eyebrows in silent prodding._

_Hermione sighed. "Alright. The two of us were in the Forbidden Forest, running. You were in front of me, and I tried to keep up, but you were faster. You disappeared, and I woke up when I heard a scream."_

_Lucy nodded slowly. "I'm sorry you had that dream, that sounds scary."_

_"It's fine," Hermione said, hoping to convince both herself and her friend with her quick confidence. "It was just a silly dream. You're alright, and that's all that matters."_

_But Lucy's face remained serious. "I'm still glad you told me." She glanced down at the ring. "And see? Your half looks better. That must have helped."_

_Hermione looked at her own ring, and surely enough, the blues and purples were less intense. But so was the yellow. "Your side dimmed too, though."_

_"So?"_

_"You were happy."_

_"I still am, Hermione. Friends share each other's burdens."_

_"Why do I get the feeling you just quoted my own words back at me?" she asked with a slow smile._

_Lucy grinned. "Because I probably did." She finished the potion with one last swig and set the mug on the side table. She peeled the outermost blanket off of her mound and held it out to Hermione. "Friends share each other's blankets too. Especially when one friend is beginning to overheat."_

_Hermione giggled and accepted it. "That sounds like a sign in the Hufflepuff common room. Friends share each other's burdens --- and blankets!"_

_Cedric's laughter rang out through the empty Hospital Wing. "If it doesn't already exist, I'll make sure it does soon!" he declared._

* * *

Oliver's Quidditch practices happened rain or shine --- most often, rain. As a result, the whole team was plagued by a head cold that refused to leave no matter how much Pepperup Potion we drank. Harry and I started sitting together at the back of every class so that the steam rising from our ears nearly 24/7 wouldn't obscure anyone's view.

"Sorry, Harry, you're on your own heading up to the castle today," I said after one such practice as I shouldered my broom. "Think you can handle it?"

He laughed. "I think I can. Where are you going instead?"

"Cedric's birthday is Tuesday," I explained. "I'm meeting up with a group of his friends to make a plan."

"Sounds like fun! As for myself," he said, gesturing toward his muddied robes, "I think I'm going to go change."

It was my turn to laugh. "I wish I could, but I think I'm already late. See ya!"

I placed my broom in my locker and raced up the stairs.

"Sorry I'm late," I panted, ducking under the massive umbrella they crowded under and taking a quick seat next to Archie, careful not to touch anyone with my robes. "Practice went long."

"I can't believe Wood is making you practice in this weather!" Henry exclaimed. "And then making practices extra long!"

"All part of his new strategy," I said with a shrug. "You're lucky it's raining so hard he couldn't see you in the stands. He would have thought you were spying on us." Everyone laughed at that. I grinned. "Glad you all think that's funny. He's a paranoid pain in the arse sometimes, honestly. But anyway, Cedric. Who was assigned to distract him, since Henry's here?"

"His new friend, Cho Chang," Beatrice answered, trying to blow her bangs out of her eyes but growling in frustration when she realized they were so wet they were stuck to her forehead. "Your brother sure has a lot of friends."

I nodded. "Sure does. So what's the plan?"

"Nonexistent," Henry said with a sigh. "We just found out he's not going to Hogsmeade next weekend, and we were all planning on celebrating then."

"That was my plan too," I groaned. "Why isn't he going?"

"He wants to study for our big Transfiguration test the Monday after, but we all know he's the best in our year at that," a boy I recognized as Alex said. "There's got to be another reason, though."

"Whatever the reason may be, Hogsmeade's out of the question," Henry said. "We have to think of something else, something we could do on Tuesday."

A sudden thought occurred to me. "Maybe Hogsmeade isn't out of the question entirely. What were you planning on doing?"

"Uh..." Beatrice counted on her fingers. "Dragging him to the Shrieking Shack on a dare, then making it up to him by going to the Three Broomsticks and pooling our money to get a round of Butterbeer, then taking him to Honeyduke's."

I pursed my lips. "If I told you that I could make Honeyduke's happen still, would you be willing to give me the money?"

Everyone raised their eyebrows.

"How?" Archie asked.

"I have friends," I replied, a smile spreading across my face. "I helped them with someone's birthday over summer. They'd happily help me with this one, especially if it meant breaking some rules in the process. If that's okay with you all, of course, I know how you Hufflepuffs are with rules-"

"Oh please," Beatrice retorted. "Our common room is next to the kitchens. We don't mind breaking rules for food, and we certainly wouldn't mind breaking rules for Cedric. Right?" she added, glancing around the group.

Henry grinned. "Sounds good to me. Alright, Lucy, meet me in the courtyard tomorrow after dinner, and I'll give you what I can gather."

"I'll talk to my friends right now," I said, smiling. "Thanks for helping, everybody. You should probably go back in pairs so he doesn't realize we were all gathered together. Let's make this Cedric's best birthday yet, yeah?"

Everyone nodded their enthusiastic agreement, and we went our separate ways. I trudged up through the common room to my dormitory, where Parvati and Lavender were hunched over the new edition of _Witch Weekly_.

"Hi, Lucy, how was practice?" Lavender asked. Her eyes widened. "Ew! You have mud everywhere!"

"I know," I said, but with my horribly plugged nose, it came out sounding like "I doh." I grabbed the clean set of robes I had left on my bed that morning and disappeared into the bathroom.

I wrestled the Quidditch robes off and vigorously scrubbed my arms and chest and face and neck in the sink before pulling the clean robes over my head. I paused and studied my reflection in the mirror, something I tried not to do anymore but couldn't resist sometimes.

With my perpetual head cold, my blue eyes were watery and rimmed with red, and my nose was shiny and bright pink. I leaned closer to the mirror.

The scars had faded somewhat over the course of the year, though a couple of new ones had joined the ranks. A couple slashed across my right hand's knuckles from the time I smashed through a wooden plank after jumping too hard. A perpendicular line ran down my collarbone from running into a doorway at high speed. But somehow, my face was largely the same. Thin white lines still marked every inch of my skin, and my face was no exception. I tore my eyes away from the mirror and shoved my robes into the sink to deal with later. I needed to talk to the twins.

I threw my wet hair up into a ponytail, so it dripped down my back rather than my front, and headed down to the common room. The twins seemed busy, gathered around a table with a smoldering salamander, so I instead made my way over to Hermione and Ron. Harry appeared to have just arrived as well, which seemed odd considering I had been talking to Cedric's friends for quite a while.

Before I could say anything, Ron asked, "Did you two come up together?"

I shook my head. "I had to talk to someone. Did you just get here, Harry?

He nodded. "I bumped into Nearly Headless Nick, and he invited me to his death day party, which slowed me down a bit. You're all invited," he added. "Nick was hoping you three would come with me."

I sat next to Harry and began flipping my wand in my hand. "Sounds like fun! When's the party?"

"Halloween," he replied, somewhat glumly, "which means we'll miss the feast. You'll be busy with the haunted house anyway, though, I reckon."

I shook my head. "The twins and I have been too busy with, ah, other things. We'll do one next year."

"A death day party?" Hermione asked, looking up from her book for the first time. "I bet there aren’t many living people who can say they’ve been to one of those! It’ll be fascinating!” 

Ron was less than impressed. “Why would anyone want to celebrate the day they died? Sounds dead depressing to me.”

Harry opened his mouth to say something else, but just then, the twins' salamander took flight. He soared across the room in a spectacular series of crackles and pops, showering orange sparks as he whizzed back and forth before landing in the fireplace. I jumped to my feet and pointed my wand at the fire. It was extinguished with a quick "Aguamenti!", and I snatched the salamander from the ashes before igniting the logs again with an "Incendio!"

Percy immediately marched up to the twins. "What were you thinking?" he roared, his face nearly as red as his hair. "Where did you even get that salamander? You could have hurt someone! You could have killed someone! You two are-"

I approached softly and stood on my tiptoes to tap Percy on the shoulder. (The twins were rather tall, but Percy stood a couple inches above them still. They always wondered how his tall, skinny body could support his metaphorically big head.) He spun around, and he looked for a second like he was going to yell at me too for interrupting, but his face softened.

"Yes?" he asked, seemingly trying very hard not to sound impatient with me.

"The salamander's alright," I said, holding him up for emphasis. Still crackling and smoking a bit, the creature scrambled up my arm and curled up in a ball on my shoulder. "See?"

He nodded stiffly. "I do see. But they should have known better than to feed a salamander a firework-"

"Oh, but he's fire-resistant! It doesn't hurt him! I only took him out of the fire so he wouldn't try to spit the firework up and cause an even bigger explosion." I turned to the twins, who were watching the scene with mingled relief and amusement. "I was coming over to ask you two a question anyway. I ran out of Pepperup Potion and I don't want to go to the Hospital Wing alone. Would you mind coming with me?"

"Sure thing, Cub!" Fred exclaimed, bursting forward toward the portrait hole with George on his heels. "Meet you just outside!"

Once they had disappeared, I removed the salamander from my shoulder and handed it to Ginny, who smiled widely.

"Hold still, Ginny!" Colin Creevey exclaimed. "Let me take a picture!"

"You do that," I chuckled, glancing at Percy as I left. He looked as if he'd been stunned, but his gaze was locked on the beaming Ginny and not me.

"Something tells me you need more than company," Fred said when I crawled through the portrait hole.

"What makes you say that?"

"Oh, come off it, Cub," George teased. "We both know you and Harry always stop by the Hospital Wing together before Lockhart's class, you don't need us to walk you."

"Go on then, let it out," Fred coaxed. "Why'd you really bail us out of a well-deserved Percy lecture? Because if you'd ever let us get it, it'd be for endangering a creature."

"Alright, alright," I relented. "You have a point. Well, here's the thing..."

I explained the tentative plan for Cedric's birthday, and, as expected, they jumped at the chance to break rules for a noble reason. They went with me the next day to pick up the money from Henry, too, who didn't look at all surprised to see them.

"I had a feeling these two would be the 'friends' you mentioned, Lucy," he said with a chuckle as he pressed the pouch of coins into my hand. He eyed them with a new interest. "You two really think you can get to Honeyduke's before Tuesday? And get there and back with all the candy without getting caught?"

"Think?" Fred scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Dearest Henry, we _know_ we can."

"Why do you think everyone speaks so highly of the Gryffindor Quidditch parties?" George asked. 

Henry smiled and shook his head in disbelief. "Well, good luck regardless, though it certainly sounds like you won't need it."

"We don't," they assured him in unison, "but thanks."

Henry laughed and glanced at me. "Do they do that often?"

I nodded. "All the time. I'll contact you once they've gotten the candy and we can figure out how to give it to Cedric."

"Oh, George and I have figured that the delivery can be our contribution to the celebration," Fred said. "Leave that to us."

Henry and I exchanged a look.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"What's the matter, Cub, don't trust us?" George teased with a good-natured grin.

"I just watched you feed a salamander a firework."

"So you have nothing to worry about!" Fred declared, snatching the pouch from my hand and tossing it to his twin. "Come on, Georgie, we have an errand to run. Wait for us in the common room, yeah, Cub?"

I nodded. "Sure. Good luck, and don't get caught."

George patted his chest; I knew the map lay beneath his hand. "Weasleys' honor," he said with a wink. "See you later."

They spun on their heels and disappeared into the darkness.

"They _do_ know what they're doing, right?" Henry asked after a moment.

"Oh yeah," I agreed immediately. "They definitely do."

"What do you reckon they have in mind for the, er, delivery?"

I laughed. "I honestly don't know. But what I do know is that Tuesday will be a day Cedric remembers for the rest of his life."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, even though it contained very little content from the book itself! I promise it'll get more exciting very quickly, but I wanted to take the time to build a couple of relationships before Hogwarts gets turned upside down.


	25. A Natural Healer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Hogwarts Mystery spoilers are present in this chapter! If you aren't up to Year 6, Chapter 18, you may want to skip the last scene. It isn't terribly relevant to the plot, but it does help shape Cedric's character as he reflects upon the events of his first year at Hogwarts.)

CEDRIC:

"Happy birthday, Cedric Amos Diggory!" a voice boomed as something landed on my legs.

I ripped my eye mask off and laughed when I realized it was a some _one_ and not a some _thing_. "Thank you, and good morning to you too, Henry."

"Figured I'd mix it up on your birthday this year," he said with a shrug and a stupid grin. "Anyway, get dressed and hurry up, the other lads are already down in the Great Hall."

"They're normally louder than three mountain trolls apparating at once when they're getting ready in the morning," I chuckled as I grabbed my robes and ducked into the bathroom to change. "How'd they get out without waking me up?"

"They heard about your sister's silencing charm against the Slytherin Quidditch team and figured they'd learn it for this morning so they wouldn't wake you up and ruin everything. She taught them last night while we were at practice. Speaking of your sister," he said, stepping into the bathroom and holding up a hat made out of parchment and glitter, "she told me to give you this."

I quickly pulled the rest of my shirt down over my chest with one hand and placed the hat on my head with the other. It immediately began to sing a very loud birthday song, but when I tried to take it off, it only sank lower and lower onto my head. I stopped resisting when it fell over my eyes, and the song gave way to Lucy's voice.

"Happy birthday, Cedric!" she said. "Take Henry's hand and follow him wherever he leads you. And just so you're not tempted to peek at where you're going..." The front of the hat caved inward ever so slightly until it was literally holding my eyes closed.

I held my hand out, laughing. "Alright, Hen. Lead me. But um, would you mind if I grabbed shoes first?"

"Oh, blimey!" he exclaimed. "I was so looking forward to seeing what the hat would do I didn't even realize you didn't have those on yet. Yeah-" He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the bathroom. "-let's get you some shoes."

Once I was fully ready for my day --- I hadn't packed my bookbag either --- he led me by the hand down the stairs, across the common room, through the barrels (that in and of itself was impressive), and to what I thought might be the Great Hall. Every time we passed somebody, Henry would yell "Blinded birthday boy coming through! Watch out!" The fact that I was blushing every time he did so was largely hidden by the hat that had secured itself over my face from the nose up, but I could feel the heat rising inside. Just the same, I couldn't stop smiling. It was fun.

Just when I thought we'd arrived at the Great Hall, Henry let go of my hand. Someone else with a smaller and colder hand grabbed it and led me down another hallway.

"Happy birthday, Ced!" Lucy exclaimed. "I see the hat's working."

Before I could reply, she let go and both of my hands were grabbed.

"Our turn!" the twins shouted in unison.

"Take him away, boys!" Lucy cheered, Henry laughing behind me. The twins walked faster and faster, to the point where I struggled to keep up. Just when I was about to ask them to slow down, the bag was ripped off my head and a frigid breeze hit my face.

"Happy birthday, Cedric!" a group of people, probably a dozen or so altogether, screamed.

"Thanks, everyone!" I exclaimed, taking in the scene as my eyes adjusted. The sun was just beginning to rise, and my friends had gathered in a small circle on the front steps of the castle, swaddled in blankets and scarves to ward off the late October chill. In the middle of the group was a large package, which was shaped quite suspiciously like a firework the size of a small child. "Wow, this is crazy. All this for me?"

"Of course," Lucy said, grunting as she picked up the gift and lugged it to me. "This is your gift. Everyone pitched in on it, and we all decided to try to make a meal of it. Dishes, everyone!"

To my surprise, everyone brought various dishes out from their bundles of blankets. Lucy grabbed a stack of bowls off of a nearby bench and distributed them among those of us that hadn't joined the circle yet. I accepted it in confusion and made the first tentative rip in the yellow wrapping paper, half-expecting it to start singing like the hat. When nothing happened, I cautiously made another rip.

"It doesn't bite, Ced," Lucy giggled. She glanced at the twins and grew serious. "Right? You didn't add something after I fell asleep last night?"

"No, it doesn't bite," one of them assured her.

"We'll help him out regardless," the other said, drawing his wand and pointing it at the package. "Diffindo!"

The paper peeled away to reveal a firework that had been painted to look vaguely like a yellow pygmy puff. I must have looked as confused as I felt, because Lucy laughed again. I couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so much in such a short amount of time.

"Don't worry, it's more than a firework," she said, plunging her hand into her robes and drawing her wand. "Just the same, I advise you all to step back. Incendio!"

We all backed up a couple of steps as the fuse ignited and the firework shot off into the cloudy sky. When it exploded, sparks rained down, but so did nearly every sweet imaginable. Everybody's bowls and plates and cups zigged and zagged, trying to catch as many candies as they could. I myself was most excited by the Chocolate Frogs I managed to catch in my bowl. Once everyone had caught their breakfast, the feast began.

I found myself sharing a blanket with Lucy and Henry --- thankfully, Lucy had thought to bring an extra. They took turns explaining how the plan came to pass, from Fred and George's mysterious mission on Sunday to the silencing charm lesson the night prior to the last-second idea to paint the firework that led to an impromptu painting party in the Gryffindor common room at midnight. I absorbed it all with a smile that I hoped everyone could see came straight from my soul. I felt so loved in that moment, surrounded by my best friends and eating candy as we watched a Hogwarts sunrise on the first non-rainy morning in a month. It was truthfully the best gift I had ever received. And fortunately, the Colin Creevey character Lucy had told me so much about had heard the explosion from the firework, so naturally, he rushed down with his camera and began snapping pictures.

"Will you help me develop these, Lucy?" he asked. "I'll take a bunch, so everyone can have one!"

"Of course!" she replied immediately, and we all smiled as he took a photograph of the three of us sharing a blanket. "Have you tried an Every-Flavour Bean before, Colin?"

He shook his head. "Too scared. What if I get a salamander blood one? Or toenail fungus? Or sand?"

"I've never gotten any of those, don't worry," she said. She fished a liquorice wand out of her bowl and offered it to him. "Maybe you should start with one of these instead."

He excitedly took a large bite off the tip. His eyes widened. "Yum! Thanks, Lucy!" He quickly removed it from his mouth and tried to take a picture of the half-eaten candy with one hand.

"Maybe I should take the picture, Colin," she said with a laugh. He nodded sheepishly and passed off the camera. He smiled widely as the camera flashed. "I'll help you develop that one too."

"I'll put it right under the one with Professor Lockhart and Harry Potter! See you later, Lucy!" he called over his shoulder. "And happy birthday, Lucy's brother!"

"Thank you!" I called back as he ducked down a corridor and out of sight. I chuckled. "I wish I had his energy this early in the morning."

Lucy smiled. "He annoys Harry to pieces, but I think he's rather sweet." Her eyes widened, and she snickered, holding up her bowl. "Get it? Sweet?"

"Very funny, Lu," one of the twins groaned, tossing a jellybean at her that bounced off her forehead and into her bowl.

She rolled her eyes. "I forgot how much you hate puns, Fred. Oh well, at least I get more candy out of it." She fished the grey bean out of the bowl and popped it into her mouth without hesitation. She immediately gulped and wrinkled her nose. "Ew! Sardine!"

* * *

When I made my way to the Halloween feast, by myself because I hadn't gone to Hogsmeade, I was surprised to see Lucy heading the opposite direction of the Great Hall. I was even more surprised to see the red bandanna in her hair, which had been freed from its typical braids. I didn't even recognize that it was my sister that had passed me until she had nearly disappeared around the corner.

"Hey, Lu, where are you headed?" I asked.

She spun around, a wide smile on her face. "Oh, I forgot to tell you! I was invited to Nearly Headless Nick's deathday party! I'm meeting Harry and Ron and Hermione there now. I was going to walk down with them, but Lavender insisted that I borrow this," she explained, pointing to the bandanna. "But it took a while for her to convince me to leave my hair down instead of braiding it."

"Well, you look lovely, my sister," I said as I dropped to a grandiose mock bow, "and I do know you'll steal the hearts of everyone at that party."

She giggled. "You do know everyone there will be dead aside from my friends and me?"

"In that case, steal Harry's heart," I teased. "He's alive, isn't he?"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "If you insist. Enjoy the feast!" She waved, and we went our separate ways.

"We thought you were going to miss it, mate," Henry teased as I slid into the open seat next to him. The rest of our friends were sitting together at one end of the table, which was too full to possibly have room for the three of us. We instead found ourselves surrounded by second-years, most of whom I thankfully knew because of Lucy.

"Me? Miss the Halloween feast? No way." I surveyed the room, and let out a low whistle when I saw the massive pumpkins. "I think that's a new record. They're huge."

Everyone followed my gaze and nodded their agreement.

"Reckon those are nearly half the size of Percy Weasley's ego," Ernie Macmillan, a second-hand, quipped. "Tried to take House Points from me just for accidentally tripping his sister, he did."

"Ah, lay off the boy," I said. "He's just being a protective brother, if a little overly so."

"Sounds a lot like someone I know," Henry retorted.

I rolled my eyes. "Once your sister comes to Hogwarts, you'll understand."

"I'll have it easy by comparison," he said as he took a casual sip of pumpkin juice. "Your sister's best friends are the biggest troublemakers in this school."

"They're great!" Justin Finch-Fletchley exclaimed from further down the table. "I mean, didn't they save the school last year?"

"I think so," I agreed with a laugh, "but hopefully those days are behind us all. I'm ready for a boring year."

"What happened your first two years, Cedric?" Susan Bones inquired.

Before I could answer, Archie and Cam slid in between her and Hannah Abbott.

"Is it okay if we sit here?" Cam asked, her dark eyes flashing beneath her glasses. "Just for tonight. Malfoy won't shut up about how his dad is coming to watch his first house match and how his dad would love to hex Archie into oblivion for 'bullying' his son if it wouldn't damage his reputation as a member of the school's governing board."

"Which is complete dragon dung," Archie grumbled. He straightened up and smirked. "Everyone knows I would throw the first punch. And win. No magic needed, no tricks up my sleeve."

"I don't doubt that, Arch," Henry said with a good-natured chuckle, "but you better keep your hands to yourself around Lucius Malfoy."

"Violence doesn't often solve anything anyway," I added as I reached for another helping of potatoes. "Just keep doing what you're doing, both of you, by standing up for what's right even when it's hard. He'll come around eventually, they all will."

"And in the meantime, you're always welcome here!" Hannah exclaimed, holding up a bowl of bread. "You two want some bread?"

They both nodded and reached into the basket so enthusiastically they nearly knocked it from poor Hannah's hands. The meal passed in a blur of delicious food and the occasional burst of magic sent forth from the wands of the teachers at the front of the room. I laughed when a swarm of bats swooped over each of the tables; the twins had told me Lucy hated bats, and I figured she would be incredibly glad to have attended the death day party instead. Little did I know how wrong I'd be.

After the feast, we had just reached the second floor when we were abruptly stopped by a massive crowd of students that plugged up the hallway. I turned toward Henry, raising my eyebrows in a silent gesture of "What's going on?" but he merely shrugged at me. The people behind us pushed us forward, and I saw for the first time what everyone was seeing.

Mrs. Norris was hanging from the ceiling by her tail, body unmoving and eyes unseeing.

Bea pushed through the crowd until she got to me. "Cedric," she whispered hoarsely, clutching my right arm as tightly as it seemed she could. I laid a comforting hand on top of hers as I read the blood-red words on the wall.

THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE!

I began to scan the crowd frantically. Where was Lucy in all of this? My heart dropped when I found her red bandanna; she was in the middle of the semi-circle that had formed, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Harry, Ron and Hermione standing slightly behind them. She looked pale and frightened, and I felt my heart twist in my chest.

“Enemies of the Heir, beware! You’ll be next, Mudbloods!” Draco Malfoy crowed, looking sickeningly jubilant.

"Shut up, Draco!" Archie snapped from my left side. "Do you have any idea how serious this is?"

Before anyone could make further comment, Mr. Filch approached. His scowl turned to a look of pure horror when he saw his beloved pet. “My cat! My cat! What’s happened to Mrs. Norris?” His eyes landed directly on the small knot in the middle, Harry in particular. “ _You_! You! You’ve murdered my cat! You’ve killed her! I’ll kill you! I’ll-”

He lurched forward toward Harry. Quick as a porlock protecting a horse in danger, Lucy jumped between Harry and the caretaker.

"No!" she gasped. I lunged forward myself, but before I could get anywhere, Professor Dumbledore pressed through the crowd to the center of the semi-circle, a number of teachers immediately behind him.

"Argus!" he boomed. When Mr. Filch froze, the headmaster calmly reached forward and took Mrs. Norris down. “Come with me, Argus. You, too, Mr. Potter, Miss Diggory, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger.”

"My office is nearest, Headmaster!" Lockhart chirped, not at all disturbed by the gruesome scene. "Just upstairs, please feel free!"

"Thank you, Gilderoy," he replied, ushering the four second-years forward through the crowd, which parted like a silent sea. Lucy looked over her shoulder, searching for me, fear written all over her face, but her eyes did not meet mine before Professor Snape grabbed her roughly by the shoulder and propelled her forward. When the crowd began to disperse, I tried to get to her a third time, but someone grabbed my left arm, and Bea's grip tightened on my right.

"We should get back to the common room, mate," Henry said gently.

"But my sister-" I started to protest, but Henry jerked his chin toward Beatrice. Her brown eyes flashed in the torchlight, and her breath was coming in ragged gasps. She swayed on her feet, and I quickly shot out to catch her. "It's okay," I murmured as Henry rushed to her other side and grabbed her elbow. "It's going to be okay. Let's go back to the common room."

"Something else," she panted, leaning heavily against me, "something else is happening... it's still not safe here, it... it never has been... and never will be..."

"You're safe, Bea," I assured her as best I could, though I felt my own chest tightening with fear. As we rushed to the common room, I couldn't shake the images from my mind. The writing on the wall. The dangling cat. And Lucy, somehow in the middle of it all, small and scared and without her brother to help. I took a deep breath to steady myself. 

_One person at a time_ , I told myself, the words of Madam Pomfrey, spoken to me so many times, coming to mind. _Give your best to one person at a time. That is all we can do, as helpers and healers._

I couldn't help Lucy, not at that moment, but I could help Beatrice, and I intended to do exactly that to the best of my ability.

When we reached the common room, most of our house mates were quietly climbing the stairs to their dorms. Some of the younger kids were whispering behind their hands as they went, wondering what Harry Potter had done this time, but most of the older kids were exchanging solemn looks and explaining to the others in low voices what had taken place three years prior. I guided Beatrice to the chair nearest the fire and gestured to Henry to head up to the dorm, I'd take care of Beatrice. He nodded understandingly and disappeared.

I knelt before my friend and gently laid my hands on top of her shaking ones. I forced away the emotions that threatened to overtake me in the moment. Helping Beatrice was all that mattered.

"Look at me, Bea," I said, gentle but firm. She did so slowly, and the firelight made the tears in her eyes flash and flicker. "You're safe. You're okay. Nobody was hurt."

"It won't stay that way," she whispered, her voice cracking on every other word. "It never does."

"We're better prepared now than we've ever been. You and me. We can handle anything that comes our way. Circle of Khanna, remember?"

The laugh that escaped her lips was harsh and mournful, and she looked away as a sob wracked her body. "I don't want to have to mourn another student, Cedric. Losing her was... was bad enough."

"You won't have to mourn anyone," I assured her in the most confident voice I could manage. "It's going to be alright. We'll be safe here."

"Have we ever been?"

I nodded. "I'd like to think so."

"I've never seen you turned into a portrait," she snapped. "I've never seen you floating half-dead in the Black Lake. Safe, Cedric? Safe? Your sister was attacked in the Forbidden Forest, for Merlin's sake! Not to mention what happened with Harry and Quirrell in the dungeons last year! Cedric, we've never been safe here and we never will be!" She jumped up and shoved me aside, storming across the room and throwing a punch at the opposite wall. I rushed forward and caught her hand before she could throw another punch. She tried to wrench herself free, but I ducked under her arm and stood between her and the wall, using my free hand to grab her other hand.

"Bea, stop." She complied instantly, her blond hair falling in her face. "It's the fear talking. I don't want to talk to your fear. I want to talk to Beatrice Haywood, the girl who cheers the loudest from the stands at all of my Quidditch matches. I want to talk to Beatrice Haywood, the girl who has been top of her class every year despite every terrible thing that's happened to her because she works harder than anyone else. I want to talk to Beatrice Haywood, the girl who would do anything for the people she loves. Please, Bea, for me?"

She nodded slowly, and I reached forward to brush the lock of hair out of her face before leading her back to the couch and sitting beside her. She leaned into me, burying her face in the nape of my neck as she sobbed. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and let her cry until her tears dried up.

"Better?" I asked.

"A bit," she replied weakly. She sighed. "I don't think I'll get any sleep tonight."

"Me neither," I admitted. "Want to play a game to pass the time?"

"A game? Really, Ced?"

"Would you rather study to take your mind off things?"

"I do have O.W.L.s this year, but... no. I'd rather play a game."

I rose from the couch and offered her a hand up. We walked together to the massive cabinet of games in the corner. This cabinet had existed from centuries, boasting a variety of games from the earliest Gobstone prototypes that sprayed mild poisons to the latest Muggle board games.

"Your choice," I said, gesturing to the cluttered shelves.

She reached forward and grabbed a deck of cards. "It's been forever since I just played that game Alex taught us. What do Muggles call it again? Go Fish?"

I grinned. "Yeah, that's what they call it. Let's play."

We were halfway through our fourth game when Beatrice slumped over the table, dead asleep. I got up to put the cards away when the barrel swung open.

"Oh, good, I'm glad you're still awake," Professor Sprout said, glancing toward Beatrice. "Well, one of you."

I grinned. "You barely missed her. What brings you here so late?"

"I had a feeling you two would be struggling more than most with tonight's events," she explained. "The Heads of Houses just had a very impromptu meeting with the headmaster, after your sister and her friends left."

"I wanted to follow Lucy, but Bea needed me more. How is she?"

"She's a natural protector," she replied, smiling. "Planted herself firmly between Mr. Potter and Miss Granger and didn't budge."

"Will Mrs. Norris be alright?"

"Oh, yes." Professor Sprout nodded very quickly. "We will be able to cure her easily, once the Mandrakes come of age. I thought you would like to know, though, that she was petrified."

It felt like the floor gave way beneath me, but I managed to keep my balance. "Like the statue curse, Professor?"

"I'm afraid so. I was hoping to deliver the news myself to Miss Haywood, too, before word travels too far around the school, but I'd rather not wake her up."

"I'll catch her in the morning before she goes to the Great Hall," I said. "I can sleep down here with her."

"It's alright, Mr. Diggory, you've done more than enough."

I smiled. "A true healer's work is never done."

* * *

In my dream that night, I was chasing Lucy down a corridor illuminated only by dim blue torches. It didn't seem she was running away from me; she was running away from whatever was behind me. 

The corridor seemed endless. It never turned, never changed. The shadows continued to stretch further and further down. No matter how fast we ran, we were never able to see the end of it. And no matter how fast we ran, whatever was behind us got closer and closer.

I couldn't hear running footsteps or heavy breathing behind me. There was no audible indication that it was getting closer, or that there was anything chasing us at all. But I could feel it, the heavy sense of darkness that weighed increasingly on my heart as we ran.

To my horror, Lucy suddenly tripped. I reached forward to steady her, to catch her, but I fell too, sprawling on the ground next to her. She screamed, an ear-splitting and soul-wrenching scream that chilled me to the core. I shut my eyes tightly and threw myself on top of her to protect her from whatever it was that was chasing us, but it wasn't enough. She screamed again, and this time, the scream woke me up.

I jerked awake, gasping for breath and on the brink of tears. I guessed it was around seven in the morning. I buried my head in my hands, trying to stay as quiet as possible, but Henry was already awake.

"What's wrong, Ced?" he asked, and I heard rustling sheets as he came to sit next to me on my bed.

"Bad dream," I panted. 

"Haven't had one of those in a while," he commented softly, tentatively laying a hand on my back.

I nodded, lowering my hands from my face.

"Reckon it would help to talk about it?"

"It's alright," I lied. "Just a dream."

"Okay. Just don't let Professor Trelawney hear about it, yeah?"

I managed a chuckle. "I'll be sure to exclude it from my next Divination essay."

"The last thing you need is her predicting your death again," he said, patting my back a couple of times before returning to his own bed.

I nodded as I swung my legs over the side of my bed and rose shakily to my feet.

"Where are you going? It's a Sunday, you can sleep in."

"I probably won't go back to sleep," I admitted. "Might as well get up."

"Want me to go with you?"

I shook my head. "You can sleep. I'll be okay."

"If you're sure," he said with a yawn. "If you need anything, you know where to find me."

"Okay. Thank you."

Beatrice was in the common room, staring into the fire with a blank expression. 

"Hey, Bea," I said softly. "How are you?"

She glanced up at me, not saying a word. I nodded understandingly and took a seat next to her.

"Professor Sprout told me what happened to Mrs. Norris. Did she tell you?"

Beatrice shook her head. I shifted uncomfortably --- I hated being the bearer of bad news.

"Bea... Mrs. Norris was petrified."

Her face contorted into an expression equal parts anger and fear, and she jumped to her feet.

"Don't follow me, please," she hissed before turning on her heel and sprinting away.

I knew better than to follow her; the last time I tried, I found myself attacked by a flock of birds until I was a mile away from her. I learned the hard way that day that when Beatrice said she needed space, she really meant it. She would come to me when she needed me, and not a second before. And I was okay with that. I wanted some space of my own anyway.

I was on my way to the Great Hall in a sleepy daze when I spotted my sister. 

"Lu!" I called, rushing toward her and throwing my arms around her, the horror of my nightmare still fresh in my mind. "Are you alright?"

She nodded and squeezed hard. "I'm alright. Didn't sleep much. You look like you didn't either."

I shrugged. "I probably got a solid... four hours."

Lucy grinned. "I think I got two. I'm glad it's Sunday and not Monday." She glanced over her shoulder at Hermione, who had sagged against the wall with a thick book in her hands, and her smile faded. "I should probably go. Hermione needs me."

"I understand. Get some sleep, Lu."

"You too, Ced." She approached Hermione and gently took her by the arm, leading her still-reading friend into the Hall. 

I considered following her, but I was never hungry after not sleeping well, so I headed to the Quidditch Pitch instead.

After the events of the previous night, I would have expected rain to be pouring down in torrential sheets and angry lightning to crack across the sky. But the sun was peeking through the clouds, and a gentle wind made my robes billow around me as I walked.

I climbed all the way up to the top box, something I didn't do very often, and watched the clouds roll across the deep blue sky.

I knew I should have been studying for the next day's Transfiguration test, but given the events of the past 24 hours, it suddenly seemed insignificant. The words on the wall chilled me to the bone. The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir, beware.

Had Adalyn left a Cursed Vault untouched? Had someone re-opened one we thought was already destroyed?

As I sat there, I felt less and less like Cedric Diggory, fourth-year Hufflepuff Chaser and aspiring healer and future prefect and hopeful Quidditch captain. I felt more and more like Cedric Diggory, first-year Hufflepuff struggling with the weight of everybody's expectations of me. Everybody talked about me, for a reason I was never fully able to fathom.

It began with the Haywoods. I was the first Hufflepuff to be sorted in my year, and I found myself seated at the table between a prefect, Adalyn Benson, and a girl who quickly introduced herself as Penny Haywood. Adalyn mentioned that she had met my father a few years prior, and laughed when I blushed. I knew Dad had a way of speaking too highly of me, of projecting everything he wished could have been onto me, his first-born, his only son. After the feast, Adalyn led the way to the common room, but Penny pulled me to the back.

"I hate to do this, considering we've only just met," she sighed, "but somehow I already know you'll be the best person for what I'm about to ask of you."

"I'm happy to do whatever it is!" I said with a smile. "I like being helpful!"

She smiled back, and I noticed for the first time how sad she looked despite how happy I could tell she tried to be. "Thank you, Cedric. Well, I have a sister, and her name is Beatrice. She'll be a second-year, but she might be in some of your classes."

"Was she at the feast?" I asked, trying to recall every face I could and not being able to remember one that looked quite like Penny's.

"She wasn't," her sister replied. 

"That's too bad," I said, furrowing my brow. "Does she need a friend?"

Penny nodded. "She does. Please never tell her I asked you, but will you please look out for her? I'm a sixth-year, and I need to know someone will be there for her when I leave in two years."

"I'll be the best friend I can be," I promised. And so far, I had done my best to keep that promise.

Penny was right; Bea was in a fair few of my classes. I soon learned it was because she had been trapped in a portrait for the better part of her first year at Hogwarts. My heart went out to her, and I did my best to help her as much as possible when she was struggling in class. She was embarrassed at first, but she soon started to accept my help more and more, and she quickly caught up with her other classmates and joined her second-year classmates for the second half of the year. After the death of Rowan Khanna, she shut me out entirely along with everybody else. When my attempts to help her got me nowhere, I began to make new friends. Then the talk about me really took flight.

It started with duels with Diego. Then people realized I was quick to learn Transfiguration, which most people considered the hardest subject of all. Then I became the one who was there when Madam Pomfrey was petrified.

The school seemed split. Half the school would never stop talking about how great I was. The other half would do anything to try to bring me down.

As for myself? I tried to ignore it all. I studied hard. I spent my free time volunteering in the Hospital Wing. When Beatrice opened back up to me, we spent hours talking, over Gobstones or textbooks or sometimes a combination of the two. I kept my head down but my chin up. I pushed through one day at a time, believing it could and would get better. And in time, it did.

I'll admit that the arrival of Harry Potter played a large role in shifting the spotlight off of me, as did Lucy's Forbidden Forest incident. I watched as Harry and Lucy endured much of the same talk I had, but I knew it was because of their scars and their stories. I bore no scars, I had no story to tell except the one I hoped to write one year at a time. But from the second I arrived, people started trying to write my story for me. 

As I sat in the top box, a slight rain beginning to fall even though a few meek rays of the sun still shone, I wondered where my story would go from there, what my role would be in the chapters to come.

I liked the term Professor Sprout had used to describe Lucy, "natural protector." I had always been a natural healer, someone who tried to bring comfort after catastrophe had come and gone. But with the danger at Hogwarts still very much present and threatening, I found myself wondering if I could be more like Lucy. A natural protector, someone who stepped in to prevent disaster rather than someone who cleaned up the remnants after the storm had passed through.


	26. Darkness Will Be Rewritten

_And darkness will be rewritten  
Into a work of fiction, you'll see  
As you pull on every ribbon  
You'll find every secret it keeps  
The sound of the branches breaking under your feet  
The smell of the falling and burning leaves  
The bitterness of winter or the sweetness of spring  
You are an artist  
And your heart is your masterpiece  
And I'll keep it safe_

_"I'll Keep You Safe"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

After Halloween, I found myself longing to be more like Cedric. A natural healer, someone who always knew exactly what to say and do to make everything right again. 

When Percy approached me Sunday afternoon, I immediately knew something was wrong. Percy wasn't a happy person, necessarily, but I had never seen such concern on his face before.

"Lucy?" he asked, his voice cracking slightly. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Lucy? May I have a moment?"

I glanced toward Hermione, who seemed to have taken no notice of his presence. Her eyes flitted back and forth across the page as she read at the pace of a million words a minute. She'd been reading all day and showed no signs of slowing down or stopping any time soon. "I'll be back, Mione," I said, resting my hand on top of hers briefly to get her attention. I caught a glimpse of our rings as I did so; hers was the same bright purple as it had been since the second we saw Mrs. Norris. I hadn't factored concern into the range of emotions, somehow, but I knew that fear was the closest thing to concern so my half was purple as well. She nodded, so I rose to my feet and followed Percy out of the common room. 

"Are you alright after the events of last night, Lucy?"

I blinked, caught off guard by the question. "Oh, yes. I'm alright. Thank you. Is that what you wanted to talk about?"

"Not exactly," he said slowly, pushing his glasses up on his nose. "I just can't imagine being in your shoes. What _did_ happen? As the prefect of the four students most closely related to the incident, I'd like to know."

"Well..." I rubbed my temples, willing away the headache that was knocking around the inside of my skull. "We attended Nearly Headless Nick's deathday party. And by we, I mean Harry and Ron and Hermione and myself." I paused, trying to think of the words to say that most closely matched the words spoken the night prior. "We were tired, so we decided to leave, but we headed up a different way than we normally do. We had only been there for a minute, maybe less, when everybody else showed up there. Nothing else happened."

He pursed his lips. "It sounds like you were all just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

I felt some of the tension in my shoulders release. "That's exactly what Professor Snape said."

He nodded, seemingly satisfied having drawn the same conclusion as a professor. He cleared his throat again. "Well, I'm glad to hear that it was nothing more than that." A twinge of guilt rippled through me because it was most certainly _not_ nothing more than that, but I forced it away. Harry hadn't mentioned the voice, and it wasn't my information to share. "And I'm glad you're handling it well. But, well, the reason I asked to talk to you was that... well, it would seem my sister is not handling it as well as you. I've tried to speak to her already today, but she just cried and cried and cried no matter what I said. And... well, would you mind trying to help her? Reassure her?"

"Of course," I replied immediately, though I found a good deal of humor in trying to imagine what Percy had said to try to comfort her. I could hear it now. _The statistical probability of you being attacked is extremely low! Not zero, but extremely low! It's far more likely that someone like Hermione Granger or Colin Creevey would be attacked rather than you or any of your dear brothers- wait, why are you crying even harder? Was it something I said?_

"Thank you." He sighed. "I really did try to help. I'm her prefect after all, and the oldest brother at Hogwarts still. But I think you'll be able to help more, seeing the way you two bonded over summer." He slapped his forehead suddenly. "Oh! Maybe she's so upset because she loves cats!" He laughed. "I thought she was worried about us being attacked, but I didn't realize how much she loves cats!"

I smiled politely, finding it hard to believe that she would be so upset just over a cat. "Maybe that's it. I'll go talk to her right now, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you again, Lucy."

"No problem, Percy. You know I'd do anything for your family."

With that, we went our separate ways, him to the library and me to the girls' dormitories. I climbed the stairs until I reached the first years' dormitory, and knocked on the door.

"Ginny?" I called. "It's Lucy. Will you please let me in?"

I heard shuffling footsteps, and the door opened to reveal a girl whose tear-streaked face was as red as her hair. She sniffled. "Hi, Lucy. What's up?"

"I..." I had been so confident I'd be able to help so much better than Percy did, but I found myself at a loss for words. "I just wanted to see if you were okay, after last night."

She started to close the door. "Did one of my brothers put you up to this?"

"No," I lied, pushing the door a little further open. "Honest. I just know it was probably scary for you. It was scary for me. It was scary for everyone, really, but probably especially first-years."

She froze, gnawing on her lower lip as it began to tremble. My mind raced. What would Cedric do?

"Hey, I have an idea," I said suddenly. "Have you ever ridden a broom in the rain before?"

She mulled this over. "I don't think so, no."

"Well, if you'd like to get your mind off of last night, I'll take you down to the Quidditch Pitch, and you can ride my new broom."

"The Nimbus 2001?" she asked with starry eyes.

"The Nimbus 2001 prototype," I corrected with a slight wince.

"That's even cooler!" she exclaimed, flinging the door open as she scrambled to pull a pair of boots on. "Let's go!"

We trudged through the rain down to the lockers, where I grabbed my broom and handed it to her. Her eyes shone as she ran her fingers down the shaft.

"This is the most beautiful broom I've ever seen," she whispered. "It's almost too perfect to fly."

"Oh, definitely not," I protested, ushering her out into the center of the Pitch. "You have to fly it!"

She smiled over her shoulder as she mounted the broom. "Don't worry. I said almost too perfect." With that, she kicked off the ground and shot off into the storm.

We were the only ones there, any practices deterred by the heavy rain, so I grabbed Cedric's broom from his locker, figuring he wouldn't mind. I even grabbed a Quaffle from a box so Ginny and I could toss it back and forth.

I don't know how long we were there, but once it got too dark to see, we decided to call it a day and head back up to the common room to dry out by the fire before dinner.

She pushed her flaming hair out of her face as we sat side by side in front of the common room fire, grinning from ear to ear.

"Your broom is amazing!" she gushed. "It's so powerful! And fast! And yet, it's like it's not even there! It's like _I'm_ the one flying!" She sighed dramatically. "I can't wait until I'm on the Quidditch team, just like you and Harry."

I smiled, and whispered, "All of this time, and you're just now mentioning Harry?"

She giggled. "I was distracted! I love Harry, but I love Quidditch more."

"Do you want to play professionally one day?" I asked.

"I want to." Ginny smiled then, but her eyes were serious. "No, I don't 'want to.' I will."

"That's the spirit," I said, reaching forward and lightly punching her shoulder. "Spoken like a true Gryffindor."

"What do you want to do when you grow up, Lucy?"

For such an innocent question, it sure made my world flip upside down. "I don't know," I said with a casual shrug even as my heart dropped to my toes. "I'm keeping my options open."

It wasn't a lie. Not completely. I had no clue what I wanted to do, what I _could_ do. Finding a job as a werewolf was next to impossible. No matter how talented I was, no matter how smart I was, no matter how charismatic or brave or hard-working I was, no self-respecting member of wizarding society would ever trust a werewolf enough to hire them. It was unheard of. The thought of my future made my stomach hurt with the uncertainty of it all.

But Ginny didn't see any of this turmoil when she smiled at me. "Maybe you can play Quidditch with me."

I smiled. "I like the sound of that."

* * *

I slid into the seat next to Harry at the back of the room in History of Magic and fanned the steam away from my ears. "Did Ron finish the essay?" I asked as I drew my own (completed, thankfully) essay from my bookbag.

"I think he was two inches short," he laughed. "Did he ask for yours too?"

"I'm the reason he has an essay to begin with," I said with a roll of my eyes. "I helped him with the first foot before leaving for practice yesterday." I swatted at the weak curls of steam rising around Harry's ears. "Are you running low on Pepperup, too?"

He nodded. "Let's get some on our way to Lockhart's class."

I nodded my agreement just as Professor Binns started talking. I did my best to take good notes on the International Warlock Convention of 1289, but I was miserable. The full moon was coming up, and I had only taken a half dosage of Pepperup Potion, and I kept Hermione company as she read late into the night, so there was a throbbing headache behind my eyes that made it harder to focus than usual. 

I was distracted from my misery, though, when Hermione raised her hand. Professor Binns seemed as surprised as the rest of us.

“Miss... er...?"

“Granger, Professor. I was wondering if you could tell us anything about the Chamber of Secrets."

The entire class seemed to snap to attention. Even Harry, who was half-asleep next to me, sat up straighter in his seat and leaned forward slightly. I scribbled "Chamber of Secrets" in the margins of my notes and held my quill at the ready.

“My subject is History of Magic. I deal with facts, Miss Granger, not myths and legends.” He cleared his throat and droned on, “In September of that year, a subcommittee of Sardinian sorcerers-” Hermione shot her hand up again. I smiled. Professor Binns had no idea how determined Hermione could be --- surely enough, the ring on my hand glowed half-white. "Miss Grant?" 

“Please, sir, don’t legends always have a basis in fact?”

“Well... yes, one could argue that, I suppose. However, the legend of which you speak is such a very _sensational_ , even _ludicrous_ tale." He hesitated, then sighed. I pressed my quill to the parchment, ready to write like I'd never written before. "Oh, very well. Let me see, the Chamber of Secrets… you all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago by the four greatest witches and wizards of the age. The four school Houses are named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. They built this castle together, far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much persecution. For a few years, the founders worked in harmony together, seeking out youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be educated. But then disagreements sprang up between them. A rift began to grow between Slytherin and the others. Slytherin wished to be more _selective_ about the students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy. After a while, there was a serious argument on the subject between Slytherin and Gryffindor, and Slytherin left the school. ”

I felt a bit of pride surge in my chest as I scrawled down that detail. I had never known that Godric Gryffindor was the one to stand up to Salazar Slytherin.

"Reliable historical sources tell us this much, but these honest facts have been obscured by the fanciful legend of the Chamber of Secrets. The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing. Slytherin, according to the legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic. The whole thing is arrant nonsense, of course. Naturally, the school has been searched for evidence of such a chamber, many times, by the most learned witches and wizards. It does not exist. A tale told to frighten the gullible.”

The class sat for a moment in stunned silence, but Hermione's hand shot back into the air.

“Sir, what exactly do you mean by the ‘horror within’ the Chamber?”

“That is believed to be some sort of monster, which the Heir of Slytherin alone can control.”

At the mention of the word "monster," something clenched in my stomach. A true monster, or something like me? What would petrify a cat? What _could_ petrify a cat?

“I tell you, the thing does not exist. There is no Chamber and no monster,” Professor Binns said with a sense of finality.

But Seamus spoke up next. “But, sir, if the Chamber can only be opened by Slytherin’s true heir, no one else would be able to find it, would they?”

“Nonsense, O’Flaherty. If a long succession of Hogwarts headmasters and headmistresses haven’t found the thing-”

Parvati was next. “But, Professor, you’d probably have to use Dark Magic to open it-”

“Just because a wizard doesn’t use Dark Magic doesn’t mean he can’t, Miss Pennyfeather. I repeat, if the likes of Dumbledore-"

Dean was next. "But maybe you’ve got to be related to Slytherin, so Dumbledore couldn’t-”

Professor Binns was done. “That will do! It is a myth! It does not exist! There is not a shred of evidence that Slytherin ever built so much as a secret broom cupboard! I regret telling you such a foolish story! We will return, if you please, to history, to solid, believable, verifiable fact!”

I gave up on trying to take notes for the rest of the class. As soon as the bell rang, I turned to Harry and lowered my voice to a whisper.

"Harry, remember that ancient runes book I got last Christmas?"

He nodded.

"The beginning of the book has biographies of the four founders. If it's true, that Salazar Slytherin made the Chamber of Secrets, maybe the book has details on it. More so than a widely-known book, anyway."

His eyes widened. "Yeah, it probably does."

We turned to pack our bags when we saw Ron and Hermione heading toward us. I still hadn't told anyone other than Harry about the ancient runes book. I couldn't explain why, but I just had a feeling that whatever Dumbledore had in mind for Harry and me, it would be best between the two of us until it became clear we needed to let someone else in on the secret. And yet, there had been no need.

We headed up to the common room to drop our bags off before dinner. 

Ron sighed heavily. “I always knew Salazar Slytherin was a twisted old loony, but I never knew he started all this pure-blood stuff. I wouldn’t be in his house if you paid me. Honestly, if the Sorting Hat had tried to put me in Slytherin, I’d’ve got the train straight back home."

Hermione nodded fervently, and I cracked a smile, but Harry looked troubled. I adjusted my bag on my shoulder, and I was going to ask what was wrong, but Colin Creevey came along then, getting tossed around in the crowd.

“Hiya, Harry!”

"Hullo, Colin."

“Harry, Harry, a boy in my class has been saying you’re-” His next words were lost in the crowd, but we did hear a "See ya, Harry!" as he was swept away around a corner.

Hermione cocked her head. “What’s a boy in his class saying about you?”

“That I’m Slytherin’s heir, I expect." Harry bit his lower lip. "Maybe that's why Justin ran away from me."

"He what?" I asked.

"Oh, right, you weren't in the library when I told Ron and Hermione. Justin Finch-Fletchley saw me at lunch, and I was going to say hello, but he ran away. But if he thinks I'm Slytherin's heir..."

"People here will believe anything," Ron grumbled.

I nodded emphatically. "Remember when Fred and George managed to convince half the school that Peeves was secretly married to the Bloody Baron, and even magically altered pictures to prove it?"

Harry managed a smile. "Yeah, I do. That was a very funny couple of weeks."

After a moment of silence, Ron asked, “D’you _really_ think there’s a Chamber of Secrets?”

Hermione hesitated. “I don’t know. Dumbledore couldn’t cure Mrs. Norris, and that makes me think that whatever attacked her might not be, well, human.”

"Professor Binns used the word monster," I added in a small voice. Hermione looked toward me, the glance rife with meaning, and I glanced down at the ground, catching the purple glow of the ring on my hand. "I hope it's not human, if that's really the case."

We found ourselves at the scene again. The words still glowed red on the wall. I felt my breath hitch in my throat, and I really wanted to run away, but Harry dropped his bag. 

"It's deserted," he observed. "Can't hurt to have a look around."

I nodded and set my bag, joining him on my hands and knees.

"Scorch marks," he muttered. "There, and there-"

"And over here too," I added.

Hermione gasped. "Come and look at this! This is funny.” We joined her at a window and followed where she was pointing. A bunch of spiders were climbing a web like a rope, trying to get outside through a tiny crack in the top pane. “Have you ever seen spiders act like that?”

"No," Harry and I said in unison.

"Have you, Ron?" Harry asked. "Ron? What's up?"

We turned around to see him pressed against the back wall, looking incredibly pale.

“I don’t like spiders,” he stammered, his gaze fixed on me so he didn't have to look at the spiders.

Hermione sounded surprised. “I never knew that. You’ve used spiders in Potions loads of times-”

“I don’t mind them dead. I just don’t like the way they move.” 

Hermione laughed, making his face go from pale to bright red.

“It’s not funny. If you must know, when I was three, Fred turned my teddy bear into a great big filthy spider because I broke his toy broomstick. You wouldn’t like them either if you’d been holding your bear and suddenly it had too many legs and... and...”

I cracked a grin. "That's not the story the twins told me over summer. Yours makes more sense."

He managed to get even more red at that. "You knew?"

I nodded. "We started talking about boggarts and phobias and whatnot, and your fear of spiders came up." I heard Hermione snicker behind me, but thankfully Harry spoke up before Ron heard her laughter.

“Remember all that water on the floor? Where did that come from? Someone’s mopped it up.”

Ron nodded, eager to be on a different topic. “It was about here, level with this door.” He reached to open the door, then recoiled.

“What’s the matter?” Harry asked.

Ron turned pink again. "Can’t go in there. That’s a girls’ toilet.”

Hermione sighed. “Oh, Ron, there won’t be anyone in there. That’s Moaning Myrtle’s place. Come on, let’s have a look.”

"I've never actually been in here," I muttered as we stared at the door. 

"Why not?" Ron asked.

"Girls usually only come here when they need to cry," Hermione explained. "It's quite pathetic, honestly, sometimes I just need to pee but it's full of crying girls. Lucy's never been because she just saves her crying for the shower."

"Oh, shut up," I mumbled. I blushed from head to toe, but didn't disagree as we entered the room. Hermione placed a finger over her lips and approached the last stall. 

"Hello, Myrtle," she said as kindly as she could muster. "How are you?"

She glared at Harry and Ron. “This is a _girls’_ bathroom. _They’re_ not girls."

“No, they're not. I just wanted to show them how, er, nice it is in here.”

"Who are you?" the ghost girl asked, looking at me.

"I'm Lucy Diggory," I said with a smile. "I don't believe we had the pleasure of being properly introduced at Nearly Headless Nick's party the other night. Speaking of, did you see anything unusual on Halloween? A cat was attacked just outside your door."

“I wasn’t paying attention. Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to kill myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I’m... that I’m...”

"Already dead," Ron finished for her.

Myrtle wailed and dove into the toilet, her mournful screams echoing throughout the room.

Hermione sighed. "That was almost cheerful for Myrtle. Come on, let's go."

"I'll catch up with you in a minute," I said, creeping closer to the toilet. "Myrtle? Will you please come back up? I want to talk to you."

"Lucy, if you want to talk to her, she won't come up for hours," Hermione said impatiently. "Come on, let's go."

After dinner, we headed up to the common room and settled in a corner. It had been a while since it was just the four of us to ourselves, so, naturally, our focus drifted from our homework to the Chamber of Secrets. 

Hermione set her homework aside and looked around at all of us. “Who can it be, though? Who’d want to frighten all the Squibs and Muggle-borns out of Hogwarts?”

“Let’s think. Who do we know who thinks Muggle-borns are scum?” Ron rolled his eyes. "Seems obvious to me."

Hermione shook her head slowly. “If you’re talking about Malfoy...”

“Of course I am! You heard him! ‘You’ll be next, Mudbloods!’ Come on, you’ve only got to look at his foul rat face to know it’s him-”

I glanced down to see Hermione's swirl of purple and white and scarlet. Fear. Determination. Anger. The same three emotions swirling around the past few days.

Ron's words hit a sensitive spot. What were people saying about my scarred face behind my back? My ring slowly morphed to a soft pink. Embarrassment.

Harry closed his books as well. “Look at his family. The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin; he’s always boasting about it. They could easily be Slytherin’s descendants. His father’s definitely evil enough.”

Ron nodded enthusiastically. “They could’ve had the key to the Chamber of Secrets for centuries! Handing it down, father to son-”

"Well, I suppose it's possible," Hermione mused. "What do you think, Lucy?"

I shrugged, rubbing the back of my neck.

"If it is him, how do we prove it?" Harry asked, rubbing his chin.

“There might be a way. Of course, it would be difficult. And dangerous, very dangerous. We’d be breaking about fifty school rules, I expect-”

“If, in a month or so, you feel like explaining, you will let us know, won’t you?” Ron asked.

"Alright, alright. What we’d need to do is to get inside the Slytherin common room and ask Malfoy a few questions without him realizing it’s us.”

Ron laughed. Harry looked like he was trying not to as he said, "But that's impossible."

Hermione shook her head. “No, it’s not. All we’d need would be some Polyjuice Potion.”

I bit my lip. It could work.

"What's that?" the boys asked.

“It transforms you into somebody else. Think about it! We could change into four of the Slytherins. No one would know it was us. Malfoy would probably tell us anything. He’s probably boasting about it in the Slytherin common room right now, if only we could hear him.”

Ron seemed unconvinced. “This Polyjuice stuff sounds a bit dodgy to me. What if we were stuck looking like three of the Slytherins forever?”

“It wears off after a while. But getting hold of the recipe will be very difficult. Snape said it was in a book called _Moste Potente Potions_ and it’s bound to be in the Restricted Section of the library.”

“Hard to see why we’d want the book, really, if we weren’t going to try and make one of the potions," Ron said with a heavy sigh. 

"I think if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the theory, we might stand a chance-"

“Oh, come on, no teacher’s going to fall for that! They’d have to be really thick... bloody hell, we need to ask Lockhart."

Harry and I immediately erupted into laughter, drawing quite a few stares from the others in the common room, but we were too entertained to stop. Once we finally managed to control ourselves, we bowed our heads together and figured out a specific plan.

* * *

"Today, class, we are going to recreate my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf!" Professor Lockhart exclaimed. "Hm, who would like to play the part of the werewolf?" A number of hands shot in the hair, mainly girls, but he pursed his lips and scanned the room. His gaze landed on the back of the room, and I felt my fight-or-flight response activate as his eyes swept the row. But I didn't need to worry; as always, he chose Harry. "Why, Harry! How about you?"

I heard a quiet sigh escape his lips. Lockhart was already strolling down the aisle with a flashy, toothy grin. "Come on now, no need to be shy! You were an excellent vampire last week! How different is a werewolf, really?"

Hermione turned around, beaming widely at Harry. "Do it! Do it!" she mouthed. 

Harry had no choice. Lockhart grabbed him by the arm and dragged him to the front of the room. I wanted to feel sorry for Harry, but truthfully, I just felt sorry for myself. I felt the world around me slowly fade away as blood rushed to my head. I tried to tune him out, tried to pay no attention, but I couldn't look away.

“Nice loud howl, Harry... exactly..."

_Werewolves only respond to the howl of their own kind. That sounded nothing like a werewolf's true howl._

"And then, if you’ll believe it, I pounced... like this.... slammed him to the floor..."

_Falling hurts so much more as a werewolf. The smaller body means every impact is felt so much harder._

"Thus with one hand, I managed to hold him down... with my other, I put my wand to his throat... I then screwed up my remaining strength and performed the immensely complex Homorphus Charm..."

_I know someone tried that on me once, when I was very little, right after I'd been bitten... it didn't work. It never has. Not for me._

"He let out a piteous moan... go on, Harry... higher than that... good..."

_He wouldn't have moaned piteously. He would have screamed, howled, wailed. The transformation from beast to man almost hurts more than the transformation from man to beast. Symbolic, isn't it? I've always thought so._

"The fur vanished, the fangs shrank, and he turned back into a man. Simple, yet effective, and another village will remember me forever as the hero who delivered them from the monthly terror of werewolf attacks.”

_The Homorphus Charm must be reapplied every transformation, so unless he somehow taught someone else in the village how to do it, he's bluffing. I think this whole thing is a bluff._

Finally, finally, the bell rang.

“Homework is to compose a poem about my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf! Signed copies of _Magical Me_ to the author of the best one!”

I was alarmed to feel a lump rising in my throat. I had tried so hard to be happy, and for a while, I had been. But between the attack on Halloween and the vivid depiction of Lockhart's defeat of the werewolf and everything in between, I couldn't take it anymore. I raced to Hermione at the front of the room, fighting to hold tears back. "I'll go make sure nobody's in the bathroom while you get the book," I said quickly.

"I'm sure it will be," she replied, her eyes still big and dreamy, as they often were at the end of a Lockhart class. "You should stay with us to get his autograph."

"Just a signature," I snapped, "and I don't want to. I'm going to go make sure the bathroom is vacant." I turned on my heel and bowed my head low as I rushed from the classroom.

I completely ignored the OUT OF ORDER sign on the door and burst into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom with tears already coursing down my cheeks.

I locked myself in a stall and began to cry as silently as possible, knowing I probably only had at most fifteen minutes before they'd return with the book. After a few minutes, though, I felt a cold breeze whip around the stall and when I lifted my head from my hands, Myrtle was hovering in mid-air in front of me, watching with wide eyes.

"Lucy, isn't it?" she asked.

I nodded. "Hi, Myrtle. How are you?"

"Better than you, it would seem. What's bothering you?"

"It's nothing," I lied in a small voice.

"Lucy, I've seen hundreds if not thousands of girls cry in here, and it's never over nothing."

"It's just been a long week," I said instead. "But I'm fine, really."

She stared at me for a moment before speaking again. "If you don't want to talk to me, fine," she said, tears welling up in her eyes. "I just wanted to help."

"No," I choked out, suddenly feeling bad, "it's not that. I just don't want to bother you."

She sank a little lower in the air. "Sometimes helping people makes me feel a little less dead," she admitted. "I don't mind. Truly."

I sighed shakily. "I don't know how you can help, otherwise I would tell you what's wrong."

She opened her mouth to reply, but her eyes grew wide. "Someone's coming!"

"Oh, bloody hell," I spat, scrubbing my eyes with my robes. I looked at Myrtle earnestly. "Can you tell I've been crying?"

"A bit." Her eyes welled up again. "I'm sorry I can't help you. I guess I'm useless in life _and_ in death."

She soared over the stalls and disappeared into another toilet with a distant splash, weeping pitifully.

I emerged from the stall to follow her just as my friends entered the bathroom. I immediately whipped around to face them and plastered on a smile. "That was faster than I was expecting. Lockhart didn't brag for his typical hour?"

Ron snickered. "No, but he did try to give Harry advice on playing Seeker."

I wrinkled my nose in disgust and opened my mouth to reply, but Hermione intervened first. "Let's see what we're up against with this potion."

Hermione propped the book up as we gathered on the floor and skimmed through it quickly. “This is the most complicated potion I’ve ever seen," she muttered. "Lacewing flies, leeches, fluxweed, and knotgrass. Well, they’re easy enough, they’re in the student store-cupboard, we can help ourselves. Oooh, look, powdered horn of a bicorn, don’t know where we’re going to get that. Shredded skin of a boomslang, that’ll be tricky, too and of course a bit of whoever we want to change into.”

Ron's eyes bugged out of his head. “Excuse me? What d’you mean, a bit of whoever we’re changing into? I’m drinking nothing with Crabbe’s toenails in it-”

Hermione ignored him. “We don’t have to worry about that yet, though, because we add those bits last."

Harry piped up then. “D’you realize how much we’re going to have to steal, Hermione? Shredded skin of a boomslang, that’s definitely not in the students’ cupboard. What’re we going to do, break into Snape’s private stores? I don’t know if this is a good idea-”

Hermione snapped the book shut and glared at them. “Well, if you two are going to chicken out, fine! I don’t want to break rules, you know. I think threatening Muggle-borns is far worse than brewing up a difficult potion. But if you don’t want to find out if it’s Malfoy, I’ll go straight to Madam Pince now and hand the book back in."

Ron exhaled slowly. “I never thought I’d see the day when you’d be persuading us to break rules. All right, we’ll do it. But not toenails, okay?”

Hermione opened the book again and scanned the pages, continuing to ignore Ron.

“How long will it take to make, anyway?” Harry inquired.

“Well, since the fluxweed has got to be picked at the full moon and the lacewings have got to be stewed for twenty-one days, so I’d say it’d be ready in about a month, if we can get all the ingredients," she answered.

“A month? Malfoy could have attacked half the Muggle-borns in the school by then!” Hermione glared, so he cleared his throat and added, “But it’s the best plan we’ve got, so full steam ahead, I say.”

Hermione and I read the instructions in silence while the boys scoped the bathroom looking for the best spot to start brewing.

"Want to play a game of chess, Lucy?" Ron asked after a couple of minutes.

I glanced toward Hermione. Her jaw was clenched. Her half of the ring was a bright purple. "I'll stay here, but you and Harry go ahead. We'll meet you in the common room in a few minutes.

He nodded, and the boys disappeared.

"Thanks," Hermione muttered. "I couldn't focus with them complaining every thirty seconds."

"Of course. Show me how I can help."

She sighed shakily. "I don't know. I've never taken on a project like this before. But considering lives are at stake, including mine, I... I..."

Fat tears began to roll down her cheeks. I gently took the book from her hands and laid it on the ground, reaching forward to wrap my arms around her. She buried her face in my shoulder and cried for the first time since Halloween night. As her tears dried up, I found myself grappling with tears of my own.

"I won't leave your side, Mione, because with me, you'll always be safe. Okay? I'll protect you."

"P-Promise?"

The fear in her voice made my heart break. I nodded as a tear slipped down my own cheek. "I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! 
> 
> I honestly forgot how much I loved Chamber of Secrets until reading it again a couple of weeks ago. Goblet of Fire is still my favorite book, but this one is competing with Prisoner of Azkaban for the second-place spot in my ranking. Feel free to comment your favorite Harry Potter book! I'm curious.
> 
> As always, thank you for reading! Feedback of any kind is always, always, always appreciated! Like seriously, I will go back and reread your comments whenever I feel discouraged and it always makes me feel better. Thank you to those of you who are always so supportive and kind. You truly make this story worth telling.
> 
> I'm super excited for the next chapter! Are you all ready for Harry and Lucy's first Quidditch match together? I know I am, but I don't know if you are. Stay safe and keep your head up! Love you all!


	27. Where Did Everyone Go?

LUCY:

I awoke at sunrise the morning of my first Quidditch match. Hermione, for once, was still asleep. All of the late nights seemed to have been taking their toll on her, too, but unlike me, she didn't have Quidditch to worry about on top of everything else. I felt quite sick to my stomach with nerves, and, knowing I wouldn't be able to fall back asleep, I pulled robes on over my head with shaking hands and made my way down to the common room, grabbing my ancient runes book so hopefully I would be able to distract myself while I waited for the team to head down for breakfast.

I had completed the section on Godric Gryffindor. Being in alphabetical order, Helga Hufflepuff was next. I admittedly wasn't paying too much attention at first, my mind consumed with worried thoughts about Quidditch, but something on the third page caught my attention.

"Helga Hufflepuff's primary concern was student well-being. As such, she created a room in the castle that would open only when someone desperately in need walked by. This room will provide whatever the user needs most, aside from anything excluded by the five Principal Exceptions to Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration. This room is generally found completely by accident, and only the very fortunate --- or very desperate --- are able to find it twice. As such, it is rarely documented in other books, and remains to this day one of the best-kept secrets of Hogwarts castle."

I snapped the book shut, head spinning. Could it be the Chamber of Secrets?

I immediately banished the thought from my mind. Helga Hufflepuff would never. Even then, this room sounded far less sinister.

Did all of the founders have their own secret rooms? Salazar Slytherin his chamber with the monster, Helga Hufflepuff her special need-meeting room? The book had said nothing of Godric Gryffindor having such a room. 

My heart raced as I stared at the book in my hands. Perhaps it contained more information on the Chamber of Secrets. I was about to open it again and skip to the section on Salazar Slytherin when a very-sleepy Ginny Weasley stumbled down the stairs still in her pajamas. I shoved the book under my leg and smiled. "Morning, Ginny. What're you doing up so early?"

She came over to the couch and sat beside me, resting her head against my shoulder. "I couldn't sleep."

"Do you want to talk about it?" 

She shook her head. "Why are you awake?"

"I couldn't sleep either."

"Are you nervous for the match?"

"A little," I admitted.

"Don't be, Cub, you'll be great!" came a chipper voice from the boys' dormitory stairs. Ginny and I both jumped as the twins swooped to sit on either side of us.

"Did you wake up early just to wish us luck, Ginny?" Fred asked.

She seemed to come a little more awake and rolled her eyes as she shifted her head from my shoulder to Fred's. "Of course not," she said through a yawn. "Why would I do that?"

George gasped in mock offense. "Because we are your brothers, and your support would mean the world to us!"

"I would wish you luck if I really thought you needed it," she said, pushing herself off the couch and rubbing her eyes. She smiled. "Lucy and I are going to play together for the Holyhead Harpies one day. She doesn't need luck, either. See you all after the match at the post-win party. Percy told me that they're obnoxiously loud and unnecessarily rambunctious, so I know I'm in for a good time. Bye!"

"Bye, Ginny!" we called after her.

"So Cub, Holyhead Harpies?" Fred asked.

I laughed. "Well, after I let her ride my broom to cheer her up on Sunday, she asked what I wanted to do after Hogwarts. When I said I didn't know, she said she was going to play Quidditch professionally, and I figured that sounded like fun so I nonchalantly agreed to play with her."

"Do you want to play Quidditch professionally?"

I shifted slightly and rested my head against the back of the couch. "I wouldn't be opposed to it. I haven't thought much about it, honestly." I sighed. "I just need to get through today's match first. I'm nervous."

"Aw, don't be nervous, Cub," George said. "Nothing to be nervous about."

"If only it were that easy," I retorted, watching as my ring glowed brighter and brighter shades of purple.

It continued to glow during breakfast. We were sitting as a team. I sat on the end beside Harry, and I couldn't force myself to eat a thing even though it was only three days before the full moon. My stomach churned anxiously, and my hands shook every time I reached for my fork.

"You really must eat, Lucy," Hermione fretted from across the table.

"Not hungry," I replied softly.

Harry grinned and bumped my elbow with his. "I can't eat when I'm nervous, either," he said with a grin before biting into a piece of toast.

I smiled. That was exactly what I had told him a year ago, before _his_ first official Quidditch match. "At least someone understands," I sighed shakily.

He looked at me strangely. It was as if he were seeing me for the first time. I wanted to ask why he was looking at me that way, but Oliver Wood rose from the table.

"Let's go, men," he said in a deeper voice than usual.

"And women!" Angelina added, tugging on one of my braids as she swept past me.

"Good luck!" Hermione and Ron called after Harry and I as we left side-by-side. I smiled and waved back, hoping I looked braver than I felt.

"Not that they need it!" Ginny added fiercely, turning bright red when Harry shot her an appreciative thumbs-up.

"You ready for this, Lu?" Harry asked.

"I hope so," I replied, feeling my cheeks grow red even in the chill of the day. Cedric was the only one who ever called me Lu, but I found I didn't mind it coming from Harry either. "Are you?"

"I hope so too," he said.

My heart pounded as we sat in the locker room for Oliver's pep talk. Harry sat to my left, Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet to my right, the twins behind me.

Oliver drew a deep breath. “Slytherin has better brooms than us. No point denying it. But we’ve got better people on our brooms. We’ve trained harder than they have, we’ve been flying in all weathers, and we’re going to make them rue the day they let that little bit of slime, Malfoy, buy his way onto their team.” He turned to face Harry, who tensed slightly next to me. “It’ll be down to you, Harry, to show them that a Seeker has to have something more than a rich father. Get to that Snitch before Malfoy or die trying, Harry, because we’ve got to win today, we’ve got to.”

"So no pressure, Harry," Fred said, punching his shoulder. 

Oliver turned to me. "You ready for this, Diggory? You're the only one with a broom as good as theirs. You're going to have to score all of the goals, because quite frankly, the Slytherin brooms will outstrip the others five to one. Don't let anything stop you."

I swallowed the ball of fear in my throat and nodded. "Let's go show the Slytherins what we can do."

The team whooped, and we headed out onto the Pitch. This time, I walked in between Angelina and Alicia, as a Chaser, a starter, not a last resort. I had waited. I had trained. I had proven myself. And I was as ready as I would ever be.

As soon as I kicked into the air, my worries seemed to melt away. I couldn't help but smile. This was going to be fun.

"On my whistle," Madam Hooch said, holding the Quaffle above her head. "Three... two... one!"

I shot forward and snatched the ball before the Slytherins had even seemed to process that the Quaffle was in play. I wove through them and tore off in the direction of their hoops. Angelina shot up to my side, so I tossed it to her, and she bent down low to gain speed. But the Slytherins caught up quickly, and one of them bumped the Quaffle loose. I shot down to try to catch it, but another Slytherin rammed into me and nearly sent me into a downward spiral. But I quickly recovered my balance and turned around to chase the green-robed player in possession in the Quaffle. 

I had nearly reached him when Alicia screamed, "Lucy, behind you!"

I glanced over my shoulder and swerved out of the way just in time. The Bludger that was intended for me instead slammed into the back of the Slytherin Chaser, knocking the Quaffle out of his hands. I ducked to catch it, and secured it in my arms before reorienting myself in the direction of their goal hoops. I had managed to outpace Angelina and Alicia, but I was surrounded by Slytherins, one to my right, one to my left, and one above me. I knew I should have been panicking, or at least that's what they wanted me to do, but I pressed on toward the goal even as they closed in around me. When I saw the Beater further down the field wind up to swing at a Bludger, I realized that they were trying to trap me and force me to take a hit. But they had left one angle open.

At the last second, I ducked beneath them and launched the Quaffle at the goal. And by some miracle, I scored. 

"GRYFFINDOR SCORES!" Lee shouted. "TEN TO ZERO!"

Once they got the Quaffle back, Angelina and Alicia tried surrounding the Chaser so he'd drop the Quaffle into my waiting hands down below, but he shot forward the last ten feet and sent the Quaffle soaring through the hoop after a Bludger nearly knocked Oliver off his broom, tying us 10 to 10. I got the Quaffle back and zoomed across the Pitch to the other goal, but I had to shoot upward instantly when a Bludger came flying at me from down below. I tossed the Quaffle to the waiting Alicia, but she was overtaken by the Slytherins and forced to drop the Quaffle when she got rammed. Angelina and I tore off down the Pitch after them, but they scored on Oliver again. Then again. Then again.

Oliver was not pleased. He glared up at the sky, and I noticed for the first time that Fred and George didn't have our backs the way they always did during practice. But the Quaffle was back in play, so there was no time to dwell on this. 

Alicia tried again to head down to the other side of the Pitch, but she was again overtaken.

"Over here!" I screamed, and she threw it directly to me. I caught it handily, but the Slytherins quickly caught up with me and again formed a triangle around me. 

I squinted through the rain. I could only see one Slytherin Beater. I glanced around, and soon realized that the other one was below me. I was completely surrounded, and they were closing in. They had learned from their mistake the last time they had tried to trap me. But the goal was close, so close. As long as I could score first...

I was so focused on the goal in front of me I didn't see the Bludger until it was too late. The black ball smashed into my face, but I managed to keep my hold on the Quaffle, to the shock of the Slytherins, who had started to laugh and slow down. I put on a burst of speed and tried to throw the ball through the goal hoop, but my eyes were so full of tears that my vision was blurred and it landed squarely in their Keeper's hands. He tossed it to one of the Chasers, and I tried to keep up with him, but he scored another goal on Oliver. 

"The score is now 50-10, Slytherin in the lead," Lee announced, "but Lucy Diggory just took a massive hit to the face. Hope she's alright!"

I was very much not. My entire face was wet, from a combination of rain and blood and involuntary tears. I tried to wipe my nose with my sleeve, but fiery pain shot through my body. My nose was most certainly broken.

But this was okay. I was a werewolf. I went through worse pain every single month. It hurt, of course, but I knew it would be okay.

Madam Hooch's whistle blew, so I made my way down to the team. Oliver had called a time-out.

Wood was furious. “What’s going on? We’re being flattened! Fred, George, where were you when that Bludger stopped Lucy from scoring?”

“We were twenty feet above her, stopping the other Bludger from murdering Harry, Oliver," Fred snapped, not looking at my face. "Someone’s fixed it, it won’t leave Harry alone. It hasn’t gone for anyone else all game. The Slytherins must have done something to it.”

“But the Bludgers have been locked in Madam Hooch’s office since our last practice, and there was nothing wrong with them then!" Oliver insisted, looking immensely troubled.

George was the first person glance at my face, and he reeled back in horror. "Bloody hell, Lucy, are you alright? Can you still play?"

The entire team slowly turned to look at me. I mopped my face as best I could with my sleeve, careful not to actually touch my nose. "Yeah, I'm fine," I managed, blood spurting from my nose and making everyone recoil slightly. "You two keep protecting Harry."

"If it hits you again, it'll kill you, Lucy. Listen," Harry said, looking at the twins, “with you two flying around me all the time the only way I’m going to catch the Snitch is if it flies up my sleeve. Go back to the rest of the team and let me deal with the rogue one.”

"Harry, no, the Bludger didn't target me, I just didn't get out of the way in time!" I protested. "But yours is very much targeting you."

Oliver looked from me to Harry to the twins.

Alicia burst out, “Oliver, this is insane! You can’t let Harry deal with that thing on his own. Let’s ask for an inquiry…”

Harry shook his head violently. “If we stop now, we’ll have to forfeit the match! And we can't lose to Slytherin just because of a crazy Bludger! Come on, Oliver, tell them to leave me alone!”

"We can't let Harry _die_ because of a crazy Bludger!" I shouted. "Angelina and Alicia and I can protect each other, Harry would be alone up there without the twins."

George looked from me to Harry back to Oliver. “This is all your fault. 'Don't let anything stop you,' have you seen her face? 'Get the Snitch or die trying,’ what a stupid thing to tell him-”

Madam Hooch's arrival interrupted him. "Ready to resume play?"

Oliver looked from Harry to me, then back to Harry. “All right. Fred, George, you heard Harry. Leave him alone and let him deal with the Bludger on his own.”

Before taking to the skies again, I grabbed Harry by the arm. "Do what I did last year when the Bludger chased me. Shoot up into the sky, then once you can't go higher, shake it loose however you can. Okay?"

"Okay." He looked at me, taking in the sight of my face. "Don't get hit again, otherwise me telling the twins to leave me alone would be pointless."

"Stupid self-sacrificing Gryffindor," I muttered.

"Hey, you tried to do that too," he replied with a wry grin. "Oliver just happened to listen to me." 

I returned his grin as we kicked off the ground and again took to the skies.

The rain was pouring so hard that it was hard to see, but with the return of Fred and George, I didn't need to worry about any more Bludgers. I was beginning to get dizzy, from blood loss or pain or head trauma I didn't know, but I kept fighting. I managed to score one more goal, but as soon as I did, a Slytherin rammed me from behind and nearly made me fall off my broom. The crowd gasped, but I soon realized it wasn't for me. 

Harry was plummeting toward the ground, legs wrapped around his broom, one arm in front of him, the other dangling --- clearly broken --- at his side. He hit the mud hard, holding the Snitch above his head with his other arm bent at a horrible angle.

I had never flown so fast in my life. I reached Harry before anybody else and dropped to my knees at his side, placing a hand on his shoulder and shaking him as violently as I dared.

"Harry! Harry! Wake up! Harry!"

He stirred slightly. "Lucy?" he murmured.

I nodded, wiping my face with my sleeve, still avoiding my nose. "You're okay."

"Did we win?"

I managed a laugh. "Yes, we did. Come on, let's get you to the Hospital Wing."

But before he could sit up, Gilderoy Lockhart shoved me out of the way and sent me sprawling in the mud. "Harry! What a catch! I'll fix your arm!"

"Oh, no, not you," he groaned. 

Quite a concerned crowd had gathered. Lockhart addressed them then with an uncomfortable laugh, saying, “Doesn’t know what he’s saying. Not to worry, Harry. I’m about to fix your arm.”

I tried to push myself to my feet to shove Lockhart out of the way, but someone laid a heavy hand on my shoulder. 

"No, you stay down," Angelina said. "You look like you're going to pass out."

"But Harry-"

"No, Lucy," Alicia said, laying her hand on my other shoulder. "He'll be fine. What do you have against Professor Lockhart anyway?"

"N-Nothing," I lied, overcome with a wave of dizziness and slumping against Alicia's leg, watching the scene in front of me with silent horror.

“Lie back, Harry," Lockhart was saying, "it’s a simple charm I’ve used countless times-”

“Why can’t I just go to the hospital wing?”

Oliver knocked Alicia's shoulder by accident in his rush to get to Harry. “He should really, Professor. Great capture, Harry, really spectacular, your best yet, I’d say!”

Lockhart ignored him and began rolling up his sleeves.

"I'll go with him to the Hospital Wing, Professor, please!" I protested, trying to break free of the girls' grip, but they weren't on the Quidditch team for nothing. I was pinned beneath the weight of their hands as Lockhart pointed his wand directly at Harry's arm. We all watched as Harry's arm slowly became formless. The crowd gasped and groaned in disgust and sympathy, the sound punctuated by Colin Creevey's clicking camera.

“Ah. Yes. Well, that can sometimes happen. But the point is, the bones are no longer broken. That’s the thing to bear in mind. So, Harry, just toddle up to the hospital wing. Ah, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, would you escort him? And Madam Pomfrey will be able to, er, tidy you up a bit.” As Hermione and Ron rushed forward to help Harry to his feet, Lockhart turned to me, straightening his robes and assuming his typical cocky grin. "I'll help you too!"

"It's okay," I squeaked, trying to wriggle away. "My brother wants to be a healer, he can help me-"

"Nonsense, I'm right here and I don't see your strapping young lad of a brother anywhere." He grinned and pointed his wand at my face. "You might want to close your eyes. Fixing a broken nose is a bit trickier than a broken arm. Requires a completely different charm, see."

Alicia and Angelina hoisted me to my feet and backed away as Lockhart muttered something under his breath. I shut my eyes tightly, waiting for the worst, but nothing happened.

I opened my eyes, or at least I thought I did. The world remained completely black. Everything was silent.

"W-Where did everyone go?" I stammered. 

The crowd suddenly erupted in murmurs and whispers. I staggered backward, reaching for Angelina or Alicia, but they were nowhere to be found.

"Let me through, please," a panicked voice to my right said, and in a matter of seconds, I felt strong hands gripping my shoulders from the front. "Lucy, what happened?"

"Cedric?" I asked. "Is that you?"

"It's me," he said, cupping my cheek in his hand. "I'm right here."

"Cedric, I can't see," I whispered. I reached up to my face and pressed his hand harder against my cheek. 

He slid his hand free and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "Let's get you to the Hospital Wing. I can't fix it, but Madam Pomfrey can."

"What about my broom?" I asked, my voice sounding small even to my own ears.

"I'll get it, Cub," a voice on my right said. I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Meet you in the Hospital Wing in a moment."

"F-Fred?" I asked. "Or George?"

"Don't worry about it, Cub," the same voice said. "Just get her up there fast, Ced, she looks awful."

Cedric led me out of the Pitch, but as soon as we reached the more uneven grass, it grew harder and harder to walk. Cedric ended up looping one arm under my shoulders and one under my knees to carry me the way he had after that first horrible night in the Forbidden Forest.

"Sorry," I murmured as I curled against his chest. "I'm probably getting blood all over you."

"Don't be sorry," he panted. "Just stay with me, alright? That was a nasty blow you took."

"What did Lockhart do to me?"

"I don't know," he admitted, sounding more concerned than he probably intended to sound. "I tried to get down as fast as I could after seeing what happened to Harry, but I barely missed it. I'm sorry, Lu, I tried."

"It's not your fault," I said. "Honest. I tried to stop him from hurting Harry, and I tried to run from him when he turned to me, but Angie and Alicia held me down." Cedric's footsteps suddenly became much louder, like they were on stone and not grass. "Are we in the castle now?"

"We are. Lucy, what can you see?"

I bit back a terrified sob. "Nothing. Just blackness."

He didn't say anything, but I could tell from the way his grip tightened on me that he was terrified, too.

As I arrived in the Hospital Wing, Ron was shouting at Hermione. “How can you stick up for Lockhart now, Hermione, eh? If Harry had wanted deboning he would have asked.”

To my surprise, she _did_ stick up for Lockhart. “Anyone can make a mistake! And it doesn’t hurt anymore, does it, Harry?”

Harry laughed harshly. “No, but it doesn’t do anything else either."

"Where's Madam Pomfrey?" Cedric asked as he gently set me down on my own two feet, his voice shaking as much as I was.

"Getting Harry's potion," Hermione said slowly. "Why?"

"I can't fix this," he replied. I swayed slightly, and he clutched my arm to stop me from falling. "I need Madam Pomfrey's help."

Hermione's voice was much more panicked. "What happened?"

"Professor Lockhart blinded her."

"He what?" came Ron and Harry's angry voices. Soft footsteps rushed over to me, and someone slid their hand into mine.

"Oh, Lucy," Hermione said softly. "You can't see anything at all?"

I shook my head, reaching up to wipe away some of the blood dripping down my chin.

"Here, Lu, have Hermione help you change into these," Cedric said, placing a pair of pajamas into my free hand. "I'm going to go talk to Madam Pomfrey, but I'll be right back."

Hermione led me over to a bed and pulled the curtain around us.

"I can do if myself," I mumbled. "It's just pajamas. You can go talk to Harry and Ron."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded fervently. Just because I couldn't see my scars at the moment didn't mean she couldn't. I didn't want anyone to ever see them. I heard the screech of metal on metal as she ducked out and pulled the curtain back around.

I carefully placed the pajamas on the corner of the bed and peeled my bloody, muddy, soaking robes over my head.

"Ow, ow, ow," I whimpered as I pulled them over my broken nose.

"Everything okay, Lu?" Harry called from the other side.

"Yeah," I lied as I slipped into the pajama bottoms. "Just hurts a little coming over my nose. I do still have one, right?"

The other three giggled slightly. "Yes," they assured me in unison.

"That's a relief. Oh, speaking of relief, this pajama top is a button-up! I don't have to touch my nose again." I eagerly began fiddling with the buttons, only to realize I had buttoned it slightly askance. "Good Godric Gryffindor, buttons are hard when you're blind."

That drew another giggle from the other side of the curtain.

Madam Pomfrey returned as soon as I had fixed it, and Hermione opened the curtain so Cedric could help me find the bed and slide under the covers. He adjusted the pillows behind my head and laid a gentle hand over mine.

"Madam Pomfrey will fix your nose after Harry drinks his potion," he explained in a soft voice as Harry and Ron talked to her on my other side, "but about your eyes... there's something you need to know. The only potion that can heal you has dittany in it."

"Okay," I said, feeling his hand squeeze mine tighter. "How long will it take for my vision to come back?"

"For a typical person, a week. But since you're allergic to one of the ingredients-"

"We don't know," I finished for him.

Hermione grabbed my other hand. "Lucy, what about... you know?" she whispered. "That's this week, isn't it?"

I groaned. "Yes."

Cedric's hand pushed a wet lock of hair off of my face. "We'll figure it out. In the meantime, I'll go get your potion, alright?"

I nodded, then tilted my head in what I hoped was Hermione's direction. "Am I looking at you right now?"

"Not quite," she said, her voice thick with unshed tears. "But that's okay."

Madam Pomfrey shooed her out of the way then and mended my nose with a quick nonverbal spell. She explained the potion to me as best she could, though she admitted that what Cedric had told me already was true.

"You're in for a very unpleasant couple of days, I'm afraid," she said gravely.

"She'll be alright though, won't she?" Hermione squeaked.

"I'm sure she will be," Madam Pomfrey replied. "But only time will tell."

By the time the team came to visit Harry and me, I was already burning with fever. Cedric had cleaned the blood and sweat and tears and mud and rain from my face with a cool washcloth, but sweat still beaded on my forehead and dripped down my back.

"The team's here," he said softly. "With lots of candy and butterbeer. Do you want to see them, or would you rather I left the curtain around you?"

I shook my head. "Not that I could see them even if I wanted to."

He sucked in a breath. "I could have chosen my words better, eh?"

I found myself smiling in spite of myself. "A bit. But it's okay."

"I'll be right back, alright? I'm going to go toss this washcloth in the laundry."

I nodded, and he returned a couple minutes later. "Lu, the twins threatened to turn my hair pink if I don't let them see you."

I pushed myself onto an elbow and laughed. "Pink would look good on you, let them do it."

One of the twins replied. "Oh, come on, Cub, what do you have against us?"

"Against your brother, more like. We all know he would look better with purple hair."

Cedric laughed. "I beg to differ."

"You can go change your shirt, Cedric, we'll take care of your sister."

"Do you mind, Lu?" Ced asked. "I can stay."

"It's okay, go. It's my blood all over you anyway."

"I'll come back after dinner. Don't blow her up, Weasleys, or I swear I'll-"

"Don't worry, Diggory, she's been through enough today."

The curtain closed again, and I was alone with the twins. Two weights settled on either side of my bed.

"How do you feel, Cub?"

I bit my lip. "George?"

"How the bloody hell did you know?" they squawked in unison.

I grinned. "Lucky guess."

"Merlin's arse it was a lucky guess! How did you know?"

"And that was Fred," I said with a laugh. I immediately got dizzy, so I laid back down and pressed my fists to my eyes. Before any of us could say anything, Madam Pomfrey's voice rang out through the Wing, "These children need rest, he’s got thirty-three bones to regrow and she's got vision to restore! Out! Out!”

"Have fun at the party," I said, holding a fist out to the twins. One of them bumped it, and the other ruffled my wet hair.

"Merlin's beard, you're burning up!" he yelped.

"Yeah, I know," I muttered. "Don't worry about it. Can you bring Ron in here quickly before you leave? I have a question for him."

"Sure thing, Cub. We'll come back tomorrow, okay? First thing in the morning."

I nodded in response.

The curtain parted, and a few seconds later, footsteps approached my bedside. "Ron?"

"It's me," he said, laying his hand on top of mine. "What's up?"

"Please promise me you'll look out for Hermione," I whispered. "I promised her yesterday I'd never leave her side, because I think having a pure-blood around will keep her safe, but since I'm here-"

"I'll protect her," he said in the most determined voice I'd ever heard him use. "Don't worry, Lucy. She'll be safe with me until you come back. Do you want me to open the curtain so you can talk to Harry?"

"Yes please," I said softly.

"See you tomorrow, Lucy."

"See you."

After he rushed out of the room after Hermione, Harry and I were left in silence for the first time since arriving.

"Are we the only ones here?" I asked absently.

"We are," he said. "I reckon it's time for dinner now, based on where the sun is in the sky."

"Is it a pretty sunset?"

"I think it is. Do you want me to describe it to you?"

"It's okay," I whispered. "I'll wait until I can see it for myself."

"Thanks for trying to save me from Lockhart. Ron said you were trying, but Angelina and Alicia held you down."

"Of course, Harry, I knew better than to trust him."

"How did he try to help you after I left?"

"He told me to close my eyes because noses are harder to fix than arms. Angie and Ali were still holding me down, so I couldn't move. I shut my eyes and waited, but when I opened my eyes..." I shuddered. "It was like they were still closed. All I could see was darkness."

"That sounds horrible," he said in a low voice.

"At least we won," I replied with what I hoped was a crooked grin.

He laughed dryly. "Yeah. At least we won. Hopefully we can see some very disappointed Slytherins in the background of Colin's pictures."

* * *

When I finally dropped off to sleep some time later, I found myself in a feverish dream.

For the first time in several weeks, maybe even months, I saw the girl from the Mirror of Erised. She was sitting on an old wooden dock in a pink sundress, dangling her bare feet over water that glowed pink as it reflected the setting sun. I tried to call out to her and ask who she was, but all I heard in my ears was a chorus of birds chirping in the trees, singing good-night songs to their lovers and lullabies to their babies.

Just the same, she looked up slowly, her blue eyes piercing mine as if she could see me. I lifted a hand in greeting, but the gesture was not returned. Instead, her lower lip trembled, and she looked back down at the water, her blond hair falling in her face again.

I tried to take a step forward toward her, but as I did so, an invisible force pushed me backward. I tried again, and again, and again, but every time I tried to get closer to her, something pushed me away. Now a mere speck on the horizon, I watched as the girl turned over her shoulder, calling something indistinct to someone behind her. I was too far away to hear a word said, but I could see she was talking. I tried one last time to run toward her, but something still stood between us. 

I jerked awake when someone yelped in pain. I looked around frantically, seeing nothing but blackness, but then I remembered. Lockhart had blinded me. I was in the Hospital Wing. Harry, to my right, must have been the one to cry out. I was about to ask what was wrong when he started talking. 

“Get off! Wait, Dobby?”

A wheezing voice replied in a hoarse whisper, “Harry Potter came back to school. Dobby warned and warned Harry Potter! Ah sir, why didn’t you heed Dobby? Why didn’t Harry Potter go back home when he missed the train?”

“What’re you doing here? And how did you know I missed the train?” When Dobby made no answer, Harry gasped. "It was you! You stopped the barrier from letting us through!”

“Indeed yes, sir, Dobby hid and watched for Harry Potter and sealed the gateway and Dobby had to iron his hands afterward, but Dobby didn’t care, sir, for he thought Harry Potter was safe, and never did Dobby dream that Harry Potter would get to school another way! Dobby was so shocked when he heard Harry Potter was back at Hogwarts, he let his master’s dinner burn! Such a flogging Dobby never had, sir!"

I felt a pang of pity in my chest. My family had never owned a house-elf, but Dad had told us stories of how horribly some house-elves were treated by their masters. He wanted to own one, just so we could spare one a terrible fate, but Mum would never stand for it. Hearing Dobby's story made my heart ache for him, but it seemed Harry had something else on his mind.

“You nearly got Ron and me expelled. You’d better get lost before my bones come back, Dobby, or I might strangle you.”

“Dobby is used to death threats, sir. Dobby gets them five times a day at home.” Dobby blew his nose, on what I didn't know.

Harry's voice was gentler when he spoke again. “Why d’you wear that thing, Dobby?”

“This, sir? ‘Tis a mark of the house-elf’s enslavement, sir. Dobby can only be freed if his masters present him with clothes, sir. The family is careful not to pass Dobby even a sock, sir, for then he would be free to leave their house forever.” He sniffled. “Harry Potter must go home! Dobby thought his Bludger would be enough to make-”

“ _Your_ Bludger? What d’you mean, _your_ Bludger? You made that Bludger try and kill me?”

Dobby squeaked. “Not kill you, sir, never kill you! Dobby wants to save Harry Potter’s life! Better sent home, grievously injured, than remain here sir! Dobby only wanted Harry Potter hurt enough to be sent home!”

Harry huffed. “Oh, is that all? I don’t suppose you’re going to tell me why you wanted me sent home in pieces?”

“Ah, if Harry Potter only knew! If he knew what he means to us, to the lowly, the enslaved, we dregs of the magical world! Dobby remembers how it was when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was at the height of his powers, sir! We house-elves were treated like vermin, sir! Of course, Dobby is still treated like that, sir, but mostly, sir, life has improved for my kind since you triumphed over He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Harry Potter survived, and the Dark Lord’s power was broken, and it was a new dawn, sir, and Harry Potter shone like a beacon of hope for those of us who thought the dark days would never end, sir. And now, at Hogwarts, terrible things are to happen, are perhaps happening already, and Dobby cannot let Harry Potter stay here now that history is to repeat itself, now that the Chamber of Secrets is open once more.” I heard a loud cracking sound followed by a thud on the ground. “Bad Dobby, very bad Dobby!”

“So there is a Chamber of Secrets?" Harry asked. "And did you say it’s been opened before? Tell me, Dobby! But I’m not Muggle-born, how can I be in danger from the Chamber?"

“Ah, sir, ask no more, ask no more of poor Dobby! Dark deeds are planned in this place, but Harry Potter must not be here when they happen! Go home, Harry Potter, go home. Harry Potter must not meddle in this, sir, ‘tis too dangerous-”

“Who is it, Dobby? Who’s opened it? Who opened it last time?"

“Dobby can’t, sir, Dobby can’t, Dobby mustn’t tell! Go home, Harry Potter, go home!”

“I’m not going anywhere! One of my best friends is Muggle-born; she’ll be first in line if the Chamber really has been opened!”

“Harry Potter risks his own life for his friends! So noble! So valiant! But he must save himself, he must, Harry Potter must not-”

Dobby lapsed into silence, and footsteps could be heard outside. 

“Dobby must go!” the house-elf said, disapparating with a crack. 

I held my breath and listened as the door opened and the footsteps entered the room. 

“Get Madam Pomfrey,” the whispered voice of Professor Dumbledore said, and footsteps hurried out of the room. They returned, accompanied by urgent whispers, and someone gasped.

“What happened?”

“Another attack." I felt my heart stop. Who? It couldn't be Hermione, could it? Ron was protecting her. "Minerva found him on the stairs.”

“There was a bunch of grapes next to him. We think he was trying to sneak up here to visit Potter.”

Harry's bed creaked slightly beside me. The whispers continued.

“Petrified?” 

“Yes, but I shudder to think, if Albus hadn’t been on the way downstairs for hot chocolate... who knows what might have...”

I heard a scrape of metal on stone. 

“You don’t think he managed to get a picture of his attacker?”

All of the air suddenly seemed to vanish from the room. It was Colin Creevey who had been attacked.

I heard a click and a hiss.

"Good gracious!" someone whispered. “Melted... all melted…”

“What does this mean, Albus?” 

“It means that the Chamber of Secrets is indeed open again.”

I heard someone clap a hand over their mouths. I found it hard not to do the same.

“But, Albus… surely… who?”

“The question is not who. The question is, how?”

Nobody seemed to find words to say after that. A curtain was pulled around the bed, and three sets of footsteps left the Hospital Wing. I reached my right hand out toward Harry's bed, and his left met it.

"Are we alone again?" I asked in a whisper.

"We are," he said, and I heard rustling of sheets. His grip on my hand shifted, but he didn't let go. I felt slight weight as he settled on my bed. "How much did you hear?"

"Dobby woke me up," I answered, "so everything. Is it Colin Creevey who was attacked?"

"It was. I hate to think that he was coming to visit me..."

"It's not your fault, Harry," I said, squeezing his hand. He made no reply and didn't squeeze my hand back. I wished I could see his face so I could see how he was feeling or what he was thinking. "How's the arm?" 

"Feels like it's full of splinters. How about you?"

"My head is killing me," I admitted. 

"Do your eyes hurt at all?"

"Nope. I didn't even realize anything had happened at first, because it didn't hurt in the slightest when he blinded me," I said with half a smile. I squeezed his hand again. "Well, since you'll be out of here in the morning, you should probably get some sleep. I reckon Ron and Hermione will want your help with... you know."

"Probably, but you'd be more helpful than me. How long will you be here?"

"I don't know," I said softly. "The potion has dittany in it, which I'm allergic to, so no one knows how long it'll take to work. If it'll even work. So far all it's done is given me a fever and a headache."

Harry laid a gentle hand on my forehead as he rose from my bed. "Yeah, you definitely have a fever. Do you want some water? There's some right here, and it's cold."

"It's okay, but thanks," I said, rolling onto my side to face his bed, because even though I couldn't see Harry, it comforted me to know he was there, at least for tonight. I heard his sheets rustling again as he climbed back into bed. I almost told him about my dream, about the girl from the Mirror of Erised. I almost told him, knowing he'd be the only person who would understand. I almost told him, but I didn't. "Good night, Harry," I said instead.

"Good night, Lucy," he replied through a yawn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I admittedly had fun writing it; this was the first time in forever that I had a chapter completely finished the day after the last update. I love Quidditch. I also love making Lockhart look like even more of an idiot than he is canonically.
> 
> Thank you all for reading! Feedback is always appreciated!


	28. Your Light is a Seed

_Maybe your light is a seed  
And the darkness the dirt  
In spite of the uneven odds  
Beauty lifts from the earth_

_"Uneven Odds"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

The next couple of days passed in a haze of fever and pain and restlessness. I wasn't allowed to leave my bed because of, well, the hazards of being completely blind, but with nowhere to channel the nervous energy that accompanied the days leading up to a full moon, I found myself instead somewhere between being asleep and awake. People would come and people would go, some talking to me and others merely about me. Cedric remained my most constant comfort; it was most often his hand on my forehead or on top of my own hand.

I reckoned it was the night of the full moon when I was roused from sleep by what seemed to be a serious discussion.

"If she can't see, she'd be no danger to any of us. She would be safe here." Cedric's voice was tight, worried. I knew his face wouldn't show any of these emotions, but his voice betrayed him. 

I had gotten very good at identifying people's voices even in just the three short days I had been blind. I was beginning to be able to see faint patches of light in my vision. No shapes, no colors, not even a full picture. But there were a couple of spots of light at the edges of my vision, which was something to cling to. In this moment, though, my eyes were closed. I had also gotten very good at pretending to be asleep when the people around me were talking about me. 

"We cannot take that risk, Cedric, I'm sorry. So little is known about the logistical aspect of these transformations. Professor Dumbledore doesn't want her going down to the Shrieking Shack following the most recent attack," said Madam Pomfrey from my right, "and we all know staying in the castle wouldn't be safe. We don't know what she might encounter, and it would be horrible if someone were to stumble across her."

"But that leaves..."

He didn't need to say it. I knew the only option was the Forbidden Forest.

"If you come back here an hour before sunset, you can walk her down yourself, if you'd like."

"I will. But how will we find her in the morning?"

Madam Pomfrey sighed. "Hagrid already knows of the plan. Not happy about it in the slightest, mind you, but he knows. He'll find her as quickly as he can and bring her back, hopefully without anyone seeing her."

"Alright." I felt Cedric's fingers graze my forehead as Madam Pomfrey walked away from my bedside and crossed the room. His fingers disappeared, and I heard him quietly drag a chair to my bedside and lower himself onto it. "I'm sorry you've had to spend so much of your time at Hogwarts here in this room," he whispered. "You deserve so much more."

I drifted back off to sleep a couple minutes later, and found myself in another hazy fever dream that I forgot the second I was shaken awake.

It was Cedric again, his voice much louder this time. "Lucy? Lu, are you awake?"

"Yeah," I murmured. I rubbed my eyes and opened them, but I still couldn't see more than a little bit of light.

"I'm sorry, but you have to come with us. It's time to go."

"Us?" I asked, pushing myself to a sitting position and fighting the dizziness I already felt.

"I'm here too, Lucy," Hermione said. "Cedric managed to convince Ron that I'd be safe if the two of us came to visit you together. He hasn't left my side since you've been here!"

I smiled. "Good. Just the same, I'm glad you're here with me."

Cedric took my hand, and I could hear the worry in his voice when I stumbled trying to get to my feet. "I've got you, don't worry," he said, grabbing my elbow to steady me. "Fancy a piggyback?"

I couldn't remember the last time I'd had one. I couldn't find a smile to offer them, I was too weak, but I managed to nod before I found my arms wrapped around Cedric's neck and Hermione's hand on my back to make sure I didn't fall. 

"Where am I going?" I asked, praying hard that the plan had changed while I was asleep. 

"The Forbidden Forest," Cedric answered, his voice still worried and small. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Voldemort isn't there anymore, right?"

"He's not," Hermione said. "Don't worry. You'll be safe as long as you're careful."

I bit my lip. "I'll do my best."

We made the rest of the journey in silence. The frigid night air felt good against my feverish skin, and I relaxed ever so slightly.

After a couple minutes, Cedric set me on my feet and cupped my cheek in his hand. He had started doing it a lot lately, and I loved him for it. It was comforting, so comforting, just to know he was right there. "We're here now. Wait for Hagrid to find you in the morning, don't try to find your way back. I'll see you in the morning, okay, Lucy?"

I nodded, feeling my lower lip tremble slightly. I swallowed hard. "I'll... well, I won't _see_ you in the morning, but I'll be here in the morning."

Hermione squeaked and threw her arms around me. With my vision gone, I had never smelled leather and ink and lavender quite so strong. And yet, it comforted me rather than overwhelmed me. "Oh, _do_ be careful, Lucy!"

"I will be," I said, clenching my teeth against the way my head was spinning. "I should head in, I'm sorry. Which way is it?"

Cedric's hands gently turned me around. "Walk straight for as long as you can. There aren't any obstacles on the ground."

I nodded, taking a deep breath. "I'll be back soon." And with that, I took my first steps into the forest and didn't look back.

I was overly aware of everything that I couldn't see. I heard the leaves crunching beneath my feet as well as the ones that whispered in the trees. I felt the cool night wind on my face as well as the tension in the air. I smelled the approaching rainstorm as well as the dried blood still clinging to my fingernails from Saturday. 

I heard Cedric and Hermione turn and slowly walk away once I had disappeared from their sight. I felt the particularly large rock I stepped on. I smelled the faint odor of gasoline, which I found unusual.

I didn't have time to process this, though. A shudder ran through my entire body. I dropped to my knees and screamed. Pain ripped through my body. My world remained black.

* * *

_The scream made the two stop in their tracks._

_"Is that Lucy?" the girl asked, her voice shaking._

_The boy nodded. He hoped his companion couldn't see how pale his face was. For all of the transformations his sister had undergone, he had never been close enough to hear her screams that soon gave way to howls. The agony he heard seemed to tear apart something deep within him, like the pain was his own and not his sister's._

_The girl wrapped her arms around her midsection as if she was feeling the same inner rift forming with each piercing sound. "Will she really be alright? What if she is completely blind still? What will she do?"_

_"I don't know," the boy answered honestly, reaching out to wrap an arm around her trembling shoulders. For as much as his sister shied away from physical contact, he found it hard to comfort someone without a small gesture to show that he was not only emotionally present but physically present as well. "But the sun always rises, no matter how long the night is. And we'll be there in the morning, just as we always are."_

_The girl nodded, swallowing her tears bravely, and the two of them entered the warm castle and made their way to the Great Hall. The girl headed to the table with red-clad students, the boy to the yellow-clad students._

_Both students were asked the same question. "How's Lucy?"_

_The girl tried to find a smile and a white lie, but all she could manage was a sad shrug. "No better, no worse. But she's not giving up."_

_The boy managed a small smile while he carefully chose his words. "Strong and stubborn as always. She's fighting for her vision back as best she can."_

_The next question was also the same. "Any word yet on when she'll be okay again?"_

_This time, the boy answered before the girl._

_"Not definitively," he said._

_"Nothing for certain," she said._

_"But," they said together, "she's going to be alright. Some day soon."_

_Meanwhile in the forest, as the children ate dinner and crawled into warm beds and watched the moon from their windows, heavy thunderclouds slowly obscuring it from sight, the blind werewolf found itself facing a new enemy it had never fought before. Every step posed unseen threats and unknown dangers. Everyone had dared to hope that the wolf would be able to see even if the girl couldn't. But it was blind as well. And that is why it ran headfirst into thick-trunked tree at midnight and slumped to the forest floor thoroughly unconscious, where it would remain until the jarring pain of the transformation at sunrise would draw it back into consciousness._

* * *

I was sprawled on the ground, throat dry and eyes streaming. I wiped my cheeks with the sleeve of my Hospital Wing pajamas, now probably muddy and torn, and tried to push myself to my feet. But the rain through the night had turned the forest floor to pure sludge, and I couldn't rise even to a sitting position, so I curled myself in a protective ball and waited.

I don't remember falling asleep, but Cedric informed me when I woke up that I had slept for two days straight. I wasn't terribly surprised; full moons were always exhausting, and adding my dittany allergy into the mix took it to the next level. 

The next four weeks were strange, to say the least.

By the end of the first week, I could tell the difference between when it was light outside and when it was dark outside. By the end of the second week, I could begin to see figures and shapes as they came and went. By the end of the third week, I was able to see colors. And by the time the full moon came around again, everything was slowly starting to become less blurry and more clear. The world around me regained its balance.

Everyone who came to see me tried to keep me informed to some extent about the events of the world beyond my bed.

Cedric and Henry told me every detail of their match; Ravenclaw put up a good fight, but Cedric bested Leo Wilde yet again. They also came to visit me individually. When Cedric came, he would tell me about how my friends seemed to be faring, and I would ask about his. When Henry came, I would ask him how Cedric was doing. 

"Every time I try to ask, he says he's fine," I explained in a soft voice one day. "But Henry, I can _hear_ he's not, even if he's fooling everyone else."

"Don't worry, Lucy, he's not fooling me," he said. "To tell you the truth, he's scared."

I bit my lip. "Well, if anyone can help him, it would be you."

"I try my best," Henry said with a chuckle. "Someone has to keep an eye out for him while you're here."

Harry and Ron and Hermione were also frequent visitors. Hermione (of course) would tell me everything I missed in classes. I couldn't actually do any of my work, being blind, but she tried to keep me as up-to-date on the information as possible. Ron preferred to play wizard's chess with me, as soon as I was able to somewhat see shapes. Harry would help me make decisions, and he would also fill me in on the practices I was missing.

"Terribly lonely, walking down to the Pitch without you," he would say. 

"If you drag me down there, I'd love to sit in the stands and get out of this Merlin-forsaken bed," I would retort back, which always made him laugh.

They also kept me up-to-date on how the potion was coming, which I appreciated. But I was worried. Cedric said our parents wanted us home for Christmas that year, and the timeline seemed to be pushed further and further back the longer it took to acquire the ingredients. 

The twins came as often as they could, but they were often consumed by pranks and efforts to cheer Ginny up. They told me that she had been Colin Creevey's partner in a couple of classes, so she was again highly troubled by the petrification. They weren't sure why Ginny didn't seem to be feeling any better. 

"Well, what have you tried?" I asked.

"Usually we cover ourselves with something-"

"Fur, boils, slime, even more freckles-"

"And jump out at her from behind a statue."

I laughed. "You might want to try something a little more conventional."

"Conventional?" they asked in unison. "Us?"

"Okay, maybe not. But still, maybe you should consider smuggling her some chocolate, or playing wizard's chess."

When Ginny came to see me a couple of days later, she seemed in better spirits. She was even happier when I told her that she could fly my broom after Quidditch practices if she wanted to as long as one or two her brothers would stay to watch her and make sure she got back to the castle safely. 

A couple of days after _that,_ Percy reported that Ginny was happier again and praised me for knowing her so well. I merely grinned and shrugged. 

"Quidditch has always been my release. It would seem she functions similarly."

His tone grew more serious. "If that's the case, I cannot imagine you are terribly thrilled to be trapped here."

I managed a laugh. "You have no idea. As soon as I can leave here, I will."

"Well, do not rush yourself. Recovery takes time. Trust me. My roommate is Oliver Wood, and three of my brothers have played Quidditch here. I have seen more than my fair share of Quidditch-related injuries, and they always take time."

I bit my tongue. I didn't want to point out that I was suffering from Lockhart's stupidity rather than from the sport I loved, but I did recount the story to Ron and Harry later that day, making them laugh so loudly that Hermione's "He's really not that bad!" protests were drowned out.

My last night in the Hospital Wing was the night before December's full moon. I was still a tad bit nearsighted, but I was dying to leave. I couldn't sleep, feeling hot and sweaty and restless and uncomfortable, so I reflected instead on all I had missed. 

I had never gotten around to finishing that poem about the Wagga Wagga Werewolf for Lockhart, not that I was terribly disappointed about that. I was sad, though, thinking of all of the early morning practices and late night conversations I had missed, and everything in between. 

"One more night," I whispered to the darkness. "Just one more moon and then I'll be free."

* * *

_Snow had not yet come to Hogwarts, but as the night progressed, the wind grew colder and colder. All who were warm inside the castle didn't know how cold outside it really was._

_For the first time in several weeks, Cedric Diggory was sleeping soundly. His best friend, Henry Furls, was up late studying for the next day's Transfiguration test, but he glanced toward Cedric now and again to make sure he wasn't having another nightmare. Nightmares had plagued him lately, leading to many late-night conversations held in hushed tones, but it seemed that he finally had a night of peace. Both boys were warm in their dormitory._

_Hermione Granger was wide awake. Her mind wrestled with the Chamber of Secrets and all the horrors that lay within. She stared at the purple half of her ring, which grew more intense every day, it seemed. But she was warm in her bed._

_The occupants of the castle, whether awake or asleep, were warm. But the werewolf in the forest was freezing. It ran around all night, never once stopping. When dawn came, the wolf collapsed to the ground and howled as the transformation wracked its tortured body._

* * *

When I opened my eyes, I was myself again. I was freezing and exhausted, but I was myself.

I made my way to Hagrid's hut without incident, and by the time I arrived, Cedric was already there, looking better-rested than he had been in a while. He offered a blanket to me, but I shook my head.

"After having a fever for a month, it feels incredible to be cold," I said with a smile. "Just let me be cold."

"Lucy, you're practically blue," he replied, peeling the Hufflepuff scarf off from around his neck and draping it around mine. "At least take this. Are you hurt at all?"

"No, just exhausted."

"In that case, there's someone waiting for you in the Hospital Wing. I'll head up there with you."

Hermione waited for me in the Hospital Wing. "Are you coming to class today?" she asked, obviously trying not to sound too excited but coming across undeniably hopeful.

When I nodded, she reached to throw her arms around me before pulling back. "Sorry. It hurts after a transformation. Almost forgot."

"I'm not hurt, it's okay," I said, surprising her by hugging her tightly. When we pulled away, she dropped my ring into my hand. It was our new tradition, of sorts. Both halves glowed yellow. Not a bright yellow, but yellow nonetheless.

She beamed. "Everyone's going to be so excited to see you. Let's sneak you up to the dormitory for a shower first."

"How's the polyjuice potion coming?" I asked in a whisper as soon as we were alone in the hallway.

"We're missing ingredients," she answered. "But we have a plan to steal them."

"Steal them? From Snape? How?"

She explained as we climbed flight after flight of stairs. It was far more exhausting than I remembered, and by the time we reached the Gryffindor portrait, I could barely breathe.

"Curse these stairs," I panted as we crawled through the portrait hole. "I'm bedridden for one month and all of a sudden I can't climb them."

"It'll come back to you soon," she assured me. "You'll get your strength up. I'll make sure of it."

"But first? A proper shower."

We slipped silently up to our dormitory, and I grabbed a fresh set of robes before disappearing into the bathroom. I showered far faster than usual after a full moon, the thought of seeing everyone again --- _really_ seeing them --- filling me with an energy I typically lacked.

The second I emerged from the bathroom, Parvati and Lavender squealed and rushed over to hug me. When I made my way down to the Great Hall for breakfast, the twins had nearly the same reaction when I wedged myself between them.

"Cub!" they exclaimed in unison, slapping each other in the face in their rush to wrap an arm around me and make sure I was really there.

I giggled. "Yes, that's my name. Godric, I missed hearing you sounding happy when you said it."

"Well, we missed you," George said with a shrug. "Don't ever do that to us again, okay?"

"I'll do my best," I replied, glancing down at the staff table directly at Professor Lockhart. "You should talk to him, though, not me."

"Lucy!" I whipped my head around just as Ron, Neville, and Harry joined the table. It seemed they had all spoken at once, because they all started laughing.

"Hi," I said, beaming.

"We missed you!" Ron exclaimed.

Neville nodded enthusiastically. "I didn't have my Charms partner for a whole month!"

"Sitting at the back of a classroom by yourself gets rather lonely," Harry added with a laugh.

"I don't see any steam rising from your ears," I commented. "Has Wood been going easier on practices?"

"No," he said with a shake of his head, "but last night's was cancelled because of how bloody cold it was."

"A miracle," Fred laughed. "Finally a weather condition too extreme for Wood. And the Pitch wasn't even burning down."

"Wow, that's wild. I can't wait to be on a broom again."

"You have to get cleared first," Hermione reminded me without looking up from her book.

"Yeah, well, we'll see," I said dismissively. I lowered my voice and lifted my mug of hot chocolate to my lips. "I don't think I can ignore the call of the sky much longer."


	29. Ready for This One, Too

LUCY:

Thanks to Fred's firework and Harry's Quidditch reflexes, Hermione was able to successfully swipe the necessary ingredients from Snape's storage two days after the full moon. We gathered around the cauldron in the bathroom that afternoon, watching as Hermione stirred.

Harry sighed. “He knew it was me. I could tell.”

“Snape can’t prove it was you. What can he do?” Ron asked.

“Knowing Snape, something foul,” he replied bitterly.

"It'll be ready in two weeks!" Hermione chirped, seemingly unaware of the conversation happening less than a couple of feet away.

I groaned and dragged my hand down my face. "I'm going home for Christmas. Christmas is in exactly two weeks."

The others turned to stare at me.

"You're going home for Christmas?" Ron asked.

I nodded. "Cedric has been such a nervous wreck lately." I sighed and looked down at my hands. "I know he's trying to be brave, for me and for everyone else who looks up to him, but going home would give him a break from that. There's no Chamber of Secrets at home --- that I know of, anyway," I added with a halfhearted grin.

"Yeah, and no Lockhart either," Harry chuckled. "Truthfully, he's the bigger danger to you. You only left the Hospital Wing, what, three days ago?"

I pursed my lips. "I think so. I don't even know. I've been so busy trying to catch up on work I honestly have no idea. Speaking of, I should probably go," I said with another sigh. "I need to try to finish an essay before practice tonight."

Harry's eyes lit up. "Oh! You've been cleared for Quidditch?" 

"Not exactly," I replied slowly as I rose to my feet. "But I will go mad if I have to go one more day without flying."

Hermione glanced up from the potion to look at me disapprovingly. "Lucy, if you haven't been cleared-"

"I'll be fine," I interrupted. "Honestly. I would rather fall to my death than be stuck on the ground at this rate, anyway."

"Alright then, how many fingers am I holding up?" she asked, clearly holding up three fingers.

"Seven," I retorted. I laughed when she glared at me. "I'm kidding, Hermione, you're holding three fingers up. See? I'll be fine at practice. Meanwhile, my essay won't write itself. See you all later."

I ducked out of the room before anyone could protest and made my way up to the common room. The twins tried to convince me to help them bewitch Percy's prefect badge, but I shook my head.

"Sorry, boys, I need to finish an essay before practice tonight."

They jumped. "Practice? Tonight? You're going?"

I nodded. "Finally. I can't wait. I miss the sky. Speaking of, my essay on moon cycles is waiting for me. See you later!"

Thankfully, my dormitory was empty. I loved being back, and I was glad that everyone else loved me being back too, but the attention was suffocating. Especially when I was trying to write an essay.

I did manage to finish it before practice, and I felt a shiver of joy run up my spine as I zipped up my Quidditch robes. They were bigger on me than I remembered, but I figured a month in the Hospital Wing, barely able to eat anything due to my reaction to the dittany, would have that effect. 

Just the same, I grinned at Harry when we met in the common room. He smiled, too.

"Ready, Lu?"

"You bet your Bludgers I am," I replied, laughing at my own enthusiasm as we walked out of the common room. I checked my half of the ring as we left. As I expected --- bright, bright yellow-green, which I assumed meant nothing other than pure excitement. 

* * *

A week later, a new notice was pinned to the board in the entrance hall announcing the start of a dueling club. 

Seamus Finnigan was the one who waved us over. “First meeting tonight! I wouldn’t mind dueling lessons; they might come in handy one of these days.”

Ron snorted. “What, you reckon Slytherin’s monster can duel?”

Despite this, he walked into the Great Hall with me at eight o'clock sharp that night.

“I wonder who’ll be teaching us?" Hermione wondered aloud. "Someone told me Flitwick was a dueling champion when he was young, maybe it’ll be him. Or maybe your brother, Lucy, I've heard that he's a fantastic dueler."

"Fantastic-er than us?" Fred asked, pretending to sound hurt.

"Yeah, Cub, tell them about how fantastic we are."

"Fantastic, but not fantastic enough to dodge a surprise rictumsempra!" I said softly, shooting a tickling charm behind my back and smirking when I heard uproarious laughter. "Finite incantatem!"

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all laughing too.

"Well played," Harry said with a grin. The grin faded instantly, though, when he saw who was walking onto the stage.

I couldn't help but groan, too. Gilderoy Lockhart was to be our instructor. The man, in revolting purple robes, waved at the crowd. “Gather round, gather round! Can everyone see me? Excellent!"

"I wish I couldn't," I muttered to Harry. "Maybe being blind wasn't so bad after all."

He stifled his snicker with the sleeve of his robe as Lockhart spoke again. “Now, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions; for full details, see my published works. Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape,” said Lockhart, flashing a wide smile. “He tells me he knows a tiny little bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don’t want any of you youngsters to worry! You’ll still have your Potions master when I’m through with him, never fear!”

“Wouldn’t it be good if they finished each other off?" Ron whispered. Now Harry and I both clapped our hands over our mouths to stifle our laughter, and I heard the twins snort in unison behind us.

The two men faced each other, bowed, and lifted their wands.

Lockhart's smile was still firmly in place. “As you see, we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position. On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course.”

"I wouldn't bet on that," Harry whispered. I nodded my agreement. Snape looked nothing short of murderous.

"One, two, three!"

Snape's disarming spell sent Lockhart flying off the stage, though I was too short to see where he landed. 

Hermione craned her neck and stood on her tiptoes. "Do you think he’s all right?”

"Who cares?" Ron and Harry replied in perfect unison.

"He's fine," I said as the now-quite-frumpled man crawled back onto the stage.

He didn't miss a beat. “Well, there you have it! That was a Disarming Charm! As you see, I’ve lost my wand --- ah, thank you, Miss Brown --- yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don’t mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy, however, I felt it would be instructive to let them see..." He gulped. "Enough demonstrating! I’m going to come amongst you now and put you all into pairs. Professor Snape, if you’d like to help me?”

Professor Snape reached us first. He smirked at Harry and Ron. "Time to split up the dream team, I think. Weasley, you can partner Finnigan. Potter-”

Harry inched toward me, and I toward him. 

“I don’t think so."

Harry moved the other way, toward Hermione.

"Another comfortable choice. Mr. Malfoy, come over here. Let’s see what you make of the famous Potter. And you, Miss Granger, you can partner Miss Bulstrode. As for you, Miss Diggory, you can duel Mr. Graye here."

"Hey, Diggory," Archie said, smiling and tossing a lock of curly hair over his shoulder. It seemed like he hadn't cut it in his time since starting Hogwarts; it now reached past his shoulders. 

"Didn't realize you had a last name, Graye," I chuckled. "Everyone just calls you Archie."

"I prefer it that way. Can you imagine someone as colorful as me actually enjoying being called Graye?"

"You have a point."

“Face your partners!” rang out Lockhart's voice. “And bow!”

Archie muttered some profanities about Lockhart under his breath as we bowed. I fought to keep a straight face. Archie smirked when he saw how hard I was trying not to laugh.

“Wands at the ready! When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponents! Only to disarm them, we don’t want any accidents! One, two, three!"

"Expelliarmus!" I shouted. Archie's wand flew into the air, and I couldn't help but laugh at the shock on his face. "Tried to distract me, didn't you?"

He nodded as he bent down to pick up his wand. "Emphasis on _tried_."

It seemed we were one of the only pairs to actually follow instructions. Different colors of smoke hung over the room, and I heard Lockhart shouting somewhere in the distance.

"Finite incantatem!" Snape bellowed over the chaos, and the room came to a standstill. I turned around when I heard Hermione squeak in pain (what can I say, my ears got _really_ sharp while I was blind) and Archie and I rushed over to help Harry pull Millicent Bulstrode off of Hermione.

"Thanks," Hermione croaked, clutching her throat.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She nodded, and Archie and I returned to our positions as Lockhart flitted around the room like a concerned chicken.

He cleared his throat. “I think I’d better teach you how to block unfriendly spells. Let’s have a volunteer pair! Longbottom and Finch-Fletchley, how about you-”

“A bad idea, Professor Lockhart," Professor Snape said icily. “Longbottom causes devastation with the simplest spells. We’ll be sending what’s left of Finch-Fletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox. How about Malfoy and Potter?”

I shook with anger. How could he say such a horrible thing about Neville? And everyone knew that putting Harry's rivalry front and center wouldn't end well.

"But Professor," Archie said loudly. "Lucy's already disarmed me! Shouldn't we see a demonstration of someone doing it properly?"

But no one paid him any mind as Draco and Harry were ushered onto the stage. 

Lockhart stood with Harry while Snape stood with Draco. Both teachers whispered something in their designated pupil's ear, and I bit my lip nervously when Draco smirked. Surely whatever advice he was receiving was much better than whatever Lockhart was telling Harry. I crept closer to the stage so I could intervene if necessary.

Lockhart backed away and beamed. "Three, two, one, go!”

Malfoy got off the first spell. "Serpensortia!" he yelled.

I was yanked backward when a massive snake shot out of his wand. I glanced back to see Archie was the one who had pulled me, staring at the snake with wide eyes as he gripped my shoulder.

A sickening smile was on Professor Snape's face. “Don’t move, Potter. I’ll get rid of it.”

But he made no move to "get rid of" the snake.

"Allow me!" Lockhart volunteered, stepping forward and blasting the snake. Rather than vanishing, however, it shot up into the air and landed among the crowd, advancing toward Justin Finch-Fletchley. Cedric started pushing his way through the crowd and drawing his wand, but before he could fire off a spell, Harry was rushing toward them, speaking in... was that _Parseltongue_?

It was. The snake stopped, and turned to look at Harry. Everyone turned to look at Harry.

“What do you think you’re playing at?” Justin turned on his heel and rushed out of the hall as murmurs swelled around me. The snake disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

I rushed forward and grabbed Harry by the arm, not daring to look at anyone else, not even Cedric. "Harry, we need to leave. Now."

He didn't respond, but he followed me. Ron and Hermione walked behind us, and none of us said a word until we reached the Gryffindor common room, which was thankfully empty.

Ron shoved Harry into a chair. “You’re a Parselmouth. Why didn’t you tell us?”

Harry blinked, looking from him to Hermione to me then back at Ron. "I'm a what?"

“A Parselmouth!” 

"It means you can talk to snakes," I explained softly, sitting on the floor across from him and pocketing my wand, which I hadn't even realized I was still holding. Hermione sat a distance away from me, her eyes somewhat glazed.

Harry nodded. “I know. I mean, that’s only the second time I’ve ever done it. I accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once --- long story --- but it was telling me it had never seen Brazil and I sort of set it free without meaning to that was before I knew I was a wizard-”

“A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?” Ron asked, looking as if he were about to faint. 

“So? I bet loads of people here can do it.”

“Oh, no they can’t. It’s not a very common gift." Ron sat down heavily on another armchair. "Harry, this is bad.”

Harry's eyes flashed angrily. “What’s bad? What’s wrong with everyone? Listen, if I hadn’t told that snake not to attack Justin-"

“Oh, that’s what you said to it?”

“What d’you mean? You were there! You heard me!”

"You were speaking Parseltongue, Harry," I said. "None of us could understand what you said."

"You could have been saying anything," Ron added. "No wonder Justin panicked, you sounded like you were egging the snake on or something. It was creepy, you know-"

Harry's jaw dropped. “I spoke a different language? But... I didn’t realize... how can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it?” Ron shook his head slowly. Hermione looked pale. I inched toward her and laid my hand on top of hers. Harry sighed. “D’you want to tell me what’s wrong with stopping a massive snake biting off Justin’s head? What does it matter how I did it as long as Justin doesn’t have to join the Headless Hunt?”

Hermione spoke for the first time, her voice little more than a whisper. “It matters, because being able to talk to snakes was what Salazar Slytherin was famous for. That’s why the symbol of Slytherin House is a serpent.”

Harry's eyes widened in horror. 

Ron nodded. "Exactly. And now the whole school’s going to think you’re his great-great-great-great-grandson or something.”

"But I'm not!" Harry shouted. 

Hermione bit her lip. "You’ll find that hard to prove. He lived about a thousand years ago; for all we know, you could be.”

Harry sank into the chair. "But I'm not," he said much more softly.

"I believe you, Harry," I said, "proof or no proof. In the meantime, maybe you should go to bed before everyone comes back."

He nodded slowly. "I don't want to face anyone."

Ron rose to his feet and offered Harry a hand. "Let's go, mate."

Once the boys were gone, Hermione glanced at me. "Lucy, I'm scared," she whispered. 

"Of Harry?"

"No. I don't think so, anyway. I'm scared of everything we don't know." She clenched her fists. "I know we have to follow through with the polyjuice plan, but Godric, I want to go home for Christmas."

"Just stay with Harry and Ron no matter what, and you'll be safe," I assured her. 

She blinked back tears. "I will."

"Why don't we go get some sleep ourselves?" I suggested.

She nodded. "Okay."

Like Ron had with Harry, I rose to my feet and offered her a hand. She accepted it meekly and followed me up the stairs to our room. We both laid awake a long time, each with our own troubled thoughts, but we fell asleep eventually. 

* * *

The next morning, the snow was so thick it cancelled our last Herbology lesson of the year. I took the chance to go visit Hagrid before heading home for the holidays, braving the snow by bundling myself up in as many layers as I could find.

When Hagrid first opened the door, he was baffled. "Hello?"

I giggled. "Hi, Hagrid. It's me, Lucy."

"Oh! Lucy! Come in! So great ter see yeh!"

I ducked inside and peeled my top layer off. "Hi, Hagrid! How have you been?"

"Oh, it's been all righ', I s'pose. Why aren't yeh in class? You c'n see now, can't yeh?"

"Herbology was cancelled because of the snow, but I wanted to see you before I left for Christmas," I explained. "What's that in your hand, Hagrid? Is that... a dead rooster?"

He held it out reluctantly. "Sure is. Second one I've found like this. Blood drained and ev'rything."

I gasped. "Oh no! Blood-Sucking Bugbears?"

"Them or foxes," he said with a nod. "Yeh want to head back up ter the castle with me? I need ter show Professor Dumbledore this rooster."

I nodded. "Sounds good to me."

We had nearly reached Professor Dumbledore's office when we bumped into Harry --- literally. I offered Harry a hand off the ground, which he accepted as he brushed the snow from Hagrid's coat off of his robes.

“All righ’, Harry?” Hagrid asked.

He nodded. “What’re you doing in here?”

Hagrid lifted the rooster. “Second one killed this term. It’s either foxes or a Blood-Suckin' Bugbear, an’ I need the Headmaster’s permission ter put a charm around the hen coop.” Hagrid leaned closer to Harry. “Yeh sure yeh’re alrigh’? Yeh look all hot an’ bothered-”

Harry glanced at me before looking back at Hagrid. He was definitely not "alright," but he said, “It’s nothing. I’d better get going, Hagrid, it’s Transfiguration next and I’ve got to pick up my books.”

"I'll walk with you," I said quickly. "See you in January, Hagrid! Send me a letter if you find something out about the roosters, will you?"

"Will do!"

Harry and I hurried off toward the Gryffindor common room. We walked in silence for a minute, and I was about to ask what was wrong when he tripped. We both froze in horror when we saw what he had tripped over. Justin Finch-Fletchley was lying on the ground, petrified. Nearly Headless Nick was beside him, made of black smoke rather than a white glow. They wore identical expressions of shock. Spiders scurried away from the bodies.

He scrambled to his feet, and we pressed our backs against the wall. My throat was completely dry, but my hands were slick with sweat.

"If we run, no one would ever know we were here," Harry whispered, heaving for breath. "But I can't just... we can't just leave them here..."

"We need to get help," I agreed, feeling as if the air had been stolen from my lungs. 

"You can run, Lucy, pretend you didn't see anything, I wouldn't blame you-"

"Harry, no, I would never-"

"Will anyone believe it's not my fault?"

"I'll defend y-"

Before I could finish my sentence, Peeves zipped around the corner. "Why, it’s potty wee Potter and the sleepwalking Diggory! What’s Diggory up to? Why’s Potter lurking-” He observed the bodies and froze. “ATTACK! ATTACK! ANOTHER ATTACK! NO MORTAL OR GHOST IS SAFE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! ATTAAAACK!”

Harry and I found ourselves surrounded by students as the classes emptied. Professor McGonagall reached us first and shouted for everyone to return to their classes. I scanned the crowd for my brother, or for any friendly face, but I recognized no one.

Everyone had nearly returned to their classes when Ernie Macmillan sprinted over to us. He looked from Justin to Nick to Harry to Justin to Harry. 

"Caught in the act!" he shouted, pointing his finger at Harry. He jabbed the same finger at me. "And you, too! Wait until Cedric hears about this!"

“That will do, Macmillan!” Professor McGonagall snapped.

Peeves overhead began to sing, "Oh, Potter, you rotter, oh, what have you done, You’re killing off’ students, you think it’s good fun-”

Professor McGonagall fixed her glare on the poltergeist. "That's enough, Peeves!"

He soared away, sticking his tongue out at Harry. I sank slowly to the floor, and Harry followed suit. I couldn't breathe. The world around me spun as Justin was carried away by Professor Flitwick and Professor Sinistra and Nearly Headless Nick was fanned away by Ernie, who kept casting dark looks at Harry and me alike. 

"This way, you two," Professor McGonagall said.

Harry and I rose slowly to our feet and followed after her as best as our leaden feet would allow us.

"Professor, I swear, I didn't- we didn't-"

“This is out of my hands, Potter,” she replied, her voice sharp and emotionless. We approached Professor Dumbledore's office, and she shouted, "Lemon drop!"

We made our way to his office in complete silence. Professor McGonagall left us there alone. We didn't speak.

Harry made his way slowly to the Sorting Hat and slipped it on over his head. After a couple of seconds, he yanked it off as if it had burned him and backed away. 

"You're wrong," he said.

"What did it say?" I asked after a moment, fiddling with the sleeves of my robe and staring at the red underbelly.

Before he could reply, there was a gagging sound behind us. We spun around to see a phoenix, but not the same glorious phoenix I had seen in photographs and illustrations my whole life. This phoenix looked exhausted and sick. I was about to take a step toward it when it promptly burst into flames. 

Harry gasped in horror and glanced around the room, but the bird let out one last piercing shriek and left behind ashy remnants. At just that moment, Professor Dumbledore entered the room.

Harry tripped over his words, completely panicked at this point. “Professor! Your bird, I couldn’t do anything, he just caught fire, I-”

Professor Dumbledore smiled. “About time, too. He’s been looking dreadful for days; I’ve been telling him to get a move on.” When Harry made no reply, Professor Dumbledore turned to me. "Would you like to explain what makes phoenixes so special, Miss Diggory?"

I swallowed hard. "When phoenixes die, they burst into flame. But then they are born again from ashes." I gasped. "Look! There he goes!"

Surely enough, a baby bird poked through the grey matter. 

Dumbledore sat behind his desk. “It’s a shame you had to see him on a Burning Day. He’s really very handsome most of the time, wonderful red and gold plumage. Fascinating creatures, phoenixes. They can carry immensely heavy loads, their tears have healing powers, and they make highly faithful pets.”

"I've always wanted one," I said absently, watching with wonder as the bird continued to grow ever so slightly. "My dad recused phoenix eggs and brought them home once, and I tried to keep one. But my family knew me all too well and took the egg from me."

Before anyone could say anything, the door behind us was thrown open and Hagrid entered the room, waving the dead rooster around wildly. 

“It wasn’ them, Professor Dumbledore! I was talkin’ ter them seconds before that kid was found, they never had time, sir, it can’t’ve bin them, I’ll swear it in front o’ the Ministry o’ Magic if I have to, yeh’ve got the wrong children, sir, I know Harry and Lucy never-"

Dumbledore interrupted loudly, “Hagrid! I do not think that Harry or Lucy attacked those people.”

“Oh. Right. I’ll wait outside then, Headmaster.” Hagrid flushed bright red and left the room, rooster dangling at his side.

“You don’t think it was us, Professor?” Harry inquired timidly.

“No, Harry, I don’t, but I still want to talk to you two. You especially, Harry."

Harry shifted uncomfortably beside me.

“I must ask you, Harry, whether there is anything you’d like to tell me. Anything at all.”

Harry hesitated a long time. I could only imagine what he was thinking about. I waited for him to say something about the voices he had heard, something about his being a Parselmouth, but he said none of that. “No, there isn’t anything, Professor," he said instead.

Professor Dumbledore considered him for a long moment. "Very well. You may wait on the stairs. I would think it unwise for anyone to go anywhere alone right now, so don't go to class quite yet. Lucy, may I have another word with you?"

I nodded, heart hammering as Harry disappeared.

"I know there is more to the story than Harry is willing to tell me. I won't ask this of you," he added, noting the change in my expression, "because I would like to say I understand Harry's reluctance to tell anyone save you, Mr. Weasley, and Miss Granger what is troubling him. But I do have something to ask of you."

"Yes, sir?" I inquired when he hesitated.

"Lucy..." he began, adjusting his glasses on his nose as he studied me with his pale blue eyes. "In these uncertain times, everybody needs somebody to turn to when the world feels overwhelming. I understand that Harry does not yet trust me as fully as he trusts his friends. As one of his friends, and perhaps as the one who understands young Mr. Potter best, all I ask is that you help him as best you can, whatever may come next."

I nodded. "Of course, Professor. I promise."

He smiled kindly. "Do you have a question for me? Or for the Sorting Hat, perhaps?"

I froze. It seemed he had read my mind even when I wasn't aware of what exactly I was thinking. Asking me to stand beside Harry unconditionally seemed something one would ask of a loyal Hufflepuff rather than a reckless, headstrong Gryffindor.

I bit my lip and chose my next words carefully. "I would like to know why I'm in Gryffindor instead of in Hufflepuff. I've wondered that for over a year now. But... but I don't think I want the answer handed to me. I think... I think I would rather find the answer for myself."

"What a Ravenclaw response," he replied with a mischievous wink. Noting my half-amused and half-pained expression, he chuckled. "There is nothing wrong with that. I believe the best individuals possess equal shares of all of the Houses' qualities. Just the same, Lucy, thank you for your promise. You may go with Harry to class now."

Harry and I hurried up to the common room first, still in need of our bags. We paused for a second to catch our breath before crawling back through the portrait hole.

"What did Dumbledore ask?" he inquired.

I grinned teasingly. "You answer first. What did the Sorting Hat say?" He grew red in the face, and I immediately backpedaled. "You don't have to tell me, Harry. I just thought it might be related. He offered me a chance to ask the Sorting Hat why I was in Gryffindor and not Hufflepuff, but I said I'd rather wait and see for myself than have it explained to me."

He relaxed slightly. "The Sorting Hat almost put me in Slytherin," he admitted after a moment of hesitation. "That's part of why everything has... well... bothered me so much. Being a Parselmouth, being the one to find all of the bodies, being called the Heir of Slytherin-"

"I understand," I said, impulsively reaching forward and laying a gentle hand on his arm to stop him. "It's alright. You're here for a reason, Harry, and I hope I am, too. We'll figure this out together. After all," I added, "I've been right alongside you in nearly every adventure so far. I'm ready for this one, too."

And as we hurried to class, I realized that I would have said that to him even without Dumbledore's prompting.


	30. A Merry Little Christmas

_Through the years we all will be together  
If the fates allow  
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough  
And have yourself a merry little Christmas now_

_"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"  
Judy Garland_

* * *

HARRY:

I found myself awoken far earlier than I would have liked on Christmas morning when Hermione entered our dormitory and opened the curtains with a loud "Wake up!"

Ron put his pillow over his face to block the glare. “Hermione, you’re not supposed to be in here!” he said, his voice muffled.

She chucked his present at him. “Merry Christmas to you, too. I’ve been up for nearly an hour, adding more lacewings to the potion. It’s ready.”

I sat up and threw my glasses on. "Are you sure?"

Hermione nodded as she perched herself on Ron's bed. “Positive. If we’re going to do it, I say it should be tonight."

Hedwig flew in the window and deposited a small gift in my hand. “Hello! Are you speaking to me again?”

She nipped at my ear, as if to say "Yes." I unwrapped the package, which was a toothpick.

Ron wrinkled his nose. "Who sent you that?"

I read the note attached to it out loud. "See if you can stay at school for summer too. Sincerely, the Dursleys"

"How terrible!" Hermione exclaimed.

I shrugged. "That's almost kind for them. The 'sincerely' is a nice touch."

Before either of them could say anything else, a large brown owl swooped into the room, bearing three gifts wrapped in the same red and white paper.

"Malachi!" Ron exclaimed.

"Whose owl is that?" I asked, taking the gift with my name on it from its talons.

"Lucy's," he said, scratching the owl affectionately behind the ears. "You've had a long journey, haven't you?"

The owl pecked at Ron's hand and shook its feathers free of snow before flying out the window to the Owlery.

"Might as well open these all at the same time, eh?" I asked. They nodded, and we tore into the wrapping paper. We all received identical boxes of fudge, with small notes tucked inside. 

Hermione read hers aloud first. "Dear Hermione (and presumably the boys as well, though they have their own notes), merry Christmas! I miss you all very much already, but I'm glad Cedric and I were able to come home. Cedric has been in higher spirits; so high, in fact, we spent nearly eight hours together just the two of us in the kitchen yesterday making this peppermint fudge for everyone and singing Christmas carols at the top of our lungs the entire time. I don't think Tuck was particularly fond of my singing, the way Fluffy was, but what can I say? Everyone's a critic. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it, and please be careful with you-know-what. Please send me a letter as soon as you can about how it goes. Merry Christmas again, and see you soon!"

"Who's Tuck?" I asked. "Does she have another brother?"

Hermione giggled. "No, Tuck's her dog. Oh, look, she sent a picture!"

She held up a small photograph of a black and white dog with a forked tail running in circles around the edges of the frame. I could see Cedric's hands reaching forward trying to put a Santa hat on him, but the dog refused to be caught. I laughed and read my own letter silently as Hermione and Ron began opening their next gifts. It read:

_Dear Harry,_

_Merry Christmas! I'm hoping Hermione read her letter aloud so you know what's in the box._

_I wanted you to know that I've been reading the ancient runes book again, looking for anything I can find about the Chamber of Secrets. I haven't come across anything of note yet, but as soon as I do, I'll let you know. I asked my dad at dinner last night if he knew anything about the monster that might be in the Chamber, but he couldn't give me a concrete answer --- he said no one has any idea what might be down there. He seemed extremely nervous, though, so it's possible he's lying; he's always been an awful liar. When I asked about the spiders, he merely shrugged and said it was a funny coincidence. I disagree, personally, but my dad is the magical creatures expert so make of that what you will. I've wondered if maybe there's an acromantula down there, but they are native to southeast Asian rainforests, so it would seem unlikely that Salazar Slytherin managed to come across one more than a thousand years ago. The first European sighting was in 1794._

_But anyway, Harry, be safe and try to stay out of trouble without me, okay? I'll write if I learn anything new about the Chamber of Secrets. Please make sure Hermione never walks the halls alone. I worry for her._

_Sincerely, Lucy Diggory_

I reached into the box and tried a bite of fudge while I processed her letter. I soon forgot all about the letter, though; the fudge was that delicious.

Without Lucy and Cedric, the twins saw no reason to have a snowball fight, but they entertained themselves by changing the text on Percy's badge to say "Pinhead" rather than "Prefect." He didn't notice, but he did ask several times why we all kept laughing at him. Ron and I played a fair amount of wizard's chess while Hermione put the finishing touches on the potion. He won, as always, but we both found it hard to focus in the light of knowing we'd be taking Polyjuice Potion that night.

That dread evaporated with the Christmas feast, however. We ate and laughed freely. It was impossible to be anything but joyful on Christmas day at Hogwarts. 

Hermione dragged us out of the Great Hall after our third round of pudding, already talking a mile a minute as she was prone to do when she was anxious. “We still need a bit of the people you’re changing into, and obviously, it’ll be best if you can get something of Crabbe’s and Goyle’s; they’re Malfoy's best friends, he’ll tell them anything. And we also need to make sure the real Crabbe and Goyle can’t burst in on us while we’re interrogating him. I’ve got it all worked out." She held up two chocolate cakes proudly. "I’ve filled these with a simple Sleeping Draught. All you have to do is make sure Crabbe and Goyle find them. You know how greedy they are, they’re bound to eat them. Once they’re asleep, pull out a few of their hairs and hide them in a broom closet.”

Ron and I exchanged an uncertain glance. 

“Hermione, I don’t think... that could go seriously wrong...”

She glared at us. “The potion will be useless without Crabbe’s and Goyle’s hair. You _do_ want to investigate Malfoy, don’t you?”

I sighed. “Oh, all right, all right, but what about you? Whose hair are you ripping out?”

She drew a small jar from her pocket and held up the single hair inside of it. “I’ve already got mine! Remember Millicent Bulstrode wrestling with me at the Dueling Club? She left this on my robes when she was trying to strangle me! And she’s gone home for Christmas, so I’ll just have to tell the Slytherins I’ve decided to come back.” With that, she rushed away.

Ron turned to me. “Have you ever heard of a plan where so many things could go wrong?” he moaned.

I sighed again. "We have no other choice."

"I wish Lucy was here," Ron muttered as we followed Hermione. "She's the only one who can talk any sense into Hermione."

"Well, now it's up to us to make sure we have plenty of information to tell her when she comes back," I said, straightening my robes. Little did I know how disastrous the night would become.

It started well enough. Crabbe and Goyle both ate the cakes without a second thought. We returned to Hermione with their hairs and their shoes, and we each took our glass of potion. When Hermione dropped Millicent's hair into the potion, it turned the color of yellow vomit.

Ron wrinkled his nose in revulsion. "Essence of Millicent Bulstrode. Bet it tastes disgusting.”

"Add yours," she said, nodding to the two of us. Goyle's hair turned my potion the color of a booger, and Crabbe's hair turned Ron's potion the color of mud.

A thought occurred to me right before we took sips. “Hang on, we’d better not all drink them in here. Once we turn into Crabbe and Goyle, we won’t fit. And Millicent Bulstrode’s no pixie.”

Ron nodded. "Good thinking."

We all filed into separate stalls, and I began the countdown. "Three... two... one!"

I don't know what I was expecting, but the sensation I experienced was most unpleasant. Everything grew and stretched, straining against my robes and even against my skin. I could hear Hermione yelping in pain a couple of stalls down. When it was all over, I changed robes and shoes and met Ron/Crabbe outside.

Ron prodded his new face in the mirror. “This is unbelievable. Unbelievable.”

I nodded. “We’d better get going. We’ve still got to find out where the Slytherin common room is. I only hope we can find someone to follow."

“You don’t know how bizarre it is to see Goyle thinking," Ron muttered. He pounded on the door to Hermione's stall. “C’mon, we need to go!”

“I... I don’t think I’m going to come after all. You go on without me.” Hermione's voice was tight with pain.

"Hermione, we know Millicent Bulstrode’s ugly, no one’s going to know it’s you.”

“No, really, I don’t think I’ll come. You two hurry up, you’re wasting time!”

I shot Ron a confused look, and he smiled. “That looks more like Goyle. That’s how he looks every time a teacher asks him a question.” 

"Hermione, are you okay?" I asked. "You sound-"

“Fine! I’m fine! Go!”

I checked my watch. Five minutes had already passed. We needed to go.

I sighed. "We'll meet you back here."

Ron and I set out into the hallway, looking for a Slytherin to follow. He tried to ask a girl, but she was actually a Ravenclaw, so that didn't work out. The next person we saw, to our surprise, was Percy.

“What’re you doing down here?” Ron asked.

Percy scowled. “That is none of your business. It’s Crabbe, isn’t it?”

"Wh... oh. Yeah."

“Well, get off to your dormitories. It’s not safe to go wandering around dark corridors these days.”

"You are."

“ _I_ am a _prefect_. Nothing’s about to attack _me_.”

For the first time in my life, I was glad to see Draco Malfoy coming towards us. “There you are. Have you two been pigging out in the Great Hall all this time? I’ve been looking for you; I want to show you something really funny.” He glared at Percy. “And what’re you doing down here, Weasley?”

Their egos collided in a spectacular display. Percy puffed up like a peacock. “You want to show a bit more respect to a school prefect! I don’t like your attitude!”

Malfoy rolled his eyes and motioned for Ron/Crabbe and me to follow him. I almost said something apologetic to Percy, but I caught myself just in time. We followed Malfoy down the corridor.

"That Peter Weasley," he started to say, but Ron interrupted him.

"Percy," he said. I elbowed him hard. There was no way Crabbe actually knew Percy's name.

Fortunately, Malfoy didn't notice how odd this was. “Whatever. I’ve noticed him sneaking around a lot lately. And I bet I know what he’s up to. He thinks he’s going to catch Slytherin’s heir single-handed.” He laughed, and Ron and I looked at each other, fighting the urge to grin. _Finally._ "What's the new password again?"

I panicked. "Er..."

"Oh yeah. Pure-blood!"

A door that had previously blended perfectly into the wall slid open. We followed him into the common room.

He practically shoved us toward two chairs by the fire. “Wait here, I’ll go and get it, my father’s just sent it to me-”

I glanced around the room as he disappeared. The fire seemed to be glowing uncharacteristically bright, and the greenish light coming from the lamps was not altogether menacing. I would have expected the common room to be more... well, evil.

Malfoy returned and shoved a newspaper clipping under Ron's nose. "Read that!" he crowed. "That'll give you a laugh."

Ron forced a laugh and handed me the clipping. I scanned it quickly, my heart sinking lower with every word.

_INQUIRY AT THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC_

_Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, was today fined fifty Galleons for bewitching a Muggle car._

_Mr. Lucius Malfoy, a governor of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where the enchanted car crashed earlier this year, called today for Mr. Weasley’s resignation. “Weasley has brought the Ministry into disrepute,” Mr. Malfoy told our reporter. “He is clearly unfit to draw up our laws and his ridiculous Muggle Protection Act should be scrapped immediately.”_

_Mr. Weasley was unavailable for comment, although his wife told reporters to clear off or she’d set the family ghoul on them._

I handed the clipping back to Malfoy, unable to force myself to laugh. “Well? Don’t you think it’s funny?”

"Ha ha," I said, feeling like I had swallowed a rock.

“Arthur Weasley loves Muggles so much he should snap his wand in half and go and join them! You’d never know the Weasleys were pure-bloods, the way they behave.”

Ron looked positively livid. Malfoy's eyed him questioningly. “What’s up with you, Crabbe?”

"Stomachache," Ron lied.

Malfoy laughed. “Well, go up to the hospital wing and give all those Mudbloods a kick from me. You know, I’m surprised the Daily Prophet hasn’t reported all these attacks yet. I suppose Dumbledore’s trying to hush it all up. He’ll be sacked if it doesn’t stop soon. Father’s always said old Dumbledore’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to this place. He loves Muggle-borns. A decent headmaster would never’ve let slime like that Creevey in.” He bounced around with an imaginary camera. He squeaked, “Potter, can I have your picture, Potter? Can I have your autograph? Can I lick your shoes, please, Potter?" When we didn't react, he stared at us. "What’s the matter with you two?”

We forced ourselves to laugh, but he didn't seem too bothered. Maybe Crabbe and Goyle were always this slow.

“Saint Potter, the Mudbloods’ friend. He’s another one with no proper wizard feeling, or he wouldn’t go around with that jumped up Granger Mudblood. And people think he’s Slytherin’s heir!" He sighed. "I wish I knew who it is. I could help them.”

I couldn't believe it. It wasn't Malfoy? “You must have some idea who’s behind it all?" I asked, grasping at straws.

“You know I haven’t, Goyle, how many times do I have to tell you? And Father won’t tell me anything about the last time the Chamber was opened either. Of course, it was fifty years ago, so it was before his time, but he knows all about it, and he says that it was all kept quiet and it’ll look suspicious if I know too much about it. But I know one thing: last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened, a Mudblood died. So I bet it’s a matter of time before one of them’s killed this time; I hope it’s Granger!"

Ron looked ready to punch Malfoy, and I couldn't blame him. But I didn't think Crabbe would ever punch Malfoy, so I asked another question. “D’you know if the person who opened the Chamber last time was caught?”

“Oh, yeah, whoever it was was expelled. They’re probably still in Azkaban.”

"Azkaban?"

“Azkaban, the wizard prison, Goyle. Honestly, if you were any slower, you’d be going backward.” He sighed. “Father says to keep my head down and let the Heir of Slytherin get on with it. He says the school needs ridding of all the Mudblood filth, but not to get mixed up in it. Of course, he’s got a lot on his plate at the moment. You know the Ministry of Magic raided our manor last week?”

I tried to look concerned, but I was secretly thrilled. Malfoy saw only my fake concern.

“Yeah… luckily, they didn’t find much. Father’s got some very valuable Dark Arts stuff. But luckily, we’ve got our own secret chamber under the drawing-room floor-”

"Oh!" Ron gasped. Malfoy and I both whipped our heads to look at him. Not only was his face red, but his hair was starting to turn red too. We needed to go. The potion was wearing off.

We jumped to our feet, and Ron mumbled something about medicine for his stomach before we ran. We sprinted all the way to the closet where we'd left Crabbe and Goyle and left the shoes outside before returning to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

Ron sighed, but smiled. “Well, it wasn’t a complete waste of time. I know we still haven’t found out who’s doing the attacks, but I’m going to write to Dad tomorrow and tell him to check under the Malfoys’ drawing room.”

I put my glasses back on as Ron knocked on Hermione's door again. “Hermione, come out, we’ve got loads to tell you-"

"Go away!"

I turned to exchange a concerned glance with Ron. 

“What’s the matter? You must be back to normal by now, we are.”

Myrtle passed through the door, looking positively gleeful. “Wait till you see! It’s awful!”

Hermione slowly walked out, robes over her head. 

Ron was extremely concerned. “What’s up? Have you still got Millicent’s nose or something?”

Hermione dropped her robes, and we both jumped back. Her entire face was a larger-than-life recreation of a cat. Her face was covered in black fur, and matching ears poked through her hair. Her yellow eyes were full of tears as she explained.

“It was a c-cat hair! M-Millicent Bulstrode m-must have a cat! And the p-potion isn’t supposed to be used for animal transformations!”

Ron gulped. "Uh oh."

Myrtle giggled. "You'll be teased something dreadful!"

I pulled Hermione away from the ghost. “It’s okay, Hermione. We’ll take you up to the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey never asks too many questions."

"But- but-" Tears rolled down her cheeks. "Oh, how could this have gone so horribly wrong?"

Neither Ron nor I had an answer to that question. Ron reached forward and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It'll be okay. Madam Pomfrey can fix it. I mean, Lucy was blind but Madam Pomfrey fixed it as fast as-"

The mention of her best friend just made Hermione wail louder. It took a great deal of time and effort to convince her to leave the bathroom. She insisted on walking to the Hospital Wing herself to dispel any suspicion surrounding the two of us, so Ron and I headed up to the common room alone. As soon as we got up to our dormitory, I drew a piece of parchment out of my trunk and grabbed a quill.

"What're you doing?" Ron asked, flopping onto his bed.

"Writing to Lucy. She should know what happened."

"Mate, nothing's going to get through that snow. It's a Christmas miracle Malachi got here, but there's no way he'll be getting back to Ottery St. Catchpole anytime soon."

"I'm still going to write it," I said. "She would want to know we at least tried."

Ron shut his eyes and rolled into a more comfortable position. "Tell her I said hi, then."

I started to reply, but he was already gone. I was always amazed by his uncanny ability to fall asleep anywhere instantly.

I crept to the fireplace and began writing. I told her the fudge was delicious and that I hoped she liked the Montrose Magpies beanie I had gotten her, giving Ginny the credit for telling me her favorite Quidditch team in the first place. I told her that Malfoy wasn't the Heir of Slytherin, and I told her about Hermione's potion malfunction, being careful to assure her that Hermione was completely okay, if embarrassed. I concluded by telling her I hoped the letter would reach her somehow, but that the snow might make that difficult. I signed it at the bottom and rolled it up, leaving it on my nightstand beside my glasses before crawling into bed.

For all of my concerns about the Chamber of Secrets, I found myself reminiscing about last Christmas. At this exact time a year ago, I reckoned Lucy and I were either just arriving in the Restricted Section or just leaving it. It was my first night at the Mirror of Erised.

I closed my eyes, my parents' faces swimming in my vision. I now had Hagrid's photo album full of pictures that further solidified their faces in my mind, but no picture could ever come close to recreating the pure euphoria I experienced when I first saw my family, my whole family, in the Mirror of Erised. It was an intoxicating sort of joy that brought me back night after night after night, no matter how much it haunted me later. 

Ron had seen himself holding up the Quidditch Cup, as captain and Head Boy. That had always made sense to me. Though he was no Hermione, he certainly had big dreams even if he chose to keep most of them to himself. What Lucy had seen in the mirror, however, had always been a mystery to me. 

She had told me what she had seen. She had seen herself without scars. She had seen Cedric holding a broom out to her then taking off into the sky. She had seen a girl she didn't know who was running toward her.

She had told me that she had nightmares about what she had seen, the way I had, but she never elaborated. I knew she didn't like talking about herself much in general, especially when something was bothering her, but I tried to make sure she at the very least knew I would be there for her. I think everyone else who cared about her tried to do the same thing, even though we never really talked about it.

I stopped asking about the nightmares after a while, because every time I did, confusion like clouds would enter her eyes, and she would seem more distant than usual for a while. Not that Lucy was distant, but she was nowhere near as assertive (or bossy) as Hermione, and she always weighed her words more carefully than Ron did, and she was far better at controlling her temper than I was, though I had definitely seen the angry way her eyes flashed when Snape mocked Neville or when she overheard people saying less-than-friendly things about me. Part of me secretly wanted to see her lose her temper, really lose it, just once, just to see how angry she could really be, but I knew she never would. Not unless something truly terrible happened, anyway.

I got out of bed and added one more thing to the bottom of the letter.

_P.S. We all really miss you._


	31. It Wasn't Hagrid

LUCY:

I was just about to go to bed when blinding pain shot through my body.

"Ow!" I yelped, cradling my hand.

"Lu?" Cedric asked, rushing into my room. "What is it, are you okay?"

I sucked in a breath between my teeth. "It's the ring, I-" I glanced down and saw that Hermione's half was glowing such a bright pink it hurt my eyes. I tried to pry it off, but it was seared to my skin. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow."

"Should I go get Mum?"

I shook my head. "No, it... it should stop in a minute."

"Did the magic go faulty?"

"I don't... don't think so. I just don't know why this would be happening right now." A horrible thought occurred to me. "Oh no."

Still clutching my hand, I sank onto my bed. It was the night they planned on using the polyjuice potion. Something must have gone wrong. Horribly, horribly wrong.

"What is it, Lu?" Cedric asked, sitting beside me on the bed.

I took a shaky breath. "I think I know what might have gone wrong, but I don't know why-" I hissed as the pain intensified. "-why something would have gone wrong." My vision swam with tears; the burning was getting nearly unbearable, and my half began to glow increasingly purple. "Their plan was so good... so solid... and if Hermione... I can only imagine..."

Black spots danced in front of my eyes.

"Lucy, take the ring off."

"I can't, it's burned on," I choked out.

He reached forward and tried to pry it off, but it really was stuck to my skin. "It doesn't feel hot to me," he remarked. "Lucy, what's wrong?"

"It only changes temperature for the wearers," I explained, my hand beginning to shake. "I designed it that way so it wouldn't burn a hole through anything if something were to happen, but I didn't think it would hurt this much if... ow!"

The heat surged again.

"I'm going to get Mum and Dad," he said, starting to rise from the bed, but I caught his elbow with my other hand.

"No, Cedric, please, I can't take this off, they'd make me take it off!"

"Lu, it's hurting you," he said softly. "It's okay to take it off if it's hurting you. I'm sure they could help."

"No, Hermione needs me. Please, Ced, stay."

He paused for a moment, but he must have seen the earnestness in my eyes, because he lowered himself back onto my bed. "Okay. How can I help?"

I bit my lip. "I don't know." I stared at the ring. Her half was still brilliant pink, but it seemed to be dimming as purple swirled with the pink. "I don't know if that's a good or bad thing."

"What do pink and purple mean?"

"I wish I could tell you, but it's a secret," I said, managing a smile. "Only Hermione and I know. And not even _we_ know some of the colors for sure."

"Can you tell me if the purple is good or bad?"

"I think it's bad." I swallowed hard. "I don't know what could have happened. It was a good plan, but it was honestly a bit of a long shot-"

"What plan? Lucy, what's going on?"

I sighed. "If I tell you, will you promise not to tell anyone else?"

He nodded. "Of course."

I sighed again. "Well... Hermione's been brewing polyjuice potion in an out of order bathroom so we could find out if Draco Malfoy is the Heir of Slytherin. I think tonight was the night they were all going to sneak into the common room and fish for information."

Cedric blinked. "Well, that wasn't exactly what I expected. Wait, polyjuice potion? Isn't that-"

"Illegal? Yes. I swore you to secrecy for a reason."

"Lucy-"

"It wasn't my idea. I barely even helped, since Lockhart saw to it that I was in the Hospital Wing for a month. Cedric, I'm scared of what might have gone wrong..."

He still seemed stunned, but he wrapped a reassuring arm around my shoulders regardless. "They'll be okay. I'm sure of it."

"I hope you're right," I whispered. "I hope they didn't get caught."

He laughed. "If they haven't gotten caught yet, I'm sure they won't now."

"I asked them to send me a letter as soon as they could, telling me what happened. I guess now we just have to wait for that."

"I'll help you keep an eye out. And I'll help you make sure Mum and Dad don't read the letter first."

I snickered. "Thanks. That would be a horrible way for them to find out about... well, everything."

I watched as anger and sadness mingled with the embarrassment and fear on Hermione's half. I wished there was a way I could send her the happiness I felt at the moment despite my fear. I figured it was worth a shot.

I leaned against my brother's arm. "I'm glad we're here, Ced. It's nice to be home for Christmas and away from all of the fear."

"I'm glad you feel the same way. I was worried you'd wish you were at school with your friends instead of here with me," he admitted.

"What? Ced, I've been having so much fun here with you!"

"More fun than you would have had playing polyjuice dress-up tonight?"

I giggled. "Are you kidding? I'd much rather be here. Besides, I didn't know if it would work with me being a werewolf anyway."

"So let's hope you never have to find out," he said. "You aren't planning to impersonate me anytime soon, are you?"

"Not unless you happen to be the Heir of Slytherin, no," I teased. "Heir of Hufflepuff would be more likely, at any rate. I've heard that they all call you their Golden Boy."

He blushed. "I'm not."

"If Henry were here, he'd agree with me."

"Well, he's not here, and I disagree, so I suppose we have a stalemate. Speaking of, want to play a round of chess to take your mind off of everything?"

"You reckon we can play quietly enough to not get caught?"

He nodded, smirking.

"Am I being a bad influence on you?" I asked. "You've never been so mischievous. Who are you, and what have you done with my brother?"

"Hey, who got you the prank birthday gift?"

I held up my hands in surrender. "Alright, fair's fair. You can be mischievous from time to time." I smirked right back at him. "You're going down."

We played by the light of the downstairs fireplace, lying on our stomachs on the fluffy rug and whispering the commands to our players. Cedric won the first game, and I barely scraped a victory from the second game. We were halfway through our tiebreaking game when the ring began to glow bright pink again.

Cedric clapped a hand over my mouth before I could cry out in pain, but my eyes watered with the effort of biting my lip to keep everything inside. When the worst of it passed, I peeled his hand away from my mouth, breathing hard.

"I don't know what that was," I panted, "but I reckon it wasn't good."

"Let's finish the game and go to bed," Cedric suggested. "It's getting late. Hermione should be sleeping soon, so you can take the ring off for a couple of hours."

I nodded, too tired to protest. Cedric won the game, and we crept back up the stairs.

"That was fun," I whispered as I opened the door to my room. "Play again tomorrow night?"

"You bet," he said, giving me a fist bump. "G'night, Lu."

"Night, Ced."

I waited on pins and needles for a letter from Hermione or Harry or Ron, but Malachi didn't return for several days. Dad said Hogwarts and Hogsmeade was covered in blankets of snow, so Malachi was likely stranded in the Owlery. Cedric and I kept up our late-night tournaments, and it was at the end of one that the letter I had been waiting for finally came.

"It's from Harry!" I whispered, recognizing the handwriting immediately.

"Oh, great," Cedric whispered back, stroking Malachi's head. "What does it say?"

I read the letter in a fast whisper. "P.S. We all really miss you," I finished, feeling a significant weight lifted from my shoulders. I took a deep breath. "My best friend is a cat now."

"I never expected that," he said with a sympathetic grin, "but I'm glad she's okay."

"It certainly explains the ring," I commented. "The second surge must have been when she went to the Hospital Wing and had to explain what had happened."

Cedric winced. "Yeah, that would be embarrassing, for sure. Oh, don't look at me so surprised," he chuckled. "Embarrassment is definitely the predominant emotion. I'm guessing that's pink?"

I nodded. "It's pointless trying to keep any secrets from either of you. You almost always figure me out eventually."

"Almost?"

"That's another conversation for another time," I said dismissively. "Do you want to play another game?"

"You're not tired yet?"

"The full moon is in two days," I explained. "I'm never tired before the full moon. But it's okay, you can go to bed."

He smiled. "I think I have one more round in me. Let's play."

* * *

I was on the forest floor. Blinking a couple more times, I realized I was home. I pushed myself to my feet, trembling with the effort, and began the walk back to the house.

The lights were on inside. The lights were always on the morning after a transformation, to welcome me home.

Cedric was sitting on the stone wall around our front yard, fiddling with something in his hands. His head jerked up when he heard me, however, and he quickly jumped down and ran over to me.

"Lucy," he breathed, looking me over head to toe. "Thank goodness. Are you hurt?"

I shook my head. "Just tired."

"And cold, I reckon," he added. I noticed for the first time that he was wearing a sweater I'd never seen before.

"Where'd you get that?" I asked.

"Henry gave it to me for Christmas," he explained with a smile. "It's charmed to adapt to the weather. Needless to say, it's incredibly warm right now. C'mere." 

I felt as if I were melting as he put his arm around me. "Oh, that feels amazing," I sighed as we walked into the house.

"Good morning, darling," Mum said, pressing a warm cup of tea into my hand. I reckoned I was one of the only people in the entire country who didn't really like tea, but after a night in the freezing cold, I accepted it gratefully and took a deep sip. "Cedric, bring her to the fire, she's practically blue."

"If I had a Sickle for every time I heard that..." I muttered as I sat in front of the fire and Cedric draped a blanket around me.

"If you had a Sickle for every time you heard that, you'd have a physical representation of exactly how much we care about you," Cedric finished for me.

I smiled. "You're right."

Tuck ran up to me then and nearly knocked my tea out of my hands. I managed a tired laugh as Cedric patted his head. He plopped himself down on the rug in front of us and laid his head on Cedric's lap.

"Did Henry make the sweater himself?" I asked.

Cedric nodded. "He's taken up knitting as a hobby lately."

"Interesting hobby," I commented as I drained the last drops of tea from my mug. I leaned into Cedric's warmth and sighed. "Remind me to ask him how he charmed this. It would be so helpful to have one of these around transformations."

"How so?" he asked.

I had somewhat forgotten how little information I actually volunteered about my lycanthropy. "Well," I explained, "I always get really hot and feverish beforehand, even without dittany. It's like I'm burning from the inside out, like the monster is just a ball of energy trying to fight its way into the open. But then after, I'm freezing."

Cedric absorbed this in silence. "I didn't realize how much it impacted you beyond just the one night," he admitted after a moment. "What else happens?"

I almost told him about how I could never sleep before a full moon, and how all I ever wanted to do after a full moon was sleep, but I didn't. I had burdened him enough for one day. 

"Now I'm just tired," I said, stroking Tuck's head with the hand not holding a mug. "I'll probably sleep for the next day or two, if Mum and Dad let me, like I did in November when I didn't have to get to class."

"I'll make sure you can, Lu," Cedric promised, helping me to my feet and taking the mug from my hand. "See you in two days."

I hugged him (and his warm sweater) one last time and disappeared up the stairs. My last thought before falling asleep was of my friends back at Hogwarts. By the time I woke up, I'd probably be two days closer to seeing them again. 

* * *

As soon as I returned to school, I sprinted to the Hospital Wing to see Hermione. 

"Lucy!" she gasped, throwing her book aside and flinging herself on top of me. "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too," I said, studying her face. A bit of dark stubble still remained on her cheeks, but I reckoned it was an improvement compared to what Harry had described. "How are you?"

"Right now? Happy to see you. Have you seen the boys yet?"

I shook my head. "I only just arrived back. I came here first thing."

She sat back and retrieved her book. "They'll be happy to see you too," she said. "They're probably in the common room."

I laughed. "Are you kicking me out?"

"Oh, no," she replied, shaking her head. "I just, well, I want to get ahead on reading since I won't actually be in class."

"It's okay, I get it," I said. "I know the feeling. At least you'll be able to do the work, yeah? You have hands and not paws?"

She nodded, lifting the hand with the ring for emphasis. "I do! Did the ring burn you, too?"

I nodded, twisting it partially off to show the small red scar. "Well, this is one we'll match, even if you don't share any of my other scars."

"Yeah, sorry about that," she said, the ring glowing pink again.

"Please, don't be sorry, I don't want another scar," I giggled. "I don't mind, truly. Maybe once you get out of here, you can help me figure out a way to not make it burn. In the meantime, I'll let you work in peace."

Later that week, when we were bringing her homework, Ron was far less understanding. “If I’d sprouted whiskers, I’d take a break from work."

“Don’t be silly, Ron, I’ve got to keep up,” she said. The cat hair had disappeared, but her eyes were still fairly yellow. She lowered her voice to a whisper. “I don’t suppose you’ve got any new leads?”

Harry shook his head. "Nothing."

"I was so sure it was Malfoy," Ron muttered.

"What's that?" Harry asked, pointing under Hermione's pillow.

She tried to say it was nothing, but Ron's hand shot forward and pulled it out. “To Miss Granger," Ron read aloud in a booming voice. "Wishing you a speedy recovery, from your concerned teacher, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award.”

I laughed aloud. "I didn't get one of those! Did you, Harry?"

"I'm afraid not," he said mournfully. "I guess our Hermione is truly special."

"Why do you sleep with this under your pillow?" Ron asked.

Fortunately for Hermione, Madam Pomfrey came by right then with her medicine and shooed us away. We promised to come back the next day.

Ron was still disgusted as we left. “Is Lockhart the smarmiest bloke you’ve ever met, or what?”

"And yet Hermione worships the man," I said with a shake of my head. "Not that she's the only one, but you think at this point she'd know he's a fraud."

We started to head up to the common room. Ron sighed.

"Lucy, how many rat tails are you supposed to add to a Hair-Raising Potion?"

I was about to answer when we heard something above us.

"That's Filch," Harry said. We hurtled up the stairs and listened, being careful to stay out of sight. My heart was pounding.

"Please don't tell me someone else has been attacked," I whispered.

Filch exploded again. “Even more work for me! Mopping all night, like I haven’t got enough to do! No, this is the final straw, I’m going to Dumbledore-”

We waited until his footsteps echoed away and we heard a distant door slam before seeing what the fuss was about. It seemed there was water leaking from Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, and her cries could be heard from behind the closed door.

“Now what’s up with her?” Ron wondered.

Harry shrugged and lifted his robes so he didn't get them wet. "Let's go see."

The boys gestured for me to lead the way, so I headed down to her stall.

"Hi Myrtle," I said softly, so she'd have to stop crying to hear me. "What's going on?"

“Have you come to throw something else at me?” she wailed.

“No, of course not. Why would I throw something at you?”

"Don't ask me!" She shot out of the toilet, sending water all over me, but I didn't shy away. “Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it’s funny to throw a book at me!”

Harry took a step closer. “But it can’t hurt you if someone throws something at you. I mean, it’d just go right through you, wouldn’t it?”

I winced slightly as Myrtle began screaming. “Let’s all throw books at Myrtle, because she can’t feel it! Ten points if you can get it through her stomach! Fifty points if it goes through her head! Well, ha, ha, ha! What a lovely game, I don’t think!”

“Who threw it at you, anyway?” Harry asked.

“I don’t know. I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death, and it fell right through the top of my head! It’s over there, it got washed out.”

Harry and Ron headed over to inspect the book. I looked Myrtle in the eye. "I'm sorry someone threw something at you. You deserve better."

She sniffled. "Nothing new. It's been so many years of this over and over and over and-" She disappeared back into the toilet with a mournful sob. 

I turned to the boys just as Harry was about to grab the book. Ron threw out his arm to hold Harry back.

"What?" Harry asked.

“Are you crazy? It could be dangerous,” Ron hissed. 

Harry chuckled. “Dangerous? Come off it, how could it be dangerous?”

“You’d be surprised. Some of the books the Ministry’s confiscated Dad’s told me... there was one that burned your eyes out. And everyone who read _Sonnets of a Sorcerer_ spoke in limericks for the rest of their lives. And some old witch in Bath had a book that you could never stop reading! You just had to wander around with your nose in it, trying to do everything one-handed. And-”

"Alright, I get it, I get it," Harry interrupted.

I stepped toward the book and pointed my wand at it. "Let's see if anything happens if it moves. Wingdardium leviosa!"

When it didn't explode or start emitting any strange sounds or anything out of the ordinary, Harry reached forward and snatched it out of midair. 

"T.M. Riddle," Ron read aloud. “Hang on, I know that name! T. M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago.”

“How on earth d’you know that?” Harry asked incredulously.

“Because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention. That was the one I burped slugs all over. If you’d wiped slime off a name for an hour, you’d remember it, too.”

I couldn't help but snicker. "Sorry, Ron, that's just a special way to know someone's name."

He rolled his eyes, but he smiled.

Harry flipped through the pages, but there was nothing at all written down.

"He never wrote in it," he observed. I fought the urge to snicker again. I could _see_ no one had written in it.

“I wonder why someone wanted to flush it away," Ron said.

Harry flipped to the back cover. “He must’ve been Muggle-born, to have bought a diary from Vauxhall Road."

"Is that in London?" I asked

Harry nodded.

“Well, it’s not much use to you,” Ron announced. He lowered his voice to a mutter. “Fifty points if you can get it through Myrtle’s nose.”

"No!" I hissed, swatting his arm. Harry smiled and pocketed the book.

None of us mentioned the book again until Hermione had returned from the Hospital Wing a couple weeks later. As I expected, she was incredibly intrigued.

“Oooh, it might have hidden powers,” she said as she snatched it from Harry's hands.

Ron frowned doubtfully. “If it has, it’s hiding them very well. Maybe it’s shy. I don’t know why you don’t chuck it, Harry.”

“I wish I knew why someone _did_ try to chuck it,” he replied. “I wouldn’t mind knowing how Riddle got an award for special services to Hogwarts either.”

Ron shrugged. “Could’ve been anything. Maybe he got thirty O.W.L.s or saved a teacher from the giant squid. Maybe he murdered Myrtle; that would’ve done everyone a favor-”

"Oh, shut up," I said, whacking his shoulder again.

Harry and Hermione were staring at each other intently.

"What?" Ron asked.

Harry bit his lip. “Well, the Chamber of Secrets was opened fifty years ago, wasn’t it? That’s what Malfoy said.”

"Yeah...?"

"And this diary is fifty years old."

"So?"

Hermione slammed the book down. “Oh, Ron, wake up! We know the person who opened the Chamber last time was expelled fifty years ago. We know T. M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago. Well, what if Riddle got his special award for catching the Heir of Slytherin? His diary would probably tell us everything, where the Chamber is, and how to open it, and what sort of creature lives in it. The person who’s behind the attacks this time wouldn’t want that lying around, would they?”

Ron seemed convinced for a second, but he sighed. “That’s a brilliant theory, Hermione, with just one tiny little flaw. There’s nothing written in his diary.”

"It might be invisible ink!" she exclaimed, fishing her wand out of her bag.

"I already tried-" I started to say, but she didn't hear me.

"Aparecium!"

Nothing appeared, but she wasn't discouraged. She pulled a bright red eraser out of her bag.

"This is a Revealer. I got it in Diagon Alley. Let's see..."

Still nothing happened. 

"See, Hermione, there's nothing there. It's pointless," Ron said.

Hermione turned her head toward me. "What do you think, Lucy? You've been rather quiet." Her eyes trailed to my ring, and I glanced at hers. My half was a dark purple. 

I took a deep breath and released it slowly, dragging my hand down over my face. "I just don't know. I feel like we're missing something obvious, something right in front of our noses..." Ron pointed to the book in Hermione's hands questioningly, but I shook my head. "Not that. Well, maybe that, but... no, not really that. It's been bothering me since Christmas break, and I still can't place a finger on what it is." I glanced toward Hermione, knowing she was the only one who really knew how afraid I was. "I just hope we can figure out what it is before it's too late."

* * *

I never did get to sleep that night. Normally I fell asleep around four in the morning the night before a full moon, but my mind wouldn't stop racing and I had to get up for Quidditch practice anyway. I put my Quidditch robes on and headed down to the common room to wait for Harry so we could walk down together, but when I realized I'd be waiting there for more than an hour, I decided just to head down to the Pitch in the darkness.

I didn't run into anybody the whole way down, which seemed nothing short of a miracle. I knew the way to the Pitch by heart, and I reckoned I could have gotten there even while I was blind. I grabbed my broom out of my locker and kicked off into the sky.

I was still in the sky when Oliver Wood appeared on the Pitch.

"Lucy?" he shouted, coming up from behind me. "How long have you been out here?"

"Not long," I lied.

"What are you doing up so early?"

"Same as you, I reckon," I replied with a laugh. "A little extra practice never hurt anyone. I can try taking some shots at you if you want to practice goalkeeping."

He shook his head. "I'd rather just fly for fun, if it's all the same to you."

I smiled. "Brilliant. Race you around the castle?"

"Oh, no bloody way," he chuckled. "Me against your broom?"

"Alright, alright," I relented with a giggle. "A nice, leisurely, just-for-fun loop, then?"

"Oh no, I'm still going to go as fast as I can. I may be Keeper, but I do enjoy a good lap on a broom."

"How much time do we have before everyone else shows up?"

He squinted at the horizon. "About three minutes."

"Perfect."

I shot off into the distance, Oliver right on my tail. We laughed the whole lap around the castle, and arrived just as everyone else took to the skies.

"Little joy ride, you two?" George called.

"Oliver Wood, having fun?" Fred taunted. "Lucy, you're a miracle worker!"

Oliver shook his head and smiled. "Should I make them fly extra laps for that?" he asked me softly.

"Nah, let them have this one," I said. "The Hufflepuff match is far enough away."

* * *

_Twelve hours later, the girl entered the Forbidden Forest alone, staggering because she had been awake for more than a day, maybe two days. She couldn't quite remember. Her last thought was that she would be more exhausted than usual in the morning, and she was glad the next day was a Sunday. She dropped to her knees and screamed as the transformation began._

_The werewolf had gotten lucky the past few months and not really injured itself, but that night, it found itself in trouble. Something was chasing it._

_The wolf tried to outrun the wild Ford Anglia, but it had gotten too close to the unicorn the car was trying to protect. The car clipped the werewolf's hind legs, a loud snap resounding through the night as one broke cleanly._

_A mournful howl told the car its job was done. It backed up and returned to its duty as unicorn guardian, leaving the werewolf to cry to the moon until it dipped below the horizon._

* * *

When I came to my senses, all I could feel was pain, licking up my right leg and sending distress signals throughout my body. I was deeper in the forest than I reckoned I had ever been; it was a horrible morning to be lost.

I glanced down at my leg. Surely enough, my thigh was bent in a way thighs weren't supposed to be bent.

I wondered how long it would take before someone came and tried to find me. I wondered if they would come quickly enough. All I knew was that I was hurt, and I couldn't move. So I called the only name that pierced through my brain's fog of pain.

"Cedric!" I croaked. I cleared my throat and tried again, louder. "Cedric!"

I shouted as loud as I could for about five minutes before my parched throat failed me.

"Ced," I sobbed, feeling tears rise to my eyes for the first time, "I'm here. I need you. Please."

I had nearly given up hope when I heard someone shout my name.

"I'm here!" I called back weakly.

"Lucy? Lucy!"

"Cedric?" I craned my neck to locate the source of the sound. Cedric was rushing toward me, wand at the ready. He fell to his knees by my side and cupped my cheek in his hand.

"I'm here. You're going to be okay."

"Of course I am," I said with a smile, my head feeling light and funny. "You're here now."

He offered a halfhearted smile. "You're right. I'm here. Now, this is going to hurt a lot, but I'm going to need you to be brave for me, okay?"

I nodded, and Cedric removed his hand from my face to hold his wand with both hands. He mumbled a spell I couldn't quite understand, and the shooting pain that flooded my body made me cry out so loudly I think I saw tears in Cedric's eyed.

"I'm so sorry," he murmured, pocketing his wand and helping me to my feet. "I know that was horrible."

"It's not your fault," I said, swaying slightly. I blinked hard to try to clear my head. "You did what you had to do. We need to get out of here before that car comes back."

"Car?"

I nodded. "It chased me. I don't remember why. We need to go."

He asked no more questions, but he reached down and took my cold hand in his warm one. "We will. Together."

I nodded. "Together."

* * *

I jolted awake the morning of Valentine's Day. Oliver's practice had gone nearly to midnight, and everyone in my dormitory was already gone. I hurriedly threw my robes on and made my way down to the common room. I needed to get down there to protect Cedric from whatever the day would bring. 

Harry seemed similarly flustered and tired when we saw each other in the common room. "Did we miss breakfast?"

"I hope not," I said, tightening my tie. "I'm starving."

He nodded his agreement, and we rushed down to the Great Hall.

"Oh, Merlin," I moaned.

"Are we in the right room?" Harry asked, and I knew he wasn't kidding.

"I'm afraid so," I replied, cringing at the sight.

It was as if a Valentine's Day firework had gone off. Pink lined the walls, the tables, it even fell from the ceiling. Harry and I sat down across from Ron and Hermione at the table.

"What's going on?" Harry asked them. I reached over and flicked a piece of confetti off of his messy hair.

Hermione merely giggled in response. Ron pointed to the teachers' table, and Harry and I both groaned as soon as we saw that none other than Gilderoy Lockhart was responsible for this monstrosity. I would have made some snarky comment, but Lockhart began gesturing for silence.

“Happy Valentine’s Day! And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all, and it doesn’t end here!” Lockhart clapped his hands, and a bunch of dwarves in Cupid costumes marched through the door. Harry and I exchanged a glance and both immediately dissolved into laughter. I pressed my knuckles to my mouth in an effort to control it, but my entire body shook with how hard I was laughing. But Lockhart still wasn't done. “My friendly, card-carrying cupids! They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn’t stop here! I’m sure my colleagues will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you’re at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I’ve ever met, the sly old dog!”

I snickered. "Snape looks like he'll kill the first person to ask him to brew a Love Potion." I glanced across the room toward the Hufflepuff table. "Oh, sweet Salazar, my poor brother. Look."

There was already a line of dwarves standing behind Cedric. Harry shook his head sympathetically. "I think I would die if I got one."

“Please, Hermione, tell me you weren’t one of the forty-six people who sent Lockhart a valentine,” Ron said.

She refused to answer, and I stifled a laugh with a large bite of toast. 

After breakfast, we were heading back up to the common room when a dwarf barreled through the hallways to catch up with us.

“Oy, you! ‘Arry Potter!”

Harry immediately flushed from head to toe. He tried to duck in front of a tall Ravenclaw, but the dwarf kicked people's shins to get through the crowd and reached him before he could get anywhere. “I’ve got a musical message to deliver to ‘Arry Potter in person.”

"No, no, not here," Harry gasped, glancing around frantically. I saw why he was so concerned. There was a massive group of first-years gathered, including Ginny. She made eye contact with me and smirked. I clapped my hand to my mouth when I realized why. The dwarf lunged for Harry's bag and sent its contents spewing all over the ground.

"Harry, if you resist, it'll only get worse," I tried to say, but he had a wild look in his eyes and tried to run for it again. The dwarf grabbed Harry around the knees and slammed him to the ground. I reached down and grabbed his torn bag, repairing it with a whispered spell and waiting for whatever was coming.

Draco Malfoy stepped up behind me, already looking smug. “What’s going on here?”

Percy Weasley arrived next. “What’s all this commotion?”

But the dwarf paid neither of them any mind as he sat on Harry's ankles. “Right. Here is your singing valentine: His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad, his hair is as dark as a blackboard, I wish he was mine, he’s really divine, the hero who conquered the Dark Lord!"

I smiled at Ginny, who seemed torn between amusement and mortification. She obviously was having regrets, but the laughter of everyone else in the corridor was contagious. I helped Harry to his feet, handing him his repaired bag.

"You alright?" I asked over the sound of everyone's laughter. 

His face was a brilliant shade of red, and he didn't answer.

Malfoy bent down and grabbed something that had landed right next to my feet. I bit my lip when I realized it was T.M. Riddle's diary.

"Give that back," Harry said, holding out his hand.

“Wonder what Potter’s written in this?” he snarled, flipping through the empty pages.

Ginny looked absolutely terrified as she looked from the diary to Harry and back again. Before I could wonder why, though, Percy ordered Malfoy to give it back.

"After I've had a look, sure," he said nonchalantly.

Percy tried again to get him to surrender it, but Harry whipped his wand out of his pocket and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

The diary flew into the air, and I handed it to Harry, laughing. "Nice one."

Percy was less than impressed. “Harry! No magic in the corridors. I’ll have to report this, you know!”

"Percy, please," I said, "Draco wasn't listening to you, so Harry took matters into his own hands and nobody was hurt."

He was surely about to say something to me when Draco called after Ginny, “I don’t think Potter liked your valentine much!”

"I don't see you getting any," I fired back, grabbing Harry's arm. "Let's go."

Fortunately, thay year brought no Love Potions for Cedric. He had Henry on one side and Archie on the other, and I couldn't help but smile. There was no way anybody would get anything past either of them.

That night, Harry retired early. I wanted to ask if everything was alright, but he was gone before I had the chance. I made my way over to the twins, who were lazily summoning objects with a flick of their wands from around the room as practice for their Charms test the next morning.

"Don't remember summoning you," Fred teased as I approached.

"In that case, I'll go to bed," I teased right back, turning on my heel and pretending to walk away. 

"Oh, get back over here," George said, grabbing my hand and dragging me down onto the couch between them. "You still owe us a month's worth of interaction since you were missing in action for most of November and part of December. You've been busy sneaking around with Harry and Ron and Hermione and holding secret little meetings."

"They're not 'secret little meetings,'" I scoffed, feeling my face turn red nonetheless. "And we don't sneak around."

"Lucy..."

I tilted my head, trying to appear amused though I knew they, for once in their lives, were being serious. "Whoa, Georgette, breaking out the full name?"

"Okay, first off, my full name is just George," he said with a laugh, "but that's besides the point. Don't think we haven't noticed you all sneaking around every time something happens."

I jumped. "The Map!" I whispered. "Do you know who it is? Has anyone been doing anything suspicious? You two could solve it!"

"We're never looking at the right time," George muttered. "We've tried. Whoever's doing it always happens to do it when we're busy. But we do see you all, after the event, sneaking around and-"

"We're not any closer to figuring it out than you are," I replied with a sigh. "Trust me, if we were, we wouldn't be having so many 'secret little meetings.'"

"How did Harry and Ron end up in the Slytherin common room?" Fred asked. "We've been dying to ask."

I smirked. "I can't say, but you'd be proud."

Just then, the door from the boys' dormitory banged open, and Harry and Ron emerged, both looking shaken.

"Looks like we're about to have a secret little meeting," I said under my breath, making the twins chuckle. I rose to my feet and crossed the room. "What's wrong?"

"Get Hermione," Ron said. "Harry's just figured it out."

Not waiting for another word, I darted up the stairs and shook Hermione. "Mione, Ron said Harry's solved it, come on."

She was instantly wide awake, and we darted down the stairs. The twins were gone, and Harry and Ron had taken their seats on the couch. Hermione sat between them, whereas I sat cross-legged on the rug in front of the fire.

"Well?" Hermione asked impatiently, looking from Harry to Ron. "Who opened the Chamber of Secrets?"

"Hagrid," Harry replied. "Hagrid did."

"No, he didn't."

Everyone looked up at me.

"What?" I asked, sitting up straighter. "He didn't."

"I guess I should explain," Harry said, staring at his hands in his lap. "I was writing in the diary, which belonged to Tom Riddle. He was talking to the headmaster at the time, and he asked if he could stay at Hogwarts over the summer. But this was fifty years ago, when the first attacks happened. The headmaster said he might be able to stay if the attacks stopped, so Riddle left and went down to the dungeons, where he found Hagrid trying to hide a massive spider, the biggest spider I've ever seen. He turned Hagrid in, and the attacks stopped."

We sat in stunned silence for a moment.

"So Hagrid had a pet spider that caused all of the attacks," Ron said slowly.

Harry nodded.

"No." Everyone looked at me again. "No, it wasn't Hagrid. He would never."

Harry looked at me despairingly, silently begging me to side with him. "But Lucy, the spider theory you had would make so much sense-"

I felt my face burn. "No. It wasn't Hagrid."

"Spider theory?" Hermione asked. "What spider theory?"

"Over Christmas break, I was thinking it might have been an acromantula causing the attacks, but that would be impossible. They're not capable of petrifying people, and they weren't even seen in Europe until the late 1700s. It wasn't Hagrid!"

Hermione glanced from me to Harry uncertainly. “Riddle might have got the wrong person. Maybe it was some other monster that was attacking people-”

“How many monsters d’you think this place can hold?" Ron asked.

Harry sighed. “We always knew Hagrid had been expelled. And the attacks must’ve stopped after Hagrid was kicked out. Otherwise, Riddle wouldn’t have gotten his award.”

“Riddle _does_ sound like Percy," Ron said slowly. "Who asked him to squeal on Hagrid, anyway?”

“But the monster had _killed_ someone, Ron,” Hermione pointed out.

“And Riddle was going to go back to some Muggle orphanage if they closed Hogwarts. I don’t blame him for wanting to stay here…” Harry's voice trailed off.

There was a moment of silence before Hermione spoke. “Do you think we should go and _ask_ Hagrid about it all?”

"Don't bother. It wasn't him," I said bluntly.

"Lucy, all of the evidence points to him, we have a firsthand account-"

"Riddle showed Harry what he wanted Harry to see."

"Which is better than anything we've gotten so far-"

"Look, I'm as eager to solve this as all of you," I said, rising to my feet, "but I can't just sit here listening to you all blaming Hagrid for a horrible thing he would never do."

Hermione turned to Harry. "You said Hagrid was still trying to hide the spider, even when he was cornered?" When he nodded, she turned back to me. Her voice was angry now. "Lucy, be logical! Hagrid is the only person we know who would try so hard to protect a _monster_!"

Monster. That one word was all it took.

We simultaneously hissed in pain as both of our rings burned in a searing flash. She cradled her hand to her chest, not daring to look at me.

I drew a deep breath. "Once upon a time, Hermione, I thought you would, too."

She didn't look up. I swallowed my tears and hurried up the stairs to our dormitory without another word.


	32. Some Truths Are Sharper Than Knives

_Some truths, over time, can learn to play nice  
Some truths are sharper than knives  
Some truths we only see in the corners of our eyes  
Some truths we wish we could hide_

_Some truths can save us  
Some take our lives  
Some truths are fire  
And some truths are ice  
No matter what category you fit into  
Truth's got its sight set on you_

_"South"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

_The morning after March's full moon, Hermione Granger was waiting on pins and needles for her best friend to meet her in the Hospital Wing. She hoped that maybe exhausted, cold, post full moon Lucy might finally see reason and agree that Rubeus Hagrid was in fact responsible for the Chamber of Secrets._

_She'd tried and tried and tried again to talk to her after the Valentine's Day disaster where Lucy fled the room nearly in tears, but it seemed everything she said went in one ear and out the other. Ron Weasley tried to talk sense into Lucy himself, but the same thing happened. Harry Potter knew better than to try to convince her of something he himself found nearly impossible to believe, so he instead gave her a bit of space._

_They weren't angry with each other. They didn't go out of their way to avoid each other. To anyone on the outside, nothing had really changed among the four of them. But they all knew that invisible walls had been erected separating Lucy from the other three, and that it would take something drastic to tear them down._

_When Hermione dropped the ring into Lucy's hand, the soft "Thank you" that followed didn't come with the smile it always did. When she secured it around her finger, her half glowed blue and purple, but there was no scarlet anger. Just sadness and fear. Hermione's soon matched, and they left the Hospital Wing in silence._

_The month between moons passed the same way. Lucy built her walls higher and higher, trying to protect herself. But she found that the higher the walls climbed, the more Hermione's words echoed in her mind until she could hear nothing else her best friend said._

_Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster._

_That one word was all it took._

* * *

LUCY:

In the weeks that followed the horrible night T.M. Riddle convinced Harry -- and by extension, Hermione and Ron --- that Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets, I needed time to myself as often as I could find it. More often than not, I sat at the Hufflepuff table with Cedric. Many other kids sat with their siblings, too; Padma Patil often joined Parvati and Lavender at the Gryffindor table, and the prefects table was empty so each prefect could spend more time with their house mates. There hadn't been any more attacks, but since the culprit had never been caught, nobody really wanted to be alone.

I seemed to be the only exception. Every chance I got, I made my way down to the Quidditch Pitch for a couple hours of silence and solitude. Most of the time, I would do homework or study in the stairwells, but from time to time, I would fetch my broom from the lockers and fly around the grounds to clear my head.

There was no doubt in my mind that Hagrid was innocent. I wasn't angry with the others for questioning him, not really; Riddle had made it pretty clear that _he_ thought Hagrid was the one who had opened the Chamber of Secrets, and the attacks _had_ stopped when he was expelled from Hogwarts. But it seemed easy to believe, _too_ easy to believe. I still couldn't shake the feeling that I was missing something obvious, something right under my nose. I would ponder this as I flew around the castle, over the Forbidden Forest, through the Pitch, but for all of my hours in the spring sunshine, I could never place my finger on what exactly was bothering me.

When the time came to decide on my electives for the next year, I had no trouble choosing Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, and Study of Ancient Runes for my classes. The only other person who was able to make an easy decision was Archie, it seemed.

"I'm only interested in Arithmancy and Muggle Studies," he declared one night at dinner. He and Cam had more or less permanently moved to the Hufflepuff House, it seemed. Apparently, the Slytherin common room password was changed to "pure-blood" following the attack on Justin Finch-Fletchley, and they both refused to say it to get in. The Hufflepuffs had rallied around them, along with the couple of other Slytherins who also refused to say it, and set up a fancy tent in the Hufflepuff common room where they could sleep every night. It was for that reason, really, the Hufflepuff table's second most common robe color those days was green. "Divination seems like a load of dragon dung," he continued, "I don't need to know about magical creatures to dismantle the regime of blood supremacy, and why would I need ancient runes if I'm working to make a better future?"

"But Care of Magical Creatures seems so fun!" Cam protested. "And Divination would certainly be easier than Arithmancy, I've heard Trelawney is a total pushover and will accept any assignment as long as your predictions are tragic enough."

"I can't deny it," Henry chuckled. "Cedric still actually puts effort into the class, but I don't remember the last time I actually saw anything useful in my tea leaves. I think I predicted in this week's homework that one of the house elves in the kitchens would be petrified next, and she totally ate it up."

"You don't believe any of it, do you, Cedric?" Archie asked incredulously.

My brother shook his head. "Nothing she's predicted has actually come true yet, but my dad wholeheartedly believes in it and expects me to solve the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets by the end of the year using a crystal ball, so I figured there's no harm in trying."

I laughed. "To be fair, Ced, Dad's also the one that stopped eating cheese for two years because someone at work who ended up being... what do Muggles call it? Lactose intolerant?" Archie nodded. "Someone at work who ended up being lactose intolerant said that cheese actually carried a curse that only affected middle-aged men."

Everyone laughed at that, even Cedric, who was loath to laugh at anyone no matter how deserving they were.

As I found out later that evening from Neville, I'd share Care of Magical Creatures with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but I'd only have Hermione in my other electives.

"She's taking them all," Neville whispered. "I don't know how she plans on doing it, but she's all signed up and everything."

I pursed my lips. "That's peculiar. I wonder how she'll make that work."

He shrugged. "If anyone can, it's her."

"That's for sure. Which classes are you taking, Neville?"

"Care of Magical Creatures and Divination, same as Harry and Ron," he said with a sigh. "I'd rather just take extra Herbology classes, but I can't. I've already asked and Professor Sprout and Professor McGonagall both said no."

"Well, think about it this way. If you took all of your advanced classes as a third- and fourth-year, you wouldn't have any Herbology at all as a fifth-, sixth-, or seventh-year."

He nodded sullenly. "You're right. I still wish I could."

I nodded. "I know the feeling. It's alright."

After a couple seconds of silence, Neville spoke again. "Sure is a good thing we had the Mandrakes this year, isn't it?"

"Definitely. It would be horrible to have to wait even longer to see everyone healed."

"Do you want to be a healer, Lucy?"

I felt the blood drain from my face. Another question about my future. Another question I couldn't answer. "I don't think I could be," I answered slowly.

"Why not?"

"I get squeamish around other people's blood," I admitted. "I would love to be a healer, the way Cedric wants to be, but I could never. The sight of other people suffering is too much for me most of the time. I would feel better preventing it than helping once it's already happened. I... I wish I could be a healer like Cedric though, really. Trying to protect everyone at once can be hard."

"So if someone really needed it, you could help them, but you'd rather not have them need it at all?"

I nodded. "Exactly."

"You know," he said, "I think we need both types of people. People like you protect everyone they can, but there's no way to protect everyone. People like Cedric help save the people you can't protect."

I smiled. "I think you're right, Neville. Which type of person do you think you are?"

"I think I'm a protector too. Or well, I want to be. It seems much more Gryffindor-like, don't you think?"

I looked down at the scars on my hands. "When it comes to blood and gore and suffering, Cedric is braver than I'll ever be. Hagrid says he never once hesitated to save me that day from the Forest, even though I was covered in blood and on death's door. I would like to say I'd do the same, but it would be much harder for me than for him." I paused for a second. "I think there's a great deal of bravery in healing too."

* * *

"Lucy." Someone grabbed my arm just as I was about to enter the Great Hall on the day of our match against Hufflepuff. I turned to see it was Harry.

"What?"

"Lucy, I know you're still upset with us all for the Hagrid thing-"

"I'm not upset with you, I just need time to think-"

"-but I need to talk to you."

"Can it wait until after the match?"

He shook his head. I let him pull me out of the crowd and down a hallway to a bench. I drew my wand out of habit and scanned the corridor up and down, just in case. 

"Can't be too careful," I said softly. 

"Lucy, the diary is gone. Someone stole it out of my trunk."

I bit my lower lip. He waited patiently for a response, but I could think of nothing to say.

"Hermione wants me to report it," he continued after thirty seconds of silence, "but I don't want to tell a teacher about the diary. Even more than that, I don't want to be the one to bring up the fact that Hagrid was expelled."

I nodded slowly. "I understand."

"This also means it's a Gryffindor who... who, you know..."

"Yeah." I leaned forward and rested my head in my hands. "Yeah, it must be, no one else knows our passwords." I sighed heavily. "I guess we should probably go to breakfast."

"Yeah," he agreed.

I settled myself between the twins, since the Quidditch team was eating all together, but Harry and I made frequent eye contact while everyone around us talked excitedly.

"What's the matter with you, Cub?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, why so quiet?" George echoed.

Harry and I locked eyes again before I answered. "Just thinking about how sweet it'll be to beat Cedric at something for once in my life." I grinned at Harry. "Beat him to the Snitch, will you? I think we all deserve a massive celebration party after how disastrous the last match was."

Harry smiled back and nodded. "Sure thing, Lu."

And for a moment, a brief moment, everything felt okay again.

But as we left the Great Hall, everything flipped right back over. 

Harry gasped loudly, stopping dead in his tracks. He looked around wildly. “The voice! I just heard it again! Didn’t you?”

Ron and I shook our heads, but Hermione's entire face lit up the way it did when she had an epiphany. “I think I’ve just understood something! I’ve got to go to the library!” She spun on her heels and sprinted away, leaving us to stare, dumbfounded, as she went.

“What does she understand?” Harry asked.

"Loads more than I do," Ron admitted.

“But why’s she got to go to the library?”

“Because that’s what Hermione does. When in doubt, go to the library.”

"As her roommate..." I said softly. "Yeah, that's exactly what she does." I glanced down at my watch. "Harry, we've got to go, it's nearly eleven."

We sprinted all the way down to the locker room, and I climbed into my locker to change into my scarlet robes, illuminated by the dim purple glow of both halves of my ring. I wasn't as nervous for this match as the last one, but I doubted I'd ever be truly free of any nerves whatsoever. I pulled my helmet on and emerged from my locker, grabbing my broom.

"Why do you do that?" Angelina asked.

"Hm?"

"Change in your locker, I mean?"

"Oh, I-" I tugged my gloves on, securing them as tightly around my wrists as I could. "Just... just... my scars... you know?"

She nodded understandingly. "It's okay. I can't blame you. But you can change out here with us whenever you want; everyone's insecure about something."

"Thanks," I stammered, feeling my cheeks heat. I cleared my throat and crossed the room to sit next to Harry. I glanced at him shyly. "If you catch the Snitch within ten minutes, I'll stay in the common room for the entire party, if you want."

He smiled. "Sounds good to me."

"Oh, we're taking bets?" Fred asked excitedly. "Lucy, if you score three goals, I'll turn Harry's hair green!"

I laughed as Harry protested. "You're on!"

Oliver silenced us by clearing his throat loudly. His speech was shorter than usual, though he did add in some remarks about Lockhart's incompetence that made us all chuckle and roll our eyes. He fixed his gaze on Harry and me. "You two especially, watch out for each other out there. I don't expect Hufflepuff to play as rough as Slytherin-"

"Hufflepuffs are incapable of hurting a fly," Fred cut in.

"-but the last thing we need is another incident."

"Trust me, Oliver, neither of us want that to ever happen again," I said with a laugh.

He smiled. "Glad we all have reached an understanding. Let's go!"

My spirits were higher than they'd been in quite a while when we stepped out onto the Pitch. 

"Good luck, Harry," I said, bumping his shoulder with mine.

"Good luck, Lu," he replied. "Try not to take a Bludger to the face this time. I c- oh no."

"What? What is it?"

I followed his gaze and spotted Professor McGonagall. She was half-walking and half-running, megaphone pressed to her mouth.

“This match has been cancelled. All students are to make their way back to the House common rooms, where their Heads of Houses will give them further information. As quickly as you can, please!”

The stadium swelled with confused shouts and disappointed boos. I glanced toward the Hufflepuff team and made eye contact with my brother, whose hand was reaching ever so slightly for Henry's. I was about to make my way over to Cedric when Professor McGonagall's voice made me stop dead in my tracks.

"Diggory, Potter, you better come with me..."

Harry and I exchanged a horrified look, but followed her immediately. Ron started fighting through the crowd to get to us. I expected Professor McGonagall to shoo him away, but she merely nodded slowly. “Yes, perhaps you’d better come, too, Weasley…”

Harry and I threw our brooms over our shoulders and followed her up to the castle. Every second that passed felt like an eternity, yet when we arrived outside the doors to the Hospital Wing, it was like I had merely blinked and we were there.

Professor McGonagall had never sounded so gentle. “This will be a bit of a shock. There has been another attack… another _double_ attack.”

My heart lurched against my ribs. We followed Professor McGonagall into the Hospital Wing. One body was that of Penelope Clearwater, a Ravenclaw prefect. Beside her was Hermione.

"Hermione!" Ron gasped.

I rushed forward and leaned my broom up against her bed so I could yank my glove off. Her half did not glow at all; it was completely silver. My half couldn't decide how I was feeling. I couldn't decide how I was feeling either.

Harry and Ron walked up on either side of me.

“They were found near the library." Professor McGonagall held up a small mirror. "I don’t suppose any of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them.”

We all shook our heads slowly.

“I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower. I need to address the students in any case.”

Back in the common room, I sat by myself in a dark corner, holding my broom in my lap and absently tracing over the logo with the index finger of my non-gloved hand as Professor McGonagall addressed the room, reading from a roll of parchment in her hands.

“All students will return to their House common rooms by six o’clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities.” She rolled the parchment up and addressed the room as a whole. “I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely that the school will be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward.”

She left through the portrait hole, offering me a sympathetic glance as she left. Harry and Ron started walking toward me, but Lavender and Parvati made it first, tears streaming down their faces.

"What are we going to do?" Lavender sobbed. 

I immediately wrapped both of them in a hug and squeezed tightly. "Hermione will be back as soon as the Mandrakes are ready. But even before then, we'll be okay."

"How do you know?" Parvati croaked.

"Hermione would want us to be," I said firmly. "She'll be back soon. She's not gone forever, none of them are."

"But what if the next attack is fatal?" asked a third voice. I glanced up to see a very pale, very shaken, very ghostly-looking Ginny hovering nearby, arms wrapped tightly around her midsection as if she were about to be sick.

I swallowed hard. "Then we'll learn to be okay in that situation, too. But for today, let's be thankful that everyone we've lost so far is coming back to us, okay?"

Ginny nodded faintly, and I gestured for her to join the group hug. We remained in that corner until dinner, various people coming and going and seeking reassurance. I kept my brave face on, telling whoever came by that it would all be okay as soon as the Mandrakes were ready.

To my surprise, Percy Weasley was perhaps the most shaken of all. I recalled what Harry had told me about Percy's interaction with Draco Malfoy on Christmas night. The petrification of Penelope Clearwater proved that nobody, not even prefects, were safe.

As soon as I entered the Great Hall, Cedric caught me in his arms and held tightly.

"I heard about Hermione," he said hoarsely, as if he'd been crying. "Are you alright?"

I nodded and buried my head against him, taking a deep breath to steady myself. My emotions were growing more intense by the moment, but I couldn't afford to fall apart yet. "I know she'll be back as soon as the Mandrakes are ready. I'm sorry, Ced, but the Gryffindors need me tonight, I've been more or less elected their counselor for the day. I'll eat with you tomorrow, though, alright?"

"Take care of yourself, Lu," he said. "Please?"

"I will," I assured him. "I'm okay, really. I know she'll be back."

My brother still seemed unconvinced, but he relented and headed to the Hufflepuff table. I noticed the way he reached forward to lay a reassuring hand on Allie Longshore's shaking shoulders and smiled to myself. For tonight, both Diggorys were designated counselors and healers, it seemed.

After dinner, Harry and Ron pulled me aside and said they were heading down to Hagrid's that night.

"We understand if you'd rather not come," Ron said, his voice heavy. "You were right, after all. Hagrid would never... he cares too much about Hermione..."

"I'll go," I said. "The three of us need each other now more than ever."

"I'm sorry for doubting you, Lu," Harry said softly.

I shook my head. "Don't be. Blaming him made logical sense."

"Then why couldn't you?"

I bit my lip. "I've asked myself the same question for two months, to tell you the truth. I have no answer other than just instinct."

"Your instincts are better than ours, it would seem," Ron admitted.

"Everyone has their highs and lows," I said. I lowered my voice and smirked. "I mean, all three of us have agreed Lockhart is a fraud from the beginning, didn't we?"

This drew small smiles from the two of them. I reached down and squeezed both of their hands.

"We'll be alright, boys. Really. She'll be back before we know it."

"I sure hope so," they murmured in unison.

That night, I was still in the common room when Harry and Ron came down. We didn't speak as we threw the cloak over ourselves, me stuck between the boys, and made our way down to Hagrid's hut. The door opened violently, and a crossbow was pointed at our noses.

"It's us, Hagrid," Harry said, slipping the cloak off.

“Oh, what’re you three doin’ here?” he asked as he ushered us inside.

“What’s that for?” Ron asked, pointing at the crossbow.

“Nothin’, nothin’, I’ve bin expectin’... doesn’ matter. Sit down, I’ll make tea.”

We watched silently as he blundered around the kitchen and poured us glasses of boiling water --- he forgot the tea bags.

Harry's voice was gentle. “Are you okay, Hagrid? Did you hear about Hermione?”

“Oh, I heard, all righ’,” he replied, sounding near tears.

Harry was about to ask another question --- _the_ question --- when there was another knock at the door.

I hurriedly threw the cloak over the three of us and rushed to hide in a dark corner for a second time that day.

The door opened to reveal Dumbledore. “Good evening, Hagrid," he said, his voice solemn. I felt my heartbeat quicken when Cornelius Fudge himself followed Dumbledore into the small hut.

“That’s Dad’s boss! Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic!” Ron whispered.

I elbowed him gently to make him be quiet.

Hagrid looked like he was going to be ill as he collapsed into a chair.

Cornelius Fudge's tone sent shivers down my spine. I hoped neither boy could feel how horribly I was trembling. “Bad business, Hagrid. Very bad business. Had to come. Four attacks on Muggle-borns. Things’ve gone far enough. Ministry’s got to act.”

Hagrid gulped. “I never... you know I never, Professor Dumbledore, sir-”

“I want it understood, Cornelius," Dumbledore interrupted, "that Hagrid has my full confidence.”

The Minister shifted on his feet. “Look, Albus, Hagrid’s record’s against him. Ministry’s got to do something, the school governors have been in touch-”

“Yet again, Cornelius, I tell you that taking Hagrid away will not help in the slightest." 

“Look at it from my point of view. I’m under a lot of pressure. Got to be seen to be doing something. If it turns out it wasn’t Hagrid, he’ll be back and no more said. But I’ve got to take him. Got to. Wouldn’t be doing my duty-"

“Take me? Take me where?” Hagrid croaked.

“For a short stretch only, not a punishment, Hagrid, more a precaution. If someone else is caught, you’ll be let out with a full apology-”

“Not Azkaban?” he asked miserably.

If the boys couldn't feel my trembling before, they certainly could at that point. The arrival of another man to the hut made Harry gasp. I was too shaken to elbow him the way I had elbowed Ron. It was Lucius Malfoy.

His voice was like ice. “Already here, Fudge. Good, good.”

“What’re you doin’ here? Get outta my house!” Hagrid roared.

“My dear man, please believe me, I have no pleasure at all in being inside your... er... d’you call this a house? I simply called at the school and was told that the headmaster was here.”

Everything within me burned with anger. I couldn't take much more of this. Little did I know the worst of the night was yet to come.

“And what exactly did you want with me, Lucius?” Dumbledore asked.

“Dreadful thing, Dumbledore, but the governors feel it’s time for you to step aside. This is an Order of Suspension. You’ll find all twelve signatures on it. I’m afraid we feel you’re losing your touch. How many attacks have there been now? Two more this afternoon, wasn’t it? At this rate, there’ll be no Muggle-borns left at Hogwarts, and we all know what an awful loss that would be to the school.”

The Minister stumbled backwards. “Oh, now, see here, Lucius, Dumbledore suspended? No, no, that's the last thing we want just now.”

“The appointment --- or suspension --- of the headmaster is a matter for the governors, Fudge. And as Dumbledore has failed to stop these attacks-”

“See here, Malfoy, if Dumbledore can’t stop them... I mean to say, who can?”

The grin the blond man flashed make me even angrier. The ring on my finger responded, burning a bright scarlet. Anger; no, fury. Ron and Harry both stared at it, and I had to bite my lip against the pain. Lucius Malfoy was maddeningly smug. “That remains to be seen, but as all twelve of us have voted-”

Hagrid leapt to his feet. "An’ how many did yeh have ter threaten an’ blackmail before they agreed, Malfoy, eh?”

“Dear, dear, you know, that temper of yours will lead you into trouble one of these days, Hagrid. I would advise you not to shout at the Azkaban guards like that. They won’t like it at all.”

The massive man wasn't done. “Yeh can’t take Dumbledore! Take him away, an’ the Muggle-borns won’ stand a chance! There’ll be killin’ next!”

“Calm yourself, Hagrid,” Dumbledore said, fixing a steely glare on Lucius Malfoy. “If the governors want my removal, Lucius, I shall of course step aside-”

"But-"

"No!"

“However, you will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me. Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.” And for a second, Dumbledore looked at our corner before meeting Malfoy's eyes again.

“Admirable sentiments. We shall all miss your, er, highly individual way of running things, Albus, and only hope your successor will manage to prevent any, ah, 'killin's.”

Malfoy opened the door and ushered Dumbledore out. The Minister of Magic soon followed, but Hagrid lingered a second longer. “If anyone wanted ter find out some stuff, all they’d have ter do would be ter follow the spiders. That’d lead ‘em right. That’s all I’m sayin’. An’ someone’ll need ter feed Fang while I’m away.”

As soon as the door shut, Ron yanked off the Invisibility Cloak. “We’re in trouble now. No Dumbledore. They might as well close the school tonight. There’ll be an attack a day with him gone.”

"Is your finger okay, Lucy?" Harry asked. "That looked painful."

I nodded. "I've been getting used to it. Lots of extreme emotions today, you know?"

Fang howled mournfully, scratching at the door.

"Seems like he feels the same way. C'mere boy," I called softly. The massive dog tilted his head at me, but I held out my hand, and he made his way over. My eyes wandered to Norbert's blanket, still draped over the back of a chair, unused for about a year at that point. "Remember when Norbert was our biggest problem? And losing house points?"

"I would give anything to go back to that," Harry said in a small voice.

"Me too," I agreed.

"Me three," Ron echoed.

We sat in silence for a couple more minutes, me stroking Fang's head and the boys lost in their own thoughts.

"We should head back," Harry said. "Are you two alright?"

Ron nodded. "As alright as I can be."

"I don't know," I admitted.

Harry's eyes wandered to the ring. "It looks bruised."

I held it up to see for myself. Blue and purple swirled together. Sadness and fear. "Yeah." My voice was little more than a whisper. "To tell you the truth, my heart feels bruised. But tomorrow's a new day, and tomorrow's one day closer to having her back, right?"

"Right," Harry said after a moment.

Ron made a funny noise that sounded halfway between a sob and a squeak and threw his arms around our necks. We stood there, hugging each other, for a moment. "Please promise me we'll stick together," Ron begged. "Please. I can't lose you, too."

"Promise," Harry and I said in unison. Harry threw the cloak over us, and we crawled back up to the castle in silence.

One last stab through the heart waited for me in my dormitory. There was a reason I was still in my Quidditch robes. I wasn't ready to see Hermione's empty bed.

At the sight of it, I fell to my knees and allowed myself to cry for the first time that day.

* * *

Three hours. That's how much time I allowed myself.

I borrowed Harry's Invisibility Cloak for the night, saying I would go feed Fang. They volunteered to go with me, but I said I didn't mind going alone. Ron seemed relieved; Fang was agitated without Hagrid around, and I was the only one who seemed able to calm him down. He nearly took the boys' hands off, the way Norbert had. I had another mission in mind: I was going to find Helga Hufflepuff's secret room.

I had a couple of reasons for this. I wanted to assure myself that it wasn't the Chamber of Secrets. I doubted very much that it was, but I needed to be 100% sure. I needed to know that I had turned over every possible stone. But selfishly, I wanted a place to transform.

Without Hermione to cover for me, and without a Hospital Wing to recuperate in, I couldn't risk any injuries I couldn't explain away as sleepwalking.

I made my way down to Hagrid's hut quickly and fed Fang. Normally, I lingered for a little while to keep him company, but that night, I was on the clock.

With prefects and teachers patrolling everywhere, I had to be incredibly careful. I crept down corridor after corridor, casting whispered silencing charms from time to time when I was certain I wouldn't be overheard. I scanned the walls for any sign of a hidden door, occasionally casting revealing charms on any walls that seemed like possibilities, but it wasn't until I reached the seventh floor I had any luck.

I knew in my heart it had to be the door. I held my breath as I checked left, right, left, right, looking for any sign of anyone else, living or dead, that might walk by as the door opened. When I saw and heard nothing, I opened the door and slipped inside.

I immediately sank down to my ankles in spongy carpeting. I shed the Invisibility Cloak and stepped further into the room.

It was perfectly circular, it seemed, and the walls were made of the same soft material. I wound up and threw my hardest possible punch; it didn't hurt me in the slightest. The wall seemed to hug my hand. I grinned. There was no way I'd get hurt in here.

The ceiling was like the Great Hall, in that it wasn't much of a ceiling at all. It was the night sky, expansive and beautiful. I noticed, too, that the room was cold. I didn't feel like I was overheating in the slightest.

I checked my watch. It was nearly three in the morning. My self-assigned deadline was approaching, but I didn't want to leave this incredible room. I took a deep breath and threw the cloak back over myself. I would be back the next night.

I made my way back to the common room without incident. Harry and Ron were sound asleep on the couch. I felt my breath hitch in my throat. I hadn't expected them to stay up --- try to, anyway --- for me. I gently shook them awake.

"Everything go alright, Lucy?" Ron asked, rubbing his eyes as Harry adjusted his glasses on his nose.

I nodded and settled on the couch between them. "Yeah, I didn't get caught. Fang was happy to see me. Why did you two stay up?"

Harry sat up a little straighter. "We wanted to make sure you got back alright. Will you let us go with you next time?"

"Oh." I nodded. "Sure thing."

Ron ran his fingers through his tousled red hair. "Well, now that you're back, I'm going to bed. G'night, Lucy."

"Morning, more like." Harry grinned as he rose from the couch and started to follow Ron to their dormitory, but his grin faltered when I didn't move toward my dormitory. "Are you going to bed too?"

I shook my head.

"Why not?" His eyes were soft with concern and curiosity.

I shook my head again and handed him the Invisibility Cloak. "Every time I close my eyes, I hear Hermione asking why I couldn't save her. Every time I open my eyes, I see her empty bed. It's easier to stay down here and read all night, which is what I've done ever since that night at Hagrid's."

"Do you want someone to stay with you?" He asked without hesitation, and the earnestness in his voice took me off-guard.

"It's okay," I said, "but thanks. You can go get some sleep."

"You know you should too, right?"

I nodded. "I will. But for tonight..." I sighed shakily. "Well, I still have enough in me for one more night. I'll sleep tomorrow night."

"I'll hold you to that," he said with the ghost of a smile. "I can't imagine your brother would want you falling asleep into your cereal bowl."

I smiled back. "I'd imagine not. Good night, Harry."

"Good night, Lucy." With that, he climbed the stairs to his dormitory and disappeared. I walked over to the bookshelves grabbed the book I'd been reading, looking for answers about Tom Riddle's diary. I had been beating myself up for not asking Harry if I could borrow it before it was stolen and seeing for myself what it could do, but I figured I could do my best to figure out how it worked and why it worked.

I was still reading when Percy Weasley returned from his patrol shift. He blinked in sleepy surprise when he saw me.

"Lucy? What are you doing awake?"

"I couldn't sleep," I said.

His confused expression gave way to one of sympathy. "I take it the loss of Hermione Granger weighs heavily on you?"

I nodded. "I reckon you've felt the same way about Penelope."

He turned the same shade of red as his hair as he nodded. When I spied a glitter of tears in his eyes, I made room for him on the couch next to me.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," I said quickly. "It'll be okay, Percy, she'll be back soon."

He nodded, clearing his throat. "You're right, of course, I just..."

"Miss her in the meantime?"

"Yeah." He cleared his throat again. "Can I tell you a secret? One only my sister knows?"

I nodded. "Of course."

"You won't tell anyone else? Ginny is sworn to secrecy too."

"I'm good at keeping secrets," I said. If only he knew exactly how good I was. "You can trust me."

He nodded slowly to himself. "Well... I think I fancy her. I was about to ask her to be my girlfriend when... well..."

I smiled. "I understand why you're so anxious for her to come back, then."

He cleared his throat a third time, staring at the fire so he didn't have to look at me. "I've been wanting to ask for a while now, but with the atmosphere of the school, and..."

"Hey, it's okay," I said. "No need to be embarrassed. I think her return will be the perfect time to ask. Not the most romantic, perhaps, but-"

"I don't think I could wait any longer," he admitted, a reluctant smile crossing his face. "Well, thanks for talking to me, Lucy. I should probably go wash up before the day begins. There's still a while before classes start, if you want to get some sleep."

"I'll be okay, but thanks, Percy," I said.

He looked at me with concern for a second, as if he was trying to decide whether he should use his duties as a prefect and concerned brotherly figure to force me to sleep, but he instead turned and headed up his stairs. I closed the book and rubbed my burning eyes before heading up my own stairs.

Careful not to look at Hermione's bed, I grabbed a fresh set of robes for the day and disappeared into the bathroom to freshen up.

I headed down to breakfast early and made a beeline for Cedric. I noted with concern how awful he looked. I could tell he hadn't been sleeping, either. Just the same, he smiled when he saw me.

"Morning, Lu. What's up?"

"Why does something have to be up?" I teased.

"It's written all over your face that you're excited about something."

"I don't have to go to the Forbidden Forest anymore," I blurted out.

His eyes popped open. "What?"

I lowered my voice to a barely audible whisper. "Helga Hufflepuff created a room that can be magically altered to someone's needs. I found it-" I cut myself off before I gave myself away. "I think I know where to find it, at least," I lied, "and I think it'll be safer."

"Oh yeah, it's tonight, isn't it?"

I nodded.

He studied me critically. "You look better than you usually do on this day."

"I haven't slept in a couple of days," I admitted. "I think the lack of sleep is dulling my senses."

"Haven't slept? Like, at all?"

I shook my head and leaned against his arm. "Ced, if you had the choice between falling asleep looking at your best friend's empty bed and not sleeping, you wouldn't sleep."

He wrapped his arm around me and rubbed my arm up and down. "Just don't make a habit of it, okay? You still need to sleep."

"I will after tonight," I said.

"I'll make sure someone holds you to that."

I huffed. "Fine. As long as you sleep, too. You look tired."

"I told you so," Henry said as he sat across from us.

I sat up and gently punched Cedric's arm. "Listen to us, your best sister and your best friend." I glanced over at Henry. "Sneak some sleeping draught in his drink tonight if you can."

Cedric chuckled. "I could ask the twins to do the same with yours."

I yawned. "I won't need that, don't worry."

I had never been so tired before the full moon, but I had also never been so calm. I could barely stay awake and alert in class, but Professor Lockhart's fuchsia robes actually didn't make my eyes burn and the smoke from Seamus's failed transfiguration didn't completely choke me.

I met Cedric and Madam Pomfrey outside the Hospital Wing after my last class. Both were excited and intrigued by my idea, and I led them quickly and quietly up to the seventh floor.

"Here it is," I said, opening the door and stepping inside.

"Whoa," Cedric breathed. He looked around with wide eyes. "There's no way you'll get hurt in here."

I nodded. "It's perfect."

"Just the same, I'll be here at dawn," Madam Pomfrey said, gesturing for Cedric to follow her out of the room. "Be safe, Lucy."

I offered the bravest smile I could as the door closed. Even the back of the door was padded. Cedric was right. I was in no danger.

I flopped down onto the ground, exhaustion swaddling me like a leaden blanket. The transformation was as painful as always, but as soon as it was complete, I fell into a deep sleep, curled in a ball in the middle of the room. I didn't dream, at least not in any way I could remember, but I slept until I transformed back.

When I was human again, I reluctantly pushed myself off the ground and cracked the door open. Cedric and Madam Pomfrey were just rounding the corner.

"How was it, Lu?" Cedric called softly.

My smile told him all he needed to know.


	33. I'll Go First

LUCY:

I checked my watch. It was almost five in the morning, meaning Malachi would fly up to the window with my birthday gift any moment.

Between the strict limits on where students could go in the castle and my desire not to make a big deal out of my birthday, Cedric said he'd send Malachi at five with my gift so no one would see. I tried to tell him it was okay and that I didn't need anything for my birthday, especially not this year, but he said he at least wanted me to have whatever it was he had found. He seemed very proud of it, and I didn't have the heart to argue further, so there I found myself in my pajamas in the common room with my nose buried in my charms book. Final exams were approaching, and studying was a good way to distract myself from Hermione's absence when Ron and Harry weren't around to distract me in other ways.

True to his word, Malachi arrived at five o'clock exactly with a small box in his clutches. I let him in and curled up in an armchair, and he perched himself on the back of the chair as I read the note at the top of the box.

_Dear Lu,_

_Happy birthday! I'm so sorry that your birthday looks so different this year. We'll have a proper celebration over summer, but in the meantime, this is for you. Go ahead and take it out, then read the rest of this for the explanation._

I smiled to myself. My brother had obviously put a lot of thought into this.

I pulled out a white long-sleeved shirt that sparkled slightly in the dim light from the fireplace. It was cool to the touch; I hadn't realized how hot I was in my thick flannel pajamas until I realized how good the shirt felt even just in my hand.

_I know what you're probably thinking. A shirt? Really, Cedric? Well, it's not just any shirt. Remember the sweater Henry gave me for Christmas? This shirt is just like that. Henry taught me the charms; they were surprisingly tricky! It can go under your robes whenever you need it, so you don't have to worry about ever being too hot or too cold around that time of the month._

_Happy birthday, Lucy. I hope you still have a good day today._

_I love you so much, Lu. I can't believe you're already 13. Oh, and look in the box one more time. I believe I found an extraordinarily rare Chocolate Frog card you ~~probably~~ don't have yet._

_Love, Cedric_

I folded the letter and studied the shirt more closely before checking the box. I pressed it to my cheek, and a small sigh of relief escaped my lips. It was nice and cool. I returned it to the box and dug around the bottom for the card.

Once I found it, I flipped it over to see the picture before reading the words, and I blinked in surprise when it was my own face smiling at me. I couldn't have been more than six years old at the time, because I was missing both front teeth and my sweaty bangs were plastered to my forehead. I was laughing at whoever was behind the camera, my braids swinging with each giggle, and I figured it was safe to assume it was my brother. I flipped the card over to read the description.

"Lucy Diggory," it read, "was born May 23, 1980. Lucy is Cedric Diggory's favorite sister and Susan and Amos Diggory's favorite daughter. She plays as a Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and has loved to fly since the day she was born. Her other talents include being remarkably brave and resilient in the midst of hardship and kind to everyone she meets. Her adventures are far from over --- in fact, they have only just begun --- but this witch will surely go far in life, because she has no shortage of heart and nerve."

My face burned, but I smiled from ear to ear. I flipped the card back over and watched the picture again. 

"Is that you?" 

I jumped and launched the card across the room. Harry laughed. "Sorry, I'll get that."

"It's okay," I squeaked, jumping from the chair and lunging forward to try to grab it, but he was faster. He studied the back of it for half a second before flipping back over to the picture and handing it back to me.

The smile on his face terrified me. I thought he had seen my birthday, but instead he said, "So it _is_ you."

I laughed, feeling my face flame anew. "Yeah, it is. I..." I scrambled for a story as my face got hotter and hotter. "Cedric made it for me to try to cheer me up a bit. I'm okay, of course, I'm not _not_ okay, but, well, he worries and-"

Harry chuckled. "It's okay. I understand."

I lowered myself back down into the armchair, holding the card close to my chest. "What are you doing up so early?"

He sank into the armchair across from me, adjusting his glasses. "Neville snores. I woke up and couldn't fall back asleep. I figured I'd be alone down here, but then there you were with a Chocolate Frog card I'd never seen. I wasn't trying to sneak up on you-"

I giggled. "Yeah, it's okay. I know you wouldn't sneak up on me. I just didn't hear you. I was trying to figure out when the picture was taken." I got up and sat on the arm of Harry's chair, holding the card out so we could both see. "My brother got his camera when he turned eight, I think, and he definitely had a photography phase for the next couple of years."

"You're also missing teeth," he pointed out. "When did that happen?"

"I was five or six, I think." I furrowed my brow. "To be honest, I don't remember a lot of my early childhood. It's all kind of fuzzy. I remember certain things, of course, like getting my first broom and rescuing Tuck, but I don't remember losing my first tooth or anything like that. When did you lose yours?"

He stared into the fire. "I don't really remember, either. Everything was a bigger deal when it happened to my cousin, Dudley. Nobody paid too much attention to me, unless I did something wrong."

My heart twisted with sorrow. I wanted to ask him for more details, try to comfort him, but I didn't trust myself with such a delicate issue. I was a werewolf, after all. I didn't want to hurt him more than his family already had. "It must have been strange coming here, then, when everything was suddenly Harry Potter this and Harry Potter that," I said instead.

He nodded slowly. "It was." His eyes wandered back to the card in my hand. "I see the braids have always been around."

I laughed. "Yeah, pretty much. But the bangs are gone, thank Merlin. I can't imagine having to play Quidditch with my hair in my face."

Harry laughed too. "Well, I can't imagine playing Quidditch after taking a Bludger to the face, but you did that, too."

"Yeah, well, I paid the price later," I said, wrinkling my nose. I groaned. "We have Lockhart today, don't we?"

"I think so."

"Bloody hell," I muttered. "At least we have Professor Sprout first. I love her class."

That day, we were pruning Abyssian Shrivelfigs. I was working with Harry and Ron when a sheepish-looking Ernie Macmillan approached. 

"I just want to say, Harry," he said, "that I’m sorry I ever suspected you. I know you’d never attack Hermione Granger, and I apologize for all the stuff I said. We’re all in the same boat now, and, well-” 

He extended a hand, which Harry shook silently. Hannah Abbott approached, and she and Ernie started working across the table from us.

Ernie wasn't quite finished yet. “That Draco Malfoy character... he seems very pleased about all this, doesn’t he? D’you know, I think he might be Slytherin’s heir.”

"How clever of you," Ron retorted.

"Do you think it's Malfoy, Harry?" Ernie persisted.

"No."

Ernie and Hannah both looked up in surprise when they heard the decisiveness in his tone. 

Over their shoulders, I spotted a line of spiders, climbing the window in a perfectly straight line. I gently elbowed Harry and gestured toward the spiders with my chin. He whacked Ron over the hand with his shears, and I couldn't help but snicker a bit. I could tell he was trying to be subtle, but really?

“Ouch! What’re you... oh. Yeah. But we can’t follow them now.”

"Looks like they're going to the Forbidden Forest," Harry commented.

I bit my lip and nodded.

The rest of the class passed in a haze. I didn't want to go back to the Forbidden Forest. Not again. Not as a human. I hated being there enough as a werewolf, when I was a predator. But as a human, a small and defenseless human? As prey? 

As we walked to DADA, the three of us lingered toward the back of the group to talk in hushed tones.

“We’ll have to use the Invisibility Cloak again,” Harry said. “We can take Fang with us. He’s used to going into the forest with Hagrid, he might be some help.”

Ron played with his wand nervously. “Right. Er, aren’t there... aren’t there supposed to be werewolves in the forest?”

"Not when it's not a full moon," I said, a little too quickly. Both boys turned to look at me curiously. I blushed. "I was working on my astronomy homework last night. The new moon was two nights ago. There won't be werewolves."

Harry nodded. “There are good things in there, too. The centaurs are all right, and the unicorns.”

We took our typical seats at the back of the classroom just as Lockhart strode in.

“Come now, why all these long faces?” he asked.

I felt my ring grow hot against my finger as a flash of anger surged through me. I narrowed my eyes at Lockhart, but he kept talking.

“Don’t you people realize the danger has passed? The culprit has been taken away-” 

"Says who?" Dean snapped.

“My dear young man, the Minister of Magic wouldn’t have taken Hagrid if he hadn’t been one hundred percent sure that he was guilty!"

Ron sat up straighter in his seat. “Oh, yes he would!"

“I flatter myself I know a _touch_ more about Hagrid’s arrest than you do, Mr. Weasley,” Lockhart said with a cocky smile.

Ron opened his mouth to protest, but Harry kicked him under the desk. "We weren't there, remember?" he whispered in a voice only Ron and I could hear. Ron relented, and Lockhart's lecture began, but I was too angry to actually pay attention. I fixed the professor with my best glare, my book sitting unopened on my desk.

Harry passed me a note, snapping me out of it. _Let's do it tonight,_ it read. 

I glanced over at him. His green eyes sparkled with amusement, like he was trying not to laugh.

I scribbled back, _Sounds good, but what's so funny?_

Harry's shoulders shook with silent laughter as he scrawled a reply. _I've never seen you look so murderous, Lu, and I pity the poor soul who receives your full unbridled anger one day._

I snorted quietly, replying, _I pity them too. Don't worry, I don't plan on exploding at anyone._

_Unless they deserve it?_

I snorted again and nodded. Harry smiled and returned his attention to the front of the room. Ron looked at us curiously, so I slid him the piece of paper. He snorted a quiet laugh too, but I could tell his mind was elsewhere. All three of ours were.

We stuck closer together than usual for the rest of the day, exchanging glances rife with meaning and trying to reassure each other as much as we could. An encouraging smile here, the brush of a hand there. None of us wanted to go back to the Forbidden Forest, but the sight of Hermione's empty chair gave us all the boldness to push on through the day.

That night in the common room, the twins challenged us to Exploding Snap. Ron and Harry reluctantly agreed, and Ginny and I sat together in Hermione's usual chair to watch. Ginny's heart didn't seem to be in it; she barely spoke at all, and her eyes were troubled. But with no way to get down to the Quidditch Pitch, let alone get my broom and fly around, I didn't know how to comfort her. 

Harry and Ron kept losing, probably hoping the twins would give up and go to bed, but it was after midnight before they did. Harry threw the cloak over us all, and we began the trek down to the forest, careful not to run into anybody monitoring the halls. Fang was thrilled to see us, announcing our arrival with thunderous barks.

"Quick, feed him some treacle fudge," Harry muttered, "it'll glue his jaws together and shut him up."

I snickered, but complied. The dog seemed happy nonetheless, nearly knocking chairs over with how fast his tail was wagging.

"We won't need this," Harry said, tossing the Invisibility Cloak on the table. "It's pitch black in there."

I nodded. "We'll still have to be incredibly careful." I drew my wand. "Lumos maxima!"

Ron sighed. “Good thinking. I’d light mine, too, but you know, it’d probably blow up or something.”

"Possibly." I took a deep breath to steady myself. "Are you two ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Harry said with a nod. "Ron?"

"Yeah... yeah, I'm ready."

I scratched Fang behind his ears. "C'mon, boy, let's go on a walk."

I led the way. I loathed the forest, I hated being there, but I knew it the best. Harry had only been once. Ron had never been. I had been twice, though neither of them knew about the second time. We followed the spiders down the path, led by the glow of my wand and of the vibrant purple of my ring, but when they strayed from the path, Harry stopped me by placing a hand on my shoulder.

"D'you reckon we should follow them?" he whispered. "Hagrid said never to leave the path."

"He also said to follow the spiders," I replied softly. 

"We've come this far," Ron said with a shrug, and Harry and I nodded. I followed the spiders, the boys close behind on either side of me.

"Be careful," I warned. "Lots of brush, and brambles, and roots. Watch your step, and try not to let your robes catch."

We had been walking for probably close to an hour total when Fang barked. I reckon I jumped two feet in the air as I flew backward.

"What?" Ron asked, clutching my arm and looking around wildly.

Harry froze. “There’s something moving over there... listen... sounds like something big…”

I nodded emphatically, stepping forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Harry. "I hear it."

Ron sounded as if he were going to be sick. "Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no..."

I reached back and grabbed Ron's hand to try to comfort him, but I could feel how badly he was trembling.

“Shut up, it’ll hear you,” Harry whispered desperately.

Ron's grip on my hand tightened. "Hear me? It's already heard Fang."

"I don't think it's a spider," I said, as a low rumbling noise shook the trees.

“What d’you think it’s doing, whatever it is?” Harry inquired.

"Probably getting ready to pounce," Ron whimpered.

"Only one way to find out," I said, extracting my hand from Ron's grasp and stepping forward. A flash of light penetrated the darkness, making us all gasp and shield our eyes with our arms.

"Harry, it's our car!" Ron yelled gleefully.

"What?"

"Come on!"

The boys rushed forward, while I rubbed my thigh a couple of times, remembering what it had done to me a couple months prior. I glanced around to see if it was still guarding the unicorns, but I reckoned that the presence of the boys would have likely scared them off. I followed the boys into the clearing and hesitantly approached the car.

Ron's mood had improved considerably. “It’s been here all the time! Look at it! The forest’s turned it wild!” He sighed with relief. “And we thought it was going to attack us! I wondered where it had gone!”

I reluctantly pocketed my wand, the back of my neck tingling. I went to go stand by Harry, again shoulder-to-shoulder.

Harry seemed uncomfortable, too. “We’ve lost the trail. C’mon, let’s go and find them.”

Ron looked at us, but then his gaze drifted upward, his mouth slack with terror. I tried to draw my wand, but it was too late. Something grabbed me around my abdomen, pinning my arms to my sides. 

"Lucy!" Ron shouted, but soon other acromantulas had snatched he and Harry and Fang up as well. We were carried along for quite a while before our captors unceremoniously dropped us to the ground.

I scrambled to my feet and placed my hand on my wand, but I didn't draw it.

"Aragog!" one of the acromantulas called. "Aragog!"

I wracked my brain, trying to think of anything that could help us, but all I could remember was that acromantulas ate humans. This knowledge didn't make me feel any better, so I decided not to share it with Harry and Ron, who remained on the ground behind me, paralyzed with fear. Part of me wanted to join them and cower, but I was a werewolf. These creatures shouldn't scare me.

The largest acromantula I had ever seen emerged from a web, his eyes white and unseeing.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Humans."

"Is it Hagrid?"

"Strangers."

"Kill them. I was sleeping."

"We're Hagrid's friends," I said as calmly as I could despite the fear clawing its way up my throat. "Please don't kill us."

The massive acromantula paused before saying, “Hagrid has never sent men into our hollow before."

"We've come because Hagrid's in trouble."

“In trouble? But why has he sent you?”

"He's been taken to Azkaban for being suspected of petrifying students at Hogwarts." I cleared my throat. "His final wish was for us to follow the spiders, which has led us here. He believed you could help us."

The clicking of pincers resounded around us. I felt a trickle of sweat run down my spine.

Aragog sounded immensely worried when he spoke again. “But that was years ago, years and years ago. I remember it well. That’s why they made him leave the school. They believed that _I_ was the monster that dwells in what they call the Chamber of Secrets. They thought that Hagrid had opened the Chamber and set me free.”

“And you… you didn’t come from the Chamber of Secrets?” Harry asked from behind me.

“I! I was not born in the castle. I come from a distant land. A traveler gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg. Hagrid was only a boy, but he cared for me, hidden in a cupboard in the castle, feeding me on scraps from the table. Hagrid is my good friend, and a good man. When I was discovered, and blamed for the death of a girl, he protected me. I have lived here in the forest ever since, where Hagrid still visits me. He even found me a wife, Mosag, and you see how our family has grown, all through Hagrid’s goodness…”

I looked around the clan, and I actually smiled. 

Harry still sounded terrified. “So you never... never attacked anyone?”

“Never. It would have been my instinct, but out of respect for Hagrid, I never harmed a human. The body of the girl who was killed was discovered in a bathroom. I never saw any part of the castle but the cupboard in which I grew up. Our kind like the dark and the quiet.”

“But then…" Harry shifted uncomfortably. "Do you know what did kill that girl? Because whatever it is, it’s back and attacking people again-"

The acromantulas again erupted with clicking and snapping.

“The thing that lives in the castle is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. Well do I remember how I pleaded with Hagrid to let me go, when I sensed the beast moving about the school,” Aragog said.

"What is it?" Harry and I asked in unison.

“We do not speak of it! We do not name it! I never even told Hagrid the name of that dreadful creature, though he asked me, many times.”

I felt as if I'd been punched in the gut. "But you do know what it is?"

"Of course," Aragog said, backing into his web again. But as he was backing in, I saw his family closing in around us.

“We’ll just go,” Harry said.

“Go? I think not."

"But-" I started to say, drawing my wand.

“My sons and daughters do not harm Hagrid, on my command. But I cannot deny them fresh meat, when it wanders so willingly into our midst. Good-bye, friends of Hagrid.”

I whirled around and saw exactly how many acromantulas there were, and how rapidly they were closing in on us. 

"Protego!" I called, but it was no use. There were too many. I yanked Harry to his feet, and we both hauled Ron up. I looked around us wildly. "We need to run!"

A car horn blared, and the Weasleys' Anglia suddenly appeared, running acromantulas over left and right with its headlights blazing. It stopped in front of us, and the doors popped open.

"I've got Fang, get in!" I shouted. The boys scrambled into the front seats while I crammed into the backseat with Fang. I didn't even have time to put a seatbelt on before the car hurtled off, trying to get us out of the forest as fast as possible.

"Are you okay, Ron?" Harry asked.

Ron's mouth still hung open, and his face was as pale as a piece of parchment.

"Are you, Harry?" I gently shoved Fang's rear end away from my face and leaned forward. 

"I'm not hurt," he said, adjusting his glasses on his nose. "Are you?"

"I'm alright," I replied, wrapping my arms around myself. "I just wish we had been able to find out what was in the castle."

Harry nodded sullenly, and the rest of the ride passed in silence. When we arrived at Hagrid's hut, I let Fang out, and he bolted to the front door with his tail tucked between his legs. Ron staggered out of the car and immediately began vomiting into the pumpkin patch. 

I gestured to Harry to take care of Ron and disappeared into Hagrid's hut with Fang. He dove into his basket, and I gently wrapped a blanket around him, stroking his head gently.

"It's okay," I whispered. "You're safe now, alright?"

I rose from the ground just as Harry and Ron entered.

Ron wiped his mouth with his sleeve, still incredibly pale. “Follow the spiders. I’ll never forgive Hagrid. We’re lucky to be alive.”

“I bet he thought Aragog wouldn’t hurt friends of his,” Harry reasoned.

“That’s exactly Hagrid’s problem! He always thinks monsters aren’t as bad as they’re made out, and look where it’s got him! A cell in Azkaban! It's exactly like Hermione said."

I immediately shoved my hands into my armpits so no one could see the way my ring burned with hurt. I stared at Norbert's blanket. "Ron... if not even good people can love monsters, who can?" When he had no reply, I shifted and continued. "I mean... you saw his family. None of that would have existed without Hagrid."

"You're right, we wouldn't have been nearly eaten if not for Hagrid and his soft spot for monsters!" He shivered, though the May night wasn't terribly cold. "What was the point of sending us in there, anyway? What have we found out, I’d like to know?"

“That Hagrid never opened the Chamber of Secrets,” Harry answered, throwing the cloak over us. 

Ron snorted derisively. We made our way back to the common room, all three of us still shaking beneath the cloak. I sank down into Hermione's chair as soon as we got back and massaged my forehead. Harry settled next to me, glancing at Ron.

"I'm going to bed," he said before either of us could say anything. "I'll see you two in the morning." With that, he rushed upstairs.

"He'll forgive Hagrid as soon as we get Hermione back," I said, noting the concerned expression on Harry's face. "I think he's just embarrassed about being scared, and it's coming across as anger."

He nodded slowly. "I think you're right." He paused. "I don't like that they wouldn't tell us what was in the Chamber. Like a monster version of Voldemort."

"Definitely," I agreed. I sighed and pulled my knees to my chest. "I haven't been able to shake the feeling that I'm missing something obvious."

"About the girl who died, right?"

I nodded. "I feel like I should know..." I immediately dropped my legs and sat up straight, whipping my head around to look at Harry. "Harry, what if it's Myrtle?"

"Aragog said she was found in the bathroom!" Harry's eyes bugged out of his head. "What if she never left? What if she's still there?" He jumped up. "I need to tell Ron."

"And I need to think of a way all three of us could get in there. It's out of order again, so I know no teacher would let me use her bathroom."

"I know you'll think of something," he said with a smile. "You always do. See you in the morning?"

I nodded. "See you in the morning."

He placed his hand on the knob, but he turned partway around and smirked. "Oh, and Lucy? Happy birthday."

I felt my face flush. "Thank you. I'm guessing you saw the card?"

"Yeah, I did. I didn't want to say anything since I know you don't like people knowing, but after the day you've had... reckon you've never had a birthday quite like it."

"To say the least," I huffed. "Well, thank you. And Harry? Would you mind not telling anyone else? It's fun to keep them guessing."

He grinned. "Your secret's safe with me."

* * *

Three days before final exams, Professor McGonagall announced that the Mandrakes were ready for cutting, and the petrified people would begin being revived that night. I was sitting at the Hufflepuff table with my brother, but I turned around to smile at Harry and Ron, who beamed right back.

When I turned back around, Ernie Macmillan looked as if he'd cry from relief. He offered me a shaky smile. "Sounds like we both get our best friends back tonight."

I nodded excitedly. "For sure we do."

"Can't imagine Hermione Granger will be terribly pleased about final exams," Archie said. "Maybe we should wait until after exams to bring her back."

Cam swatted his arm. "Archie! Don't say that!" She offered me a sympathetic look. "Sorry. He doesn't think before he opens his mouth sometimes."

I laughed. "It's okay. He does have a point, but I would argue that she'll just be happy to be back, period. I'm sure the teachers won't hit everyone with exams right away. I mean, Justin's been gone since December. That's a lot of work to do."

"I'm just glad it's not O.W.L. year," Henry said, bumping his shoulder against Cedric's. "Can you imagine trying to study for those --- or even worse, N.E.W.T.s --- with all of this going on."

Cedric shuddered. "Hopefully next year is better. I really need to do well on my O.W.L.s to be a healer."

"Well, sounds like you have Divination in the bag," Archie said. "Just write some sob story about how you saw Voldemort returning in your crystal ball or something ridiculous like that, and Trelawney will eat it up."

I laughed along with everyone else, but a feeling of foreboding settled in me nonetheless. We all knew Voldemort was only temporarily at bay. I glanced behind me at Harry, who was talking with a laughing Ron and a blushing Percy now, and remembered Dumbledore's words. _All I ask is that you help him as best you can, whatever may come next._ I knew Voldemort might not be the _next_ "next," but there would come a time whenever Voldemort _would_ be next. And in that moment, I knew I would be there for each "next" that came Harry's way.

The next next came when Lockhart was walking us to History of Magic.

“Mark my words, the first words out of those poor petrified people’s mouths will be ‘It was Hagrid.’" I clenched my fist as fresh anger surged through me, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from protesting. "Frankly, I’m astounded Professor McGonagall thinks all these security measures are necessary.”

“I agree, sir,” Harry said suddenly. Ron dropped his books, and I knelt down to help him pick them up.

I glanced up at Harry. "What?" I mouthed in exasperation. He shook his head and returned his attention to Lockhart.

The professor straightened up and smiled. “Thank you, Harry. I mean, we teachers have quite enough to be getting on with, without walking students to classes and standing guard all night!”

Ron jumped in immediately. “That’s right! Why don’t you leave us here, sir, we’ve only got one more corridor to go.”

“You know, Weasley, I think I will, I really should go and prepare my next class-” 

With that, he rushed away.

Harry turned to me. "Sorry, Lucy, it was the best distraction I could think of. Now we can go talk to Myrtle. I hope you know how painful it was for me to stroke his ego."

I managed a small smile. "I get it now. It's okay. Let's go."

We had nearly reached the bathroom when a voice made us all stop in our tracks. “Potter! Weasley! Diggory?" We whirled around to see Professor McGonagall squinting suspiciously at us. "What are you doing?”

"We were going to-" My voice died on my lips, but Harry finished for me.

"See Hermione," he said quickly. “We haven’t seen her for ages, Professor, and we thought we’d sneak into the Hospital Wing, you know, and tell her the Mandrakes are nearly ready and, er, not to worry...”

I held my breath as she studied us, but I released it when her expression softened. “Of course. Of course, I realize this has all been hardest on the friends of those who have been… I quite understand. Yes, Potter, of course you may visit Miss Granger. I will inform Professor Binns where you’ve gone. Tell Madam Pomfrey I have given my permission.”

We had no choice but to head up to the Hospital Wing after our incredible stroke of luck. But a lump formed in my throat at the thought of it. I had seen Hermione's face often enough in my dreams, asking me why I couldn't have done better. Seeing her lying there helplessly and silently on the hospital bed made everything worse.

Ron and Harry sat together on one side, and I sat alone on the other. I rested my elbows on my knees and hunched my shoulders and stared at the ground, unable to look at anything or anyone. I had kept myself occupied for several weeks, knowing I had to be strong for everyone else, but so close to her coming back, so close to solving everything, yet so far, the grief and hopelessness hit me --- truly hit me --- for the first time. Hermione had been so scared of being petrified. She had done something _illegal_ to try to solve the problem before anybody else got hurt. I had promised to protect her. I had failed.

“Wonder if she did see the attacker, though?” Ron wondered softy. “Because if he sneaked up on them all, no one’ll ever know.”

My breath hitched in my throat. I didn't even want to think of that. I forced tears away, not wanting to cry in front of the boys, and lifted my head. I couldn't bring myself to look at her face, but my eyes strayed to her right hand, the one with the ring.

"Hey Harry," I whispered, my voice hoarse, "what's that in her hand?"

He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Madam Pomfrey was busy before reaching forward and extracting a piece of paper. After he had read it, his eyes bugged out of his head. He looked straight at me, his green eyes bright with sudden understanding.

“This is it. This is the answer. The monster in the Chamber’s a basilisk, a giant serpent! That’s why I’ve been hearing that voice all over the place, and nobody else has heard it. It’s because I understand Parseltongue!”

I slapped my hand to my forehead. "Basilisks kill people by looking at them. But nobody's looked at them directly, have they?"

Harry nodded excitedly. "Collin saw it through his camera. Justin saw it through Nearly Headless Nick."

"Hermione had solved it, so she probably warned Penelope to look with a mirror first," I continued.

"And Mrs. Norris probably saw the basilisk in the puddle on the ground," Ron concluded.

He read more from the page aloud. “The crowing of the rooster is fatal to it." 

“Hagrid’s roosters were killed," I muttered, everything suddenly clicking into place. "And spiders don't like it. The spiders always ran away from attack sites."

"But wouldn't people see a giant snake around the castle?" Ron asked tentatively.

Harry pointed to a word on the page in Hermione's scrawl. “Pipes. It’s been using the plumbing. I’ve been hearing that voice inside the walls.”

Ron jumped. “The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets! What if it’s a bathroom?"

I slapped my hand to my forehead even harder. "Myrtle's bathroom." I felt anger rise in me again, but this time, it was with myself. "That's what's been bothering me all this time. It has to be Myrtle. She's what's been under my nose this entire time."

"What are we going to do? Should we go to Professor McGonagall?"

Harry leapt to his feet. “Let’s go to the staff room. She’ll be there in ten minutes. It’s nearly break.”

Ron and I nodded, and the three of us practically sprinted to the staff room. It was completely empty. I rocked back and forth on my feet, wrapping my arms around my middle and pressing my knuckles to my mouth. My heart raced. After a couple minutes, I cast a nervous glance at the clock.

"Shouldn't it be break now?" I asked, my voice sounding significantly higher than usual.

Harry nodded, looking as stressed and uncomfortable as I felt. Ron began to pace back and forth, picking at one of his cuticles.

Professor McGonagall's voice rang out a couple minutes later. “All students to return to their House dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please.”

"No," I gasped, everything in my body going slack with horror.

Harry reached up to grip the sides of his head. "Not another attack? Not now?"

Ron came to stand between us, looking from me to Harry and back to me. “What’ll we do? Go back to the dormitory?”

"No." Harry pointed to a wardrobe that appeared to be full of the teachers' cloaks. “In here. Let’s hear what it’s all about. Then we can tell them what we’ve found out.”

"Are you sure we should be hiding?" I asked. Before either of them could answer, footsteps began to thunder around us and we dove inside. I found myself again between Harry and Ron, just like we had been the night at Hagrid's. I lifted my hands to my face anxiously, and the vibrant purple glow of the ring drew all of our eyes. Harry quickly reached out and laid his hand over the top of mine to hide it, lacing his fingers through mine and offering a reassuring squeeze, just like we had the night in the Hospital Wing.

The gravity of the past year settled on my shoulders like a heavy blanket. My knees trembled under the weight of it all.

Professor McGonagall was the last to enter the room. Her voice was grave. “It has happened. A student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself.”

I felt my heart drop.

Professor Snape leaned forward, white-knuckling his chair. “How can you be sure?”

“The Heir of Slytherin left another message. Right underneath the first one. ‘Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever.’”

Professor Flitwick began to cry. Professor Sprout reached forward to comfort him, looking near tears herself.

Madam Hooch looked the most shaken I had ever seen her. “Who is it? Which student?”

"Ginny Weasley," Professor McGonagall replied.

Ron's knees gave way, and he slowly sank to the floor of the wardrobe. I slid down beside him, Harry following me. I offered my other hand to Ron, and he clutched it desperately and leaned his head on my shoulder.

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat, blinking away a glimmer of tears. “We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow. This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said-”

The door suddenly slammed open, and a sickeningly cheerful-looking Gilderoy Lockhart burst into the room. “So sorry, dozed off. What have I missed?”

Professor Snape rose from his seat with murder in his eyes but a smile on his lips. “Just the man. The very man. A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last.”

"That's right, Gilderoy!" Professor Sprout piped up. “Weren’t you saying just last night that you’ve known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?”

Lockhart was pale. “I... well, I-"

Professor Flitwick dried his eyes and sat up. “Yes, didn’t you tell me you were sure you knew what was inside it?”

“D-Did I? I don’t recall-"

Professor Snape tapped his chin thoughtfully. “I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you hadn’t had a crack at the monster before Hagrid was arrested. Didn’t you say that the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have been given a free rein from the first?”

Lockhart looked ghostly at that point. "I... I really never... you may have misunderstood..."

Professor McGonagall gave him a tight-lipped smile. “We’ll leave it to you, then, Gilderoy. Tonight will be an excellent time to do it. We’ll make sure everyone’s out of your way. You’ll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein at last.”

His typical aura of self-importance was gone. A cowardly and terrified man remained in its wake. “V-Very well. I’ll... I’ll be in my office, getting... getting ready.”

As soon as he left, Professor McGonagall stood up straighter. “Right. That’s got him out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go and inform their students what has happened. Tell them the Hogwarts Express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you please make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories?”

The teachers left slowly. Once they were gone, Harry and I helped Ron to his feet and stumbled to the common room in a daze. Ron went to sit with his brothers in a corner of the room, while Harry and I settled next to each other nearby. His eyes fixed on my ring.

"Bruised again," he said in a soft voice.

I nodded, rubbing the back of my neck.

To tell you the truth, I didn't hear a single thing Professor McGonagall said. I stared at my bruised side of the ring and the plain silver half that was beside it, getting lost in my own thoughts.

I wanted Cedric there. I wanted to sob into his shoulder about how unfair everything was, how Ginny should never have been taken, how I should have figured everything out sooner like Hermione had, how much my chest hurt at the thought of everything that had happened that year.

But Cedric wasn't there. I'd see him in the morning, on the train, heading home for the summer, probably forever. 

I glanced over at the Weasleys. The twins were silent and stony-faced. Ron looked near tears. Percy's jaw was clenched, and his fingers were locked together as if in silent prayer.

"I need to send an owl to Mum and Dad," he said, his voice trembling as he rose to his feet.

"I'll go with you, Percy," I offered, rising as well.

"It's okay," he tried to say, but I laid a hand against his arm and looked him in the eye.

"No one should go anywhere alone right now," I said firmly, "least of all a Weasley. Let's go."

We walked to the owlery without a word. I stroked Malachi's feathers as Percy scribbled a letter onto a piece of parchment.

I offered my owl out on my hand. "You can use Malachi if you'd like. He might make home to Ottery St. Catchpole faster, no offense to Errol."

"Thank you," he replied, not making eye contact as he tied the letter around Malachi's leg.

"You're going to the Burrow," I told my owl, "not home. And you can stay home once you're there, Cedric and I will be home by this time tomorrow."

Malachi took off into the midafternoon sunlight. Percy and I watched him go in silence.

"You were the best at making her feel better," he said after a couple of minutes. "I would... I would give anything to see the smile on her face after she had ridden your broom just one last time. Nothing I ever did helped quite as much as that."

"I'm sure that's not true." I took a shaky breath. "I know you did everything you could to keep her safe, Percy. I know you did everything you could to keep all of your siblings safe. It's not your fault."

"Nothing like this ever happened with Bill or Charlie." His voice became angrier the longer he talked. "They have always been the natural leaders, the natural protectors. Always getting along so well with all of us so effortlessly. Nothing the twins do ever bothers them. They always have a kind word for me and for Ron and for everyone, really. And Ginny..." He swallowed hard. "They've always been Ginny's favorites. They're the coolest brothers. One breaks curses in Egypt, one studies dragons in Romania. The twins play pranks. Ron's best friends with Harry. And what does that leave me?" He sighed. "I'm sorry, Lucy, you didn't need to hear any of that."

I reached out to touch his arm again. "Don't be sorry, Percy. _I'm_ sorry you feel that way." I paused. "You're a prefect. Your grades are incredible. I know you'll be Head Boy next year. And after you graduate, I know you'll do great things, even if it's not quite as exciting as what Bill and Charlie do."

"But I couldn't even-" His voice broke. "Ginny... I..."

"Hey." I wrapped my arms around him and held tight. "It's not your fault. It'll be okay, Percy."

He hugged me back, and I heard him sniffle. We pulled apart, and he wiped a tear off his cheek with the sleeve of his robes. "Thank you, Lucy. And thank you for coming with me."

"Of course," I replied with a nod. "Do you want to go back?"

He nodded, and we returned silently to the common room. He disappeared up to his dormitory, so I returned to my spot between Harry and George. Nobody said a word, because there was nothing left to say. Nothing could bring Ginny back. 

When the twins left to pack their belongings, Ron turned to Harry and me. He croaked, “She knew something. That’s why she was taken. It wasn’t some stupid thing about Percy at all. She’d found out something about the Chamber of Secrets. That must be why she was... I mean, she was a pure-blood. There can’t be any other reason.” 

"Wait, what're you talking about?" I asked.

"Ginny tried to talk to us this morning," Harry replied. "But Percy interrupted before she got the chance to say anything. He said she knew something about him she wanted to tell us, but it couldn't have been that after all."

Somehow, my spirits sank even lower. "Oh." Tears burned in my throat, but I swallowed them away. I had to be strong for everyone else. I could cry tomorrow, when I was home with Cedric. Today, everyone else needed me to hold on.

Ron swallowed hard. “D’you think there’s any chance at all she’s not... you know...”

Harry and I exchanged a look, neither of us wanting to say what we were thinking.

Ron rose to his feet suddenly. “D’you know what? I think we should go and see Lockhart. Tell him what we know. He’s going to try and get into the Chamber. We can tell him where we think it is, and tell him it’s a basilisk in there.”

"Let's go," I said immediately, standing up and stretching my stiff legs.

Nobody tried to stop us as we left, which was just as well. It was nearly dark by the time we reached his office.

Harry knocked, and the door opened a sliver. “Oh. Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Diggory. I’m rather busy at the moment, if you would be quick-”

Harry stepped forward. “Professor, we’ve got some information for you."

"It'll help you," I added. "Defeat the monster in the Chamber of Secrets, I mean. That's a very brave thing for you to do, Professor." I flashed my most flattering smile, but he didn't puff up as usual. In fact, he looked more uncomfortable.

“Er... well... it’s not terribly... I mean... well... all right... come in...” he stammered, opening the door for us.

His office looked like a disaster zone. All of his belongings had been hastily packed into boxes. The walls were bare.

"Are you going somewhere?" Harry asked coldly.

“Er, well, yes. Urgent call, unavoidable, got to go-” 

"What about my sister?" Ron's voice was steely.

“Well, as to that... most unfortunate, no one regrets more than I-”

"'Most unfortunate?'" I demanded. "Professor, she was eleven years old! She has six older brothers and parents who loved her! Would you like me to tell them what you said? I'm sure they'd be happy to teach you a new hex or two-"

“You’re the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher! You can’t go now! Not with all the Dark stuff going on here!” Harry exclaimed.

“Well, I must say, when I took the job, nothing in the job description... didn’t expect-”

Harry was as horrified as Ron and I were. “You mean you’re _running away_? After all that stuff you did in your books-”

Lockhart hesitated. "Books can be misleading."

"You wrote them!" Harry exclaimed.

“My dear boy. Do use your common sense. My books wouldn’t have sold half as well if people didn’t think _I’d_ done all those things. No one wants to read about some ugly old Armenian warlock, even if he did save a village from werewolves. He’d look dreadful on the front cover. No dress sense at all. And the witch who banished the Bandon Banshee had a harelip. I mean, come on-”

"I knew it was all too good to be true," I spat.

“So you’ve just been taking credit for what a load of other people have done?” Harry asked.

“Harry, Harry, it’s not nearly as simple as that. There was work involved. I had to track these people down. Ask them exactly how they managed to do what they did. Then I had to put a Memory Charm on them so they wouldn’t remember doing it. If there’s one thing I pride myself on, it’s my Memory Charms. No, it’s been a lot of work, Harry. It’s not all book signings and publicity photos, you know. You want fame, you have to be prepared for a long hard slog.”

I was so angry that spots of red danced in my vision. I couldn't speak. I was only distantly aware of the scarlet fury burning my finger. I wished I had possessed the foresight to take the ring off before talking to that incompetent and lying fool.

He locked his trunks with a grunt. “Let’s see. I think that’s everything. Yes. Only one thing left.” He drew his wand and pointed it at us. “Awfully sorry, children, but I’ll have to put a Memory Charm on you now. Can’t have you blabbing my secrets all over the place. I’d never sell another book-”

"Expelliarmus!" Harry and I shouted simultaneously.

Lockhart's wand flew into the air, and its owner was thrown back against a wall. Ron caught it and threw it out the window as Lockhart hit the wall.

“Shouldn’t have let Professor Snape teach us that one,” Harry muttered.

"Speak for yourself." I smiled at Lockhart, who was staring at us stupidly. "I learned that one from Ginny's brothers. You know, the ones who'd love to teach you a couple hexes for saying their sister's disappearance is 'most unfortunate,' but not worth your time?"

He didn't move from his spot on the ground. “What d’you want me to do? I don’t know where the Chamber of Secrets is. There’s nothing I can do.”

“You’re in luck. Lucy?" I stepped forward and helped Harry haul Lockhart to his feet, both of us keeping our wands pointed at him. "We think we know where it is. _And_ what’s inside it. Let’s go.”

Lockhart and I entered the bathroom first, where we found Myrtle in her typical place.

"What do you want?" she asked glumly.

"Good evening, Myrtle," I replied with a smile. "We'd like to ask how you died, if you're willing to share that with us."

“Ooooh, it was dreadful! It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I’d hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then... I _died_.”

"How?" Harry inquired.

“No idea. I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away… and then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she’d ever laughed at my glasses.”

I was somewhat disturbed by the story as a whole, but Harry was focused on the end goal. “Where exactly did you see the eyes?” he asked.

Myrtle pointed to the sink in front of her toilet. “Somewhere there."

Harry, Ron, and I rushed over to look at it. It was perfectly ordinary, except for one tap with a snake etched into it. Harry reached forward to try to turn it.

“That tap’s never worked,” Myrtle called.

“Harry, say something. Something in Parseltongue," Ron suggested.

"But..." Harry squinted as if he were thinking hard. "Open up."

He glanced to us for confirmation. 

Ron shook his head. "English. Try again."

The second time, a hissing sound came from his mouth, like it did in December at dueling club. The sink immediately glowed bright white, and disappeared altogether, leaving a massive pipe in its place.

"I'm going down," I said immediately, glancing at the boys.

"Me too," they said in unison.

After a pause, Lockhart grinned. “Well, you hardly seem to need me, so I’ll just-”

"Colloportus!" I hissed as he put his hand on the doorknob. He jiggled it, but the door was completely locked from the inside.

"You can go first," Ron offered.

He approached the opening slowly. "What good will it do?" he asked miserably.

"Fine, if you're going to be a coward, I'll go first," I said, sliding past him and staring down into the blackness.

Harry stepped forward. "Lucy, you don't have to-"

I swung my legs over into the pipe and smiled as bravely as I could. "Hey, it's okay. I'm a Gryffindor, aren't I? Besides, this isn't for me, or for him. It's for Ginny."

I gave myself a final push and took off down the pipe. 

I had lots of time to think as I slid through centuries of slime.

I thought about Ginny, the closest thing I had ever had to a little sister. My whole life, Cedric had taken care of me. To be able to care for someone else the way he cared for me fulfilled a need I didn't know I even had.

I thought about Cedric. I realized altogether too late that I had never said goodbye to him. Everything had happened too quickly. I hoped he didn't have to hear about my skeleton remaining in the Chamber forever, too, but I hoped that he would understand why I did what I did, if it came to that.

I thought about the Weasleys. The unthinkable had already happened to them; they had already lost a sister, possibly forever, despite their best efforts to protect her. I wanted to do everything I could to bring her back if possible, or bring them closure if not. But I would never know what was possible or impossible until I tried.

I thought about Harry. _All I ask is that you help him as best you can, whatever may come next._

I hit the stone floor with a squish of sludge. I scrambled out of the way, not knowing how far behind me everyone else would be.

"Lumos maxima!" I whispered, watching as my wand burst to life. The tunnel was so dark it seemed to swallow most of the light from my wand. All I could see was wet stone.

Lockhart, Harry, and Ron came a few seconds later.

“We must be miles under the school,” Harry mused.

“Under the lake, probably,” Ron agreed.

Harry lit his wand. "Remember, any sign of movement, close your eyes right away,” he said.

I nodded, and we proceeded down the tunnel, crunching over the skeletons of dead animals. Around a bend, Ron gave a small gasp.

"There’s something up there,” he whispered, gripping my shoulder.

We all stopped instantly. 

"Close your eyes," I whispered, wriggling free from Ron's grip and inching closer to whatever it was. I realized it was snake skin, Slytherin green and several feet long.

"Just the skin," I muttered. "You can open your eyes."

"Blimey," Ron said, his voice small.

A muffled thump made me turn around. Lockhart was on his knees, speechless and pale.

"Get up," Ron snapped, leveling his wand at the man.

He did, but as he did so, he lunged forward and snatched Ron's wand from his hand and sent my friend sprawling to the ground.

"Ron!" I gasped, rushing forward.

Lockhart pointed his wand at us, and I skidded to a stop. “The adventure ends here! I shall take a bit of this skin back up to the school, tell them I was too late to save the girl, and that you three _tragically_ lost your minds at the sight of her mangled body. Say good-bye to your memories!” 

I put on a burst of speed as Lockhart lifted the Spellotaped wand.

"Obliviate!" he shouted.

The wand exploded, and an explosion rang out through the stone tunnel. I slipped on the wet ground, and before I could regain my balance, something hard and heavy slammed into my head, and my world went black.

* * *

"Lucy! Lucy, please, wake up!"

I opened my eyes slowly. Ron's face swam in my vision. I blinked hard. "What happened? Where am I?"

"No, no no no, not you too," he moaned, sitting back and staring up at the ceiling.

"Not me too? What do you-" Everything came back to me all at once, and I pushed myself to a sitting position. The rapid motion was too much for my throbbing head, and I nearly fell back down as stars danced in front of me. Ron lunged forward and caught my shoulder.

"No, don't move," he said. "You're hurt, badly. I thought you were dead at first."

I forced away the pain and the dizziness and looked around. "Where's Harry? What happened? Where's Lockhart?"

"My wand backfired and caused an explosion, and the tunnel collapsed. A rock hit you in the head and knocked you out. Harry's on the other side of the rubble --- he's gone on to find Ginny. And Lockhart, well... I think he obliviated himself. He wanted to come help you when he saw what happened, but when I told him to get away before he hurt you again, he smiled and nodded and walked away up the tunnel, whistling to himself. I called after him to wait at the foot of the pipe for us. I hope he can still follow directions."

I took a deep breath. "We need to go help Harry," I said, grabbing my wand off the ground.

"Lucy, no, I can do it by myself, you're-"

"I can do this." I planted my feet and managed to stand. I shook my head to clear the fuzz and the stars.

Ron stared at me, slack-jawed. "Lucy, no, I-"

My head really did hurt. I had never experienced so much pain as a human, without a transformation being a part of it. I thought about agreeing, and resting my head back down against the cool stone floor.

_All I ask is that you help him as best you can, whatever may come next._

"We have to help Harry. Both of us." I walked toward the massive wall of broken rocks. "I don't think we should use magic to break through it. I don't want to risk bringing the whole tunnel down."

He nodded. "One rock at a time?"

"One rock at a time," I agreed, tucking my wand into my pocket and beginning to tug at the rocks. 

We worked in silence for the next several minutes, occasionally hissing in pain when we cut our fingers on sharp rocks or when our fingers got pinched beneath particularly heavy ones. We could hear nothing from the other side of the wall, nothing at all, but we kept working feverishly.

After what seemed like an eternity, a hole wide enough for me to fit through was created.

"I'll go help Harry," I said. "I can fit through."

"At least wait for me to go with you," he protested. "Please. Lucy, you really _are_ hurt. I don't know how you're still alive, honestly, let alone standing and helping and thinking about going to help Harry."

_You can thank my werewolf level of pain tolerance for that,_ I thought to myself. Before I could make a verbal reply, Harry's voice came through the hole.

“Ron! Ginny’s okay! I’ve got her! Is Lucy okay?"

"Ginny!" I screamed, launching myself through the hole and wrapping my arms around her. She hugged back weakly, crying into my shoulder.

Harry chuckled. "I guess so."

Ron reached his arm through the hole and yanked his sister to his side. Harry glanced at me before climbing through, and his eyes widened. "Lucy, you..." He reached forward and gently wiped his thumb across my forehead.

"What about it?" I asked. "I mean, it hurts, but-"

He showed me his thumb, which was bright red with blood. I studied him, and pointed to a crimson blood stain on his right arm, which was the same arm holding...

"Harry, is that the Sword of Gryffindor? And the Sorting Hat?" I asked incredulously. "And what happened to your arm?"

"I'll tell you later," he said with a crooked grin. "Come on, let's get out of here."

I crawled through the hole first, Harry right behind me. Ron's arm was still firmly around his sister's shoulders. "Harry, what happened? How? What? Wait, where did that bird come from?”

Fawkes flew through the hole. "Fawkes," I breathed. "He's Dumbledore's."

"How come you've got a sword?"

"I'll explain when we get out of here," he said, glancing at Ginny. Tears streamed down her face, and I reached forward to dry them with the cleanest part of my robe. She gave a great shuddering sob and collapsed on top of me.

"But-" Ron protested, looking despairingly at Harry.

"Later." Harry's voice was firm. "We need to get the girls out of here. Say, where's Lockhart?"

Ron pointed over his shoulder. “Back there. He’s in a bad way. Come and see.”

"Let's go," I said softly to Ginny, looping an arm around her trembling shoulders. The pain in my head grew more and more intolerable as my adrenaline levels dropped, and I could feel my heart pounding rapidly in my chest. The boys reached Lockhart first, who was sitting on the mouth of the pipe and swinging his legs while humming an unfamiliar tune.

Ron sighed. “His memory’s gone. The Memory Charm backfired. Hit him instead of us. Hasn’t got a clue who he is, or where he is, or who we are. I told him to come and wait here. He’s a danger to himself.”

Lockhart smiled. “Hello! Odd sort of place, this, isn’t it? Do you live here?”

Ron turned to Harry in a _See?_ kind of gesture. "No, we don't live here," he replied.

Harry stepped forward and looked up the pipe, tucking the sword and the Sorting Hat into his robes, then turned to look at Ron. “Have you thought how we’re going to get back up this?”

Ron shook his head, and Harry turned to me. "Have you, Lucy?"

I shook my head too, but as I did so, my vision swam. I staggered slightly, fighting to stay on my feet. The boys rushed forward, Ron grabbing Ginny and Harry grabbing me.

"How hard did she hit her head?" he asked Ron tightening his grip around my arm as I leaned my head against his shoulder. "How on earth is she still _alive_?"

"It took her forever to come to. And I _tried_ to convince her to stay down and not help," he replied with a shrug, "but she refused to listen."

Fawkes the phoenix swooped down in front of us and stared at Harry.

"I think he wants us to hold onto him," I said.

“Lucy, you're not thinking straight," Ron said, his voice thick with concern. "We’re much too heavy for a bird to pull up there.”

Harry stiffened suddenly. “Fawkes isn’t an ordinary bird. We’ve got to hold on to each other. Ginny, grab Ron’s hand. Professor Lockhart, take Ginny's other hand.”

"He means you," Ron said to the dazed man.

"Lucy, just hold onto me," he said. "I don't want you losing consciousness again on the way up and letting go. It might be a little rough. Ron, you can grab my robes."

I wrapped my arms around Harry's chest and buried my pounding head against it. He grabbed Fawkes's tail feathers with one hand and placed the other firmly on my shoulder to keep me pressed up against him. Suddenly, we were airborne.

Harry's arm tightened around me as I started to fade out again. "I've got you, Lu," he said softly, and I forced myself to stay conscious.

Soon, we had landed again on the floor of Myrtle's bathroom. The sink returned to its normal state, and I fell to my hands and knees.

“You’re alive,” Myrtle said. "All of you."

Harry took his glasses off and began cleaning them. “There’s no need to sound so disappointed.”

Her face took on a more silver hue. “Oh, well, I’d just been thinking... if you had died, you’d have been welcome to share my toilet."

"Thanks," he replied awkwardly. "We should probably, er, get out of here." Harry reached forward and offered me a hand. I tried to push myself to my feet on my own, but I stumbled and fell against Harry. He shook his head and smiled as he looped his arm around me to prop me up. "When will you just let us take care of you?"

Despite how cold I was, I felt a slight blush creep into my cheeks. I smiled back. "Cedric says I've something of an independent streak."

"A stubborn streak a mile wide is more like it," Ron teased as we stepped into the corridor. “Where do we go now?”

"The Hospital Wing," Harry replied.

"No," I said, watching as Fawkes disappeared around a corner. "I think we should follow him."

"Lu-" Harry started to protest. 

"Please?"

"Alright," he relented. "But if you faint, it's not on us."

"Fine by me. Follow that phoenix."

He led us straight to Professor McGonagall's office. Harry knocked, then pushed the door open.

The crowd of people stared at us in silence at first.

Then Mrs. Weasley screamed, "Ginny!" Mr. Weasley rushed after her, and they threw their arms around their daughter.

Professor Dumbledore smiled proudly, whereas Professor McGonagall looked as if she were trying not to faint herself.

Mrs. Weasley then Harry, Ron, and me tightly. “You saved her! You saved her! How did you do it?”

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. "I think we’d all like to know that."

Harry brought out the Sorting Hat, Sword of Gryffindor, and Tom Riddle's mangled diary with the hand that wasn't still firmly grasping my shoulder, setting them on a nearby table. I was half-listening as he recounted hearing the basilisk in the pipes, Hermione being the one to realize that a basilisk was what he was hearing, following Hagrid's clue about the spiders into the Forbidden Forest, following Aragog's clue about Myrtle, and finding the entrance in her bathroom.

He paused, and Professor McGonagall prodded him along. “Very well. So you found out where the entrance was --- breaking a hundred school rules into pieces along the way, I might add --- but how on earth did you all get out of there alive, Potter?”

He talked then about the pipe that led us all the way down there, and the backfiring Memory Charm and the subsequent explosion that separated him from the rest of us. 

His grip tightened around me. "Once Ron said Lucy was alive and that he'd keep Lockhart from hurting her even more, I kept going. Tom Riddle was waiting in the chamber, and we started talking. He took my wand, and I think he was about to use it against me when Fawkes showed up, with the Sorting Hat. When Riddle set the basilisk on me, Fawkes blinded it, and the Sorting Hat gave me the Sword of Gryffindor."

He paused again, and looked at Dumbledore, who smiled gently and knowingly.

“What interests me most is how Lord Voldemort managed to enchant Ginny, when my sources tell me he is currently in hiding in the forests of Albania.”

The whole room seemed to gasp at once, except for Harry, who relaxed next to me.

Mr. Weasley swallowed hard. “W-What’s that? You-Know-Who? En-Enchant Ginny? But Ginny’s not… Ginny hasn’t been… has she?”

Harry grabbed the diary and held it out to Dumbledore. “It was this diary. Riddle wrote it when he was sixteen."

Dumbledore took it from him and studied it. “Brilliant. Of course, he was probably the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen..." He looked around the room before continuing, noting the confusion on everyone's faces. “Very few people know that Lord Voldemort was once called Tom Riddle. I taught him myself, fifty years ago, at Hogwarts. He disappeared after leaving the school, traveled far and wide... sank so deeply into the Dark Arts, consorted with the very worst of our kind, underwent so many dangerous, magical transformations, that when he resurfaced as Lord Voldemort, he was barely recognizable. Hardly anyone connected Lord Voldemort with the clever, handsome boy who was once Head Boy here.”

Mrs. Weasley held her daughter tighter. “But, Ginny... what’s our Ginny got to do with... with... _him_?”

Ginny spoke for the first time. “His d-diary, I’ve b-been writing in it, and he’s been w-writing back all year-"

Mr. Weasley went rigid with shock and horror. “Ginny! Haven’t I taught you anything? What have I always told you? Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain? Why didn’t you show the diary to me, or your mother? A suspicious object like that, it was clearly full of Dark Magic!"

Ginny cried harder. “I d-didn’t know. I found it inside one of the books Mum got me. I th-thought someone had just left it in there and forgotten about it, and-”

Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat. “Miss Weasley should go up to the Hospital Wing right away. This has been a terrible ordeal for her. There will be no punishment. Older and wiser wizards than she have been hoodwinked by Lord Voldemort. Bed rest and perhaps a large, steaming mug of hot chocolate. I always find that cheers me up." He smiled down at her. “You will find that Madam Pomfrey is still awake. She’s just giving out Mandrake juice, and I daresay the basilisk’s victims will be waking up any moment.”

"Hermione! She's okay!" Ron gasped.

Dumbledore nodded. "There has been no lasting harm done, Ginny."

Ginny and her parents left, all still pale as ghosts.

Ron came to stand by my other side as Professor Dumbledore looked at Professor McGonagall. “You know, Minerva, I think all this merits a good feast. Might I ask you to go and alert the kitchens?”

She nodded. “Right. I’ll leave you to deal with Potter and Weasley, and Diggory, shall I?”

"Certainly," he replied. When she left, Professor Dumbledore smiled at us.

“I seem to remember telling you boys that I would have to expel you if you broke any more school rules,” he said with a twinkle of mirth in his eyes. 

They both stiffened next to me just the same.

“Which goes to show," he continued, "that the best of us must sometimes eat our words. You will all receive Special Awards for Services to the School and let me see... yes, I think one hundred fifty points apiece for Gryffindor.”

We all flushed bright red.

Dumbledore smiled at our reaction before turning his attention to the back of the room. “But one of us seems to be keeping mightily quiet about his part in this dangerous adventure. Why so modest, Gilderoy?”

Ron jumped slightly. “Professor Dumbledore, there was an accident down in the Chamber of Secrets. Professor Lockhart-”

Lockhart looked pleased. “Am I a professor? Goodness. I expect I was hopeless, was I?”

Ron silenced him with a look and went on. “He tried to do a memory charm and the wand backfired."

Professor Dumbledore shook his head. “Dear me. Impaled upon your own sword, Gilderoy!”

“Sword? No, haven’t got a sword. That boy has, though, he’ll lend you one.”

Harry and Ron snickered, but I couldn't bring myself to laugh. Looking at Lockhart's face, the green glow of the memory charm, it all made my head spin. Maybe it was the pain in my head getting to me, maybe it was the fact that I hadn't slept in more than 24 hours at that point, but something about this just felt... strangely familiar. But all I knew was that my head was killing me, and I couldn't make it much longer without passing out.

Professor Dumbledore glanced at me with an unusual look in his eyes, as if he could tell what I was thinking and how I was feeling. He turned to Ron. "Would you and Lucy mind taking Professor Lockhart up to the Hospital Wing? I'd like a few more words with Harry."

Ron and I nodded, and we left the room with Lockhart in tow. 

"You're staying in the Hospital Wing too, you know," Ron said as we rounded the corner. "You look horrible."

"Thanks," I replied with a roll of my eyes.

We had nearly reached the Hospital Wing when I spotted Cedric at the end of the hallway.

"Do you mind-?" I squeaked, glancing at Ron then back to my brother.

"Go," Ron said, nudging me forward, "I've got this idiot under control."

I sprinted down the hallway as best I could with my spinning head and slimy robes. "Cedric!" I called.

He whirled around just as I plowed into him.

"Oh, Lucy," he sighed, holding me so tightly I thought my ribs might crack. "You're okay."

"More or less," I chuckled, my knees beginning to buckle just from the sheer relief I felt. 

He held me at arms-length and studied me with his healer's eye. "What happened to you? Down in-"

"You knew?"

He huffed a laugh. "Of course I knew. The second Henry woke me up saying someone had saved Ginny from the Chamber of Secrets, I knew it was you."

"Well, it was really Harry," I said with a shrug, pointing to my forehead. "I got taken out of the fight early by a falling rock."

"If you have your wand, I can fix that up for you," he said. I passed it to him, and relief instantly flooded my body.

"Thank you," I breathed, sighing in relief as I tucked my wand away. "Now I need to go find-"

"Lucy!" Hermione screamed from behind me.

I spun around and sprinted toward her. She launched herself at me so excitedly I would have surely fallen to the ground had Cedric not just healed me. Hot tears burned my eyes and my throat as I saw that my ring was complete once again. Both halves shone a brilliant yellow.

Joy. No words could truly describe what I was feeling in that moment, but joy was just about as close as it got. For the first time in what felt like forever, everything was okay. 


	34. Anywhere Your Dreams Can Take You

_A new day you can go  
You can do anything you wanna  
It's your place, wing low, go high  
Anywhere you wanna  
You can reach for the moon  
Anywhere your dreams can take you  
Go astray, fade away_

_"Yesterday"  
Imagine Dragons_

* * *

LUCY:

The feast felt like a fever dream, and for all I know, it might have been --- the full moon was less than a week away and my birthday gift from Cedric was in the chest at the foot of my bed in my dormitory. Everyone was in their pajamas except for those who had just been brought back with Mandrake juice and those of us who had just come back from the Chamber itself, though I did use a couple of charms to clean the blood and slime from our robes. Hermione asked question after question about everything she had missed; Harry and Ron answered most of the questions, because quite frankly, I was eager to forget this awful year as soon as possible.

A little after one in the morning, Ginny entered the Great Hall. I jumped up to give her a proper hug, and her brothers all piled on top of the two of us. I tried to convince her to sit between me and Harry, but she blushed bright red and firmly plopped herself between Hermione and me and refused to move. 

We stopped talking about the Chamber once Ginny appeared, not wanting to risk upsetting her anymore, but free of Riddle's hold on her, she seemed nearly as vibrant as ever. She was especially happy when final exams were cancelled and when Gryffindor won the House Cup again.

I was excited, too, don't get me wrong, but the several sleepless, anxious nights of the past couple months had finally seemed to catch up with me. The bright lights and loud talking all around me made my head pound, and I was about to leave when Hermione switched seats with Ginny and clutched my hand.

"Look at me," she said.

I turned my head and gave her a confused look. She studied my face for about five seconds before narrowing her eyes. "What?" I asked.

"Where'd you get that cut on your forehead?"

"Down in the Chamber," I said. "It's where the rock hit me."

"Did anything else happen while I was gone?"

I shook my head and offered a grin. "No more sleepwalking incidents," I said loudly, to dispel any suspicion. As much as I appreciated Hermione's concern that something had gone wrong on a full moon, she hadn't exactly been subtle.

Harry huffed, and I turned to face him. "Yeah, because you never slept," he remarked with a grin.

"You didn't?" Hermione inquired, narrowing her eyes further.

I cleared my throat awkwardly. "I-"

I was spared from answering by the doors to the Great Hall opening with a bang. Everyone whirled their heads to see who it was.

"Hagrid!" I exclaimed, bouncing up and sprinting to the door. I threw my arms around him (or at least as much as I could, given the fact that he was massive and I was tiny) and held on tight as he clapped my back violently.

I pulled away and beamed up at him. "Hagrid, Aragog's family was incredible! I've never seen anything like it! I'd love to go back sometime."

"Speak for yourself," Ron said from behind me as he and Harry and Hermione rushed up to Hagrid. He thumped their backs too, sending them crashing into me. The entire room cheered as Hagrid returned to the table at the front of the room, making the huge man turn a bright red as he helped himself to a sandwich. I turned to my friends with a smile.

"Well, now that he's back, I think I'll head to bed."

Ron looked appalled. "Are you kidding? There's still so much food left!"

"There's more for you if I leave," I chuckled, rubbing the back of my neck. "I'll see you all in the morning. Er... maybe in the afternoon."

Hermione wagged her finger in my face. "You better sleep until you're not tired anymore." She turned to Harry. "Yeah, I see it now. The dark circles under her eyes are a dead giveaway. She never slept."

I wrapped Hermione into one last tight hug. "Promise you'll be there when I wake up?" I whispered.

She nodded. "Of course."

I made my way up to the common room, tripping over my own feet in my sleepy stupor. I didn't even change out of my robes before collapsing on my bed, sound asleep.

As promised, Hermione was there when I woke up twelve hours later, buried in textbooks and scribbling notes as rapidly as her hand would allow. She was there the next morning, too, and the morning after that, and the morning after that. She was the one who walked me to the Room of Requirement on the evening of June 4, and she was the one waiting in the corridor for me on the morning of June 5. She was there when I almost beat Ron at wizard's chess, and she was there when the Weasley twins changed my hair to red again just to prove to Ginny that they could. She was there when I taught Ginny the disarming charm, and she was there when I managed to disarm Harry in a friendly duel for the first time. Hermione was there, and I had never been so glad to have her by my side in everything.

Well... not quite everything. Two weeks before the end of term, I had an idea for Harry's birthday gift, an idea I kept entirely to myself. 

I had to work fast, but I also wanted it to be a secret, so I returned to my habit of spending late nights and early mornings in the common room. I sat in the same dark corner every night, with one book in front of me, one to my left, and one to my right. 

My days were surprisingly busy. As much as I wanted to curl up in a ball and sleep the day away after trying to keep everyone else afloat all year, my job seemed to be far from over. I helped Hermione and Justin and Colin catch up on what they missed while petrified --- and I noticed with satisfaction that Percy often disappeared to the library for hours at a time and returned blushing and smiling after helping Penelope Clearwater with her assignments.

"We're dating," he whispered to Ginny and me one night at dinner. "I'd still like to keep it a secret, but we're official now."

We had grinned at him as he left, and we were careful to keep his secret. Ginny and I did like to talk about them from time to time, however, when the two of us were alone. We often liked to head down to the Quidditch Pitch together after lunch just to enjoy the warm summer sun for an hour or so before heading back up to the crowded common room. Sometimes we'd fly, but other times, we'd just lie on our backs on the grass and watch the puffy white clouds drift across the sky. When we weren't talking about Percy and Penny (as he always called her), we'd talk about Quidditch or her brothers. She never talked about the diary or the Chamber, and I never asked. We were grateful for the respite, because frankly, it was impossible for us to find any reason to be upset while we were on the Pitch.

My busyness made the rest of the year fly by. Before I knew it, the last night of term was upon us again. Hermione was already yawning by nine o'clock, heading up to the dormitory and saying she'd see us all in the morning. Ron followed soon after --- the two of them had been quite inseparable since Hermione had returned. Part of me understood that he still felt horrible about not going with her to the library that fateful day, but part of me had to wonder if there was something more under the surface. I considered asking him about it, but confrontation had never been my strong suit.

It was for that exact reason that Harry's gift had remained in my bookbag, even though it had been finished for three days at that point. I had wanted to catch him alone and give it to him as soon as I was done, but I had been too scared. Scared of it not working, scared of him not liking it, scared of someone else overhearing our conversation and assuming more than what was meant. But more so than that, I was scared of what had happened to him last summer happening again, and I hoped that my gift would be able to prevent that from coming to pass. 

I knew I had the perfect opportunity right in front of me, but the silence was too sweet. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye as if trying to read his mind, as if looking for confirmation that the time was right, but he wasn't looking at me. He was looking at the fire, still holding one of Ron's chess pieces in his hand and absently tracing its base with his thumb. He looked deep in thought. I didn't want to interrupt, so I tucked my legs under me and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, waiting for him to speak first.

When another minute passed silently, I didn't need to see a mood ring to know he was troubled. I considered asking what was wrong, but I reckoned I understood well enough without asking. So instead, I turned to face him and smiled.

"Hey, Harry?"

"Mhm?" He glanced toward me with those intense green eyes of his, and my heart suddenly lurched against my chest. Why was I so nervous?

I swallowed hard and reached into my bag. "I know your birthday is still quite a while away," I said, getting out the gift wrapped in red wrapping paper and handed it to him, "but I wanted you to have this now. Just so you know," I added quickly as he started to rip the paper off, "it's completely harmless. I-I'm actually hoping it'll be helpful."

The diary slid out of the paper into his hand. The front and back covers were maroon leather, the binding and the strap holding it closed a gentle gold.

"I can explain, I promise." I reached into the bag and pulled out a second diary, with golden leather covers and maroon accents. I popped the button apart and opened my own diary. I skimmed the instructions I had written, trying to grab the most important details out so I didn't overwhelm him. "Well, it's not exactly like Tom Riddle's diary. For one, it's not Dark magic-"

"That's good," he replied with a wry grin. "You had me worried there for a second."

I returned the smile, teasing, "You really think I'd do that?" 

"Of course not, but you are full of surprises, Lu."

His comment caught me off guard, but I shook my head, blushing furiously, and continued, "I'll ask what you mean by that later. But the diaries are linked. Whatever you write in yours shows up in mine, and whatever I write in mine shows up in yours." I flipped to the first page of instructions and nodded toward his. "If you open yours, you'll see the exact same thing."

As he did so, I reached into my bag again and grabbed two quills, handing him one. "It will work with any old quill," I said, "and it should work with Muggle pens. I don't know about pencils, though, Archie didn't have any I could try out. But I thought, well, I don't want what happened to you last summer happening again. So if anything goes even slightly wrong, just tell me and I'll come get you. And, um..." I felt my blush growing hotter and hotter. "Please don't tell anyone else about it. I don't want Ron or Hermione feeling left out. I mean, I have the ring for Hermione, and Ron lives just a five-minute walk away, but still, I, well, yeah. And well, I... I hope you like it."

His gaze went from me to the diary in his hands and back to me. "Lucy, this is amazing. I love it. Thank you."

"Of course," I said with a quick nod. "Try it out, let's make sure it works. I-I mean, I've tested it a lot, but-"

He chuckled. "You don't have to doubt yourself so much, Lu." 

He flipped a couple of pages, so I flipped to the same page and watched as his words appeared on my page.

_See? It works._

I giggled and wrote back, _What do you mean, 'see?' You can't see my page to know it works._

_But I can see your response on mine, so now I know for sure it works._

_You do realize you could have said that to my face, right?_

He laughed. "Well, yeah, but it's not every day your friend recreates something identical to the diary of, what did Dumbledore call Tom Riddle? 'Probably the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen?'"

I laughed too, still blushing furiously. "Harry, to be quite honest, I don't remember much of what was said that night."

"I wouldn't expect you to." He grinned. "That's why I reminded you just now."

"I'm not brilliant," I mumbled, "just concerned and trying to prevent another disaster. The Anglia is in the Forbidden Forest now, at any rate, and my family doesn't have a flying car we could use to rescue you."

Harry laughed way harder than I was expecting him to at that.

"What is it?" I asked, giggling even though I didn't see what was so funny. His laugh was contagious. I couldn't help it.

"I just-" He laughed again and took a deep breath to calm himself. "Your dad's a creature expert, isn't he?"

I nodded, eyes widening as I realized what he was probably thinking. "You know I'd love to show up in your suburban neighborhood riding on a dragon, right? Like, that would actually be something of a dream come true."

He nodded, twitching with laughter. "I'm just imagining you swooping down from the sky, landing a massive dragon on the lawn."

"Are the Weasleys with me in your mind's eye?"

Harry shook his head. "They'd call you crazy and say they'd wait for you at the Burrow."

"Would you call me crazy?"

He smiled. "I said you're full of surprises for a reason."

"You didn't answer my question," I protested with a laugh. "Would you call me crazy?"

"I don't think so." He leaned back against the couch and looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "I know you well enough to know you're not."

"Then how am I still 'full of surprises?'" I teased, leaning back with him and extending my stockinged feet in front of me.

"I'll admit I was surprised when you just launched yourself into the Chamber of Secrets. Ron and I would have shoved Lockhart down first, you know, you didn't have to do that."

"I'm surprised with myself thinking back on it," I admitted, "but it's not like I was the hero or anything. You were the one who got Ginny and destroyed the diary and killed the basilisk and... well, you get the idea."

"You were unconscious, so I think you get a free pass on missing the action. See, that's another surprise. You didn't seem all that hurt, at least not at first, when that could have very well killed you. Did you hit your head a lot as a kid?"

I laughed. "That might explain why my early childhood is so fuzzy, if I did. And I guess I just have high pain tolerance," I said with a shrug, trying to play it off as casual.

If he suspected anything, he didn't let on that he did. "I guess so," he agreed. He sighed. "Remember a year ago when you predicted that the Philosopher's Stone was just the beginning? I'm beginning to think you were right."

"Quite possibly. What do you think next year's life-threatening danger will be? Revenge of the acromantulas, perhaps?"

"Oh, dear Merlin, I hope not."

"What do you think, then? A dragon loose in the Great Hall? Muggle tourists somehow breaking through the barrier and invading the school? The moon falling from the sky?"

He laughed harder and harder with every prediction. I grinned, deciding to push this as long as I could. It was so good to see him laugh after the year we had.

"An Abraxan stampede during a Quidditch match? Hagrid breeding half-troll, half-mermaid creatures? Oh, wait! I've just remembered!"

He stopped laughing long enough to look mildly alarmed, though the smile remained on his face. "What?"

"You'll be in Divination! You can warn us of all of this before it happens! Your crystal ball will show all of that, mark my words."

He was laughing so hard it took him a couple moments to gather himself long enough to reply. "Too bad you're not taking Divination with us. You'd make it so fun."

"You're welcome to join me in Ancient Runes, but no offense, I doubt anyone could make that class fun based on what I've heard. I will admit I have a head start, though."

"Have you read any more of that book from Dumbledore?" he asked, becoming more serious.

"I've been busy," I admitted sheepishly. "I scanned it looking for Chamber of Secrets information, but I stopped when it didn't have anything useful. Something to do over summer, I guess."

"Once you finish the mountains of homework, you mean," he grumbled.

I sighed. "Let's not worry about that now. Let's just..."

"Be us?" he asked. 

I nodded. "Be us. After the year we've had, I reckon we deserve it."

Silence settled again, but his eyes weren't troubled anymore. Quite the contrary, the ghost of a smile was on his face as he looked at me out of the corner of his eye.

"It'd be nice if it could just stay like this," he said after a moment. "Just us, here, knowing everyone we love most is sound asleep in their own beds and... yeah. It would be so nice if it just stayed like this."

"Well..." I shifted my legs and turned to face him fully. I had the random urge to reach out and grab his hand. I considered denying it, but I didn't. I hesitantly laid my hand on top of his, and smiled as he responded by curling his fingers around mine. "I can't promise that it'll stay like this next year, but I do know that a year from now, we'll be here again, just the two of us, staying up way too late the night before we go home talking about who-knows-what. It's something of a tradition at this point, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I suppose it is."

" _And_ I can promise that I'll be right there with you, whatever comes next. As long as, well, you know, no massive rocks come to take me out before anything exciting happens."

He laughed again. "Sounds like a plan. Maybe you should start wearing a helmet."

"Honestly? That's not the worst idea I've heard today," I said.

He raised his eyebrows curiously. "What _is_ the worst idea you've heard today?"

I snickered. "The twins wanted to transfigure one of Ron's chess pieces into a spider. I managed to talk them out of it at the last second."

Harry shook his head with a chuckle. "You spared our entire dormitory from a night of Ron screaming about spiders in his nightmares."

"He does that?"

He smiled shyly. "Don't tell him I told you that, but it's been known to happen."

"Oh man," I replied, "next time I sleep over at their house, I'll have to convince someone to wait outside his door with me. _That_ I need to hear for myself."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi everyone! Sorry this chapter was so short (at least by my standards, anyway). I've been debating how to break everything up, and I think this will be the best way to go about it. I've wrestled with it all day, but I'm more or less happy with how this chapter turned out. I hope you all like Harry's gift. I can't wait to explore the possibilities of the new means of communication they'll share!
> 
> I hope you're all excited for the summer of 1993! I know I for one am excited to write it.


	35. Wow

CEDRIC:

America. For three weeks. The idea was insane. Exhilarating. I couldn't believe we were actually going, but we were.

Dad was going to research sasquatches in the Pacific Northwest. We would be staying with the Richardson family, who we apparently met in Diagon Alley when I was four and Lucy was two. Neither of us remembered the twins Brandon and Jessica, who were a year older than me, but Dad promised we'd have a good time nonetheless. He and Mr. Richardson had kept in close contact over the years due to their shared love of creatures, and when the Ministry asked Dad to lead the sasquatch expedition, he knew exactly who to enlist to help. Mum was going to be staying home to take care of Tuck, and Mrs. Richardson was going to be in Florida visiting family, so the four of us kids would spend most of the three weeks alone. Dad's only rules for us were that we never went anywhere alone and we kept Lucy's Muggle interaction to a minimum so no one asked questions about her scars, which was more than fine by her.

The Portkey was set to activate at six o'clock the morning after the full moon. Lucy wasn't the only one who didn't sleep that night --- since we would arrive in America at ten at night their time, my parents and I decided to stay up. I spent the time writing a letter to Henry explaining he wouldn't hear from me for a while; needless to say, transcontinental owl post had its complications. Once the letter was written and tied to Malachi's leg, I occupied myself with homework, because I had no intention of bringing any of it with me on my first trip to America. I hated not finishing it before I left, but I consoled myself with the reminder that I'd have more than a month to finish it once we were back. 

I was incredibly excited to go, but Lucy had seemed... not hesitant, necessarily, but cautious. She smiled in all of the right places whenever we talked about it, but her shoulders had been constantly tense, as if she were bracing for impact. I tried to ask about it once, but she just smiled and said she was just nervous because she'd never been to America. I didn't believe her, but didn't push her.

A little before five in the morning, I headed out to the front yard to wait for Lucy. The morning was cool and damp, and after a long night of stuffy rooms and candlelight, the chill was welcome. I studied the forest with suddenly sharp eyes, looking for any glimpse of my sister. After about ten minutes, I spied a small figure stumbling toward the house, so I jumped over the gate and ran toward her.

The sight of tears on her face startled me. I pulled her into a gentle hug.

"What's wrong, Lu?" I asked, pulling away to study her face.

She shook her head and wiped the moisture off of her cheeks. "I'm okay."

"Not hurt?"

"Just a couple scrapes and bruises, I think." Her voice was small. "Nothing worth worrying about."

I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her into the house. We exchanged a couple of quiet words with our parents before heading up the stairs, Dad promising to call us down ten minutes to six so we'd be ready.

"You all packed, Lu?" I asked.

She nodded, going to sit on the corner of her bed.

"What's wrong? And please don't deny it again, I know something's bothering you."

"It's dumb," she said with an embarrassed smile. 

"It's bothering you regardless. You know you don't have to be embarrassed with me."

"I..." She laughed, the sound feeble and tired. "It really is dumb, Ced."

I raised my eyebrows at her and waited. She looked away, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Water," she said after a minute. "You weren't wrong when you told the Weasleys it's my greatest fear, aside from the obvious werewolf-related ones. Staying in a cabin for three weeks, literally on the shores of Lake Tahoe... I mean, what am I going to do?"

I leaned against her doorframe and crossed my arms over my chest. "Oh Lu," I chuckled, "there's more to do than just swim. We'll find things to do, I promise."

"I know, I just... yeah, I told you it was dumb."

"It's not dumb, I promise. I mean, I wouldn't be terribly excited about going to stay at the base of a volcano for three weeks, since I hate fire so much."

She laughed again, sounding better already. "Cedric, I don't think anybody wants to do that. Well, unless it was to study fire crabs or flame-born salamanders. Did you know that the Magical Creatures Reserve at Hogwarts actually has a habitat suitable for them? Sorry," she said with a giggle, "I'm really tired. I reckon I'm babbling now."

"Not at all," I replied. "Just hold on another hour or so, then you can sleep as long as you want."

She flopped backward onto her bed. "I still feel like I'm catching up for the past few months."

"That's why you should actually try to sleep more than a couple hours every night, you know."

Lucy groaned. "I try _now_. I'm still tired."

I crossed the room and offered her a hand up. "If you stay there much longer, you'll fall asleep. Want to play with Tuck one last time with me?"

At the mention of his name, the black and white fuzzball barreled into the room and leapt onto Lucy. She grunted as he began licking her face.

"Of course he jumped on one of the only bruises," she said with a humored sigh. "I still love you, Tuck, but please get off."

I sat cross-legged on the ground. "Come here, boy." 

He flew off of Lucy and crashed into my stomach, making us both laugh. Lucy gingerly lowered herself to the ground and grabbed a rag for Tuck to wrestle with. We played with him until our parents called us downstairs. Lucy and I each held our suitcases tightly in one hand, grabbing the picture frame Portkey with the other.

"Any second now," Dad said in a low voice, looking at the clock on the wall.

"Have fun!" Mum said just as it activated.

I had used a couple of Portkeys in my day, but I had never quite gotten used to the sensation of being snared by my navel and yanked through the air. I gripped the frame as tightly as I could, checking to make sure Lucy was okay.

Dad and I landed on her feet, but Lucy sprawled on the ground in her exhaustion. I helped her up and looked around.

"Amos!" a deep voice boomed. A black-haired man pumped my dad's hand, smiling widely. His children, with the same black hair and bright eyes, looked Lucy and me over and sported identical smiles. "And you must be Cedric and Lucy."

Our hands were thoroughly shaken, too, and brief introductions were made. 

"Anyone want anything to eat, drink? Or just a place to sleep?"

"A place to sleep sounds great," Dad said, smiling. "We can eat in the morning."

Brandon stepped toward me, smiling. "I'll take you up to my room. Your sister will sleep with mine. You both look pretty wiped."

"We stayed up all night to try to help with the time change," I explained. 

"Smart," he commented. I followed him up the stairs until he pushed open a door. "Well, here we are."

There was a twin bed and a dresser against either wall, but what got my attention was the massive window in the middle of the wall between them. The moonlight filtered through the trees, giving a faint sense of the woods waiting outside.

"Yeah," he said as if reading my thoughts. "It has a great view when it's light outside. The lake is literally right there."

"Wow," I said softly. 

"Yeah," he said again. He grinned. "Something tells me you'll be saying that a lot while you're here." 

* * *

I managed to wake up at a decent hour the next morning. Brandon wasn't wrong; the first thing I said when I looked out the window was "Wow."

The morning sun shone on the lake where I could see it through the trees. The lake itself was a deep shade of blue, and I smiled thinking of the Black Lake at Hogwarts. It wasn't black, as the name would suggest, but it definitely wasn't this blue either.

Jessica and Brandon were already awake, playing a game at the kitchen table.

"The Brit's awake!" Brandon exclaimed. "Didn't expect you to be up for a while."

"Good morning, Cedric," Jessica said with a smile. 

"Good morning," I replied, taking a seat next to Brandon and looking over his shoulder at the cards he held in his hand. "What're you two playing?"

"Cribbage. You ever played?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so."

"It's pretty simple," Brandon said, fanning out his cards so I could see better. "Right now, we both have six cards, but since it's her crib this round, I'm going to..."

The twins took turns patiently explaining the game to me. All things considered, it _was_ fairly simple, but trying to remember all of the ways to earn points was a little difficult for my jet-lagged brain. Jessica won the game, barely.

"I'll go check on Lucy," I said. "I'll be right back."

"It's okay!" Jessica said brightly, bouncing to her feet. "I'll go check. You get something to eat for breakfast. Our dads already left for work, and Brandon and I already ate."

Before I could say anything else, she disappeared up the stairs in a flash of black hair. Brandon laughed. "I swear you'll get used to her eventually, but she's a lot first thing in the morning."

I laughed. "I don't mind. If anything, I wish I had her energy. I wouldn't be surprised if Lucy slept the day away, I thought about it."

"Jess said she fell asleep before she even took her shoes off, so I wouldn't be surprised either. You can go sleep if you want to, we wouldn't be offended."

"Are you kidding?" I asked, leaning back against the counter to look out the kitchen window. "It's beautiful here. Why would I sleep when this is all right here?"

"Thus our annual summer dilemma," he chuckled. "Don't get me wrong, Ilvermorny is beautiful. But there's something just so... _right_ about being here. School is magical, yeah, but home is even more so."

"Do you have any other magical species my dad could come research next summer?"

"Sasquatch is about as cool as it gets," he admitted. "I've heard about a couple of clans of vampires nearby, though, if the idea of living with vampires while they hunt sounds appealing to your dad."

I shook my head. "Doubt it, but I'll ask him about it sometime."

Brandon laughed. "You hungry at all? I know Portkeys can mess with your stomach, so if you'd rather not eat, it's cool."

My stomach growled loudly, making us both laugh. I was halfway through a granola bar when Jessica reappeared.

"Still sound asleep," she reported. "She mumbled something about spiders when I walked in, and I thought for a second she saw a spider somewhere in the room, but she rolled over and pulled her pillow over her head when I asked about it, so I think maybe she was just talking in her sleep."

"It's been known to happen," I said with a nod. "The spiders thing doesn't surprise me. We..." I swallowed before continuing. "Well, she had a lot of experience with them this past year."

"Did your creature care cirriculum expand?" Brandon wondered.

I shook my head. "Just lots of spiders. Acromantulas, too. Do you have acromantulas around here? I know they like the forest."

"We certainly have a lot of that," Jessica laughed. "Thankfully, no. No acromantulas. Spiders, on the other hand..." She looked my body up and down, her eyes lingering on the exposed skin of my forearms. She met my eyes again and smiled. "Fortunately for you, I don't see any bites on you yet, but by the time you get home, it wouldn't surprise me if you were covered in them."

"Battle scars. Sweet," I joked.

"Oh, you'll be heading home with a lot of those, I bet," Brandon said, wiggling his eyebrows. "Say, Jess, how should we entertain our very pale friend today? This boy needs some sun."

"What about Lucy?" I asked.

Brandon waved his hand dismissively. "Jessica can stay here until Lucy wakes up. We'll do something tomorrow the four of us."

"Well, you know how much I hate... you know," Jessica said. "You and Cedric could have a guy's day on the lake."

Brandon turned to me with raised eyebrows. "You ever been on a Jet Ski?"

I shook my head. "To be honest, I don't know what that is."

He grinned wickedly. "Meet me outside in five minutes in swim trunks. You'll know soon enough."

Standing on the small dock, I got my first good look at the lake. It was truly the bluest body of water I had ever seen, rimmed with green trees and purple mountains. I drew a deep breath of mountain air, feeling it fill my lungs and clear my head. For a moment, the world had stopped turning just long enough for me to catch my breath.

The sudden roar of an engine snapped me from my reverie. I must have jumped, because Brandon laughed as he tossed me a life jacket. He threw a leg over the Jet Ski and settled on. 

He patted the seat behind him. "Jessica insisted that I take you for a ride before having you drive one for yourself."

I climbed on and nodded, tightening the straps of the life vest until it fit snugly around my bare chest. "Seems fair. How many of these do you have?"

"Two, both two-seaters. If you enjoy your first ride, we'll head out together, both driving. Now... you might want to hold on."

I tentatively grabbed the straps on the back of his life jacket, suddenly feeling a flush of embarrassment.

He laughed. "You're sure you'll stay on?"

"What should I be grabbing?" I asked.

"What position do you play?"

"Seeker."

"Wrap your arms around me, Seeker boy. Time to show you how a Beater drives a Jet Ski."

I had barely secured my arms around his midsection before he shot out onto the lake. The wind whipped around us as we gained speed, cutting across the sapphire glass of the water.

I loosened my grip slightly, returning to my initial state and grabbing the back of his life jacket. "I'm mildly insulted," I shouted over the wind. 

"Because you can hold on after all?" he yelled back.

"Yeah!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course!"

"Positive?"

"I think so," I laughed. "Will I regret my confidence?"

He gave no verbal answer, but the Jet Ski put on another burst of speed and tilted to the left. My fingers were white, trying to cling to his straps, but I managed to hold on. He grinned with satisfaction. I had passed his first test.

He leveled back out, and we hit a couple of waves. Gaining air was fun, but jolting back down sent shock waves through my entire body. 

"Little hard there, huh?" he called back to me.

"Little."

"Hope you weren't planning on having kids," he commented as we hit another massive wave and crashed back down. 

"Not anymore," I groaned. 

He hit a sharp right, another attempt to throw me off, but I managed to hold on again. I laughed. This was the most fun I had experienced in... I couldn't even remember.

"Let me show you how fast this thing can go," he said, leaning low and leaning forward. I followed suit, my eyes glued to a small electronic number showing how fast we were going.

40 miles per hour. 45. 50. 55.

I loosened my vice grip on the life jacket in front of me and stretched my fingers. The frigid wind in my face seemed to blow away every worry I had ever experienced in my entire life. The water below us was pristine and blue and beautiful. The sky seemed endless from our viewpoint in the middle of the lake. I couldn't keep the smile off my face.

Brandon hit another sharp right, but this time, I couldn't grab anything fast enough. I was launched into the air for several seconds before splashing down into the water. 

I bobbed to the surface, soaked and spluttering but laughing. Brandon laughed, too.

"How's the water?" he called mockingly. 

"Cold," I answered. "It feels amazing."

He turned a wide circle and offered me a hand back onto the Jet Ski as he idled the engine. I considered accepting it and hauling myself back on, but instead, I yanked him off balance and sent him into the water too. 

I scrambled quickly into the driver's seat. "My turn to drive?"

He wiped the water from his face with his forearm, laughing hard. "Sure. You know, my dad said your dad wouldn't shut up about what a well-behaved star student athlete you were. He didn't warn us about, well..."

"This?" I finished for him, smiling in spite of my embarrassment. I offered a hand. "I'd like to say my true self lies somewhere between this and what my dad thinks of me. I'll admit I haven't had this much fun in years."

He tried to pull me into the water with him when he took my hand, but I gamely held onto the Jet Ski.

"Nice try, Beater boy, but this Seeker's got a fair amount of muscle too."

He growled and hopped onto the seat behind me. "Gas on the right, brake on the left. But don't actually use the brake. It stops so fast it'll send us both off the back in half a second."

"Speaking from experience, Richardson?" 

"Shut up and drive, Diggory."

I tapped the gas, and the Jet Ski responded immediately, sending us ten feet forward. I released it in a hurry. 

"Whoa," I breathed. 

"It's no broom," he said, as if reading my thoughts, "but it sure is fun. I think it's as close as No-Majs can get. Or Muggles, as I suppose you'd say."

I smiled. "Let's show them how we wizards Jet Ski."

For all of my enthusiasm, Brandon made it look far easier than it actually was. Every slight tilt threatened to send us spilling over the side, and the waves looked a lot bigger from the perspective of the driver than the perspective of the passenger. But as the sun climbed higher in the sky, Brandon's advice became less and less frequent, and the electronic number rose from 20 to 25 to 30 to 35 to 40.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" he crowed as we shot out across the lake. "Woo hoo!"

Encouraged, I pushed the Jet Ski faster and faster. I considered trying to buck him off the back, the way he did me, but something told me it was a bad idea. Brandon was way more experienced than me, for one, but he was also way bigger. We were close to the same height, but he was definitely built like a Beater and I a Seeker. The shenanigans would have to wait --- I had three weeks to try, after all.

We made our way back to the dock a few hours later, breathless and smiling. And, apparently, sunburnt.

"Good Godric, Ced, you're a tomato!" Lucy exclaimed the second I walked in the door. She and Jessica were sitting at the table, cribbage board between them, and it looked like she was still in her pajamas.

I reached up to touch my nose. It was (unsurprisingly) tender. But I wasn't the slightest bit upset; I laughed. "Good morning to you too, Lu."

She blushed the same color as my sunburn. "Sorry. Good morning. Or afternoon, really."

"Aw, did we miss lunch?" Brandon asked, sounding genuinely concerned and disappointed. 

"She wasn't hungry, so I just made lunch for myself," Jessica explained. "There's half a pot of mac and cheese on the stove, and lots of stuff for sandwiches."

"Sounds great," Brandon said, heading off to the kitchen still shirtless and in his swim trunks.

"I think I'll go get a shirt on first," I chuckled. 

Lucy smiled. She looked exhausted, and I was worried about her not being hungry, but the smile was good to see nonetheless. "Sounds like a good idea. Hey, I heard you learned how to play cribbage this morning. Challenge you to a game after you eat?"

I nodded. "Sure thing."

She smiled again, and I bounded up the stairs to change into dry clothes and run a comb through my wind-whipped hair before heading down to the kitchen.

I was greeted by a hurricane of lunch meat and condiments as Brandon built himself a massive sandwich. 

"That's a sandwich fit for a grizzly bear," I commented.

"As if you've seen one," he snorted. "This is just a sandwich for a Beater, Seeker boy."

I laughed and reached for two slices of bread. "Alright, Beater boy, tell me how to make the best sandwich."

He tossed me each ingredient as he finished with it. I stepped back to admire my handiwork as I placed the second slice of bread on top. "Seeker sandwiches are bigger. You need a lot of power to be able to win the game singlehandedly, you know."

He swatted my shoulder and laughed. "Yeah, right. Keep telling yourself that."

I laughed, too. I didn't know where all of this sudden, well, competitiveness was coming from, but it was fun getting to banter so freely. We brought our loaded plates into the dining room, me sitting next to Lucy and him next to Jessica. 

"Are you sure you're not hungry, Lu?" I asked. 

She looked at my sandwich and wrinkled her nose. "How are you even going to fit your mouth around that monstrosity? You'll have to unhinge your jaw like a snake."

"I think that means no," Brandon laughed, lifting the sandwich to his mouth. "Don't worry, Lucy, this is how it's done."

Lucy was right. He nearly unhinged his jaw to take a bite. I laughed as he made a face.

"Bitten off more than you can chew again?" Jessica teased. 

He shook his head vehemently, swallowing with some effort. "Piece of cake. I'd like to see Seeker boy Cedric try _that_."

"Challenge accepted." I smirked, and managed to achieve the same feat. 

If Lucy wasn't hungry before, she definitely wasn't after that. She returned her attention to the cards in her hand as Brandon and I continued our sandwiches, and nearly beat Jessica.

"Your turn, Cedric," Jessica said, gesturing me to trade seats. "It can be something like boys versus girls, really, since you two are so new to the game."

Lucy and I both nodded gratefully, and the game began. Jessica and Brandon both wordlessly pointed to the cards in our hands they thought we should put down, and whispered debates ensued whenever there was a question or a doubt. But these were few and far between, because we were both glad for their help with the new game.

I wasn't surprised that Brandon demanded a rematch when the girls won. 

Jessica shook her head. "We should do something outside! Like go swimming!"

I glanced quickly at Lu, gauging her facial expression. She met my eyes briefly before managing a brave smile. "I don't think I'm up for swimming today, but being outside sounds nice. I should probably change out of my pajamas anyway, comfortable as they are."

"Sounds good. See you boys on the beach!"

Lucy followed Jessica out of the room, and I didn't miss the sleepy way she stumbled as she tripped on the carpet. Even if she wasn't terrified of the water, my sister was certainly too tired to even think about swimming. Brandon and I changed back into our trunks and jumped without hesitation into the water. 

Lucy and Jessica came out a couple minutes later, Jessica fully clad in a swimsuit and Lucy dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. She settled onto the sand and waved at me, and I waved back.

"Jeans don't make a great swimsuit," Brandon commented.

I laughed. "I'd have to agree with you on that one."

Jessica tossed a ball back and forth between her hands. It looked like a smaller version of a rugby ball --- Archie had told me all about the Muggle sport one night in the common room. She launched the ball at her brother, who leapt up into the air, caught it, and crashed down into the water with a huge splash that drenched his sister.

"Show-off!" she squawked.

He grinned. "You ever played football, Cedric?"

I shook my head. "Isn't that the game with goals where you kick the ball?"

For some reason, this was hilarious to him. Jessica laughed too, but was kind enough to explain that Americans called that game soccer, and that football was different for them.

"Go long," Brandon said, pulling his arm back. Jessica sloshed through the water and lifted her hands. He lobbed it toward her, and she caught it handily.

"Your turn, Cedric!" she shouted.

The ball came at me far faster and harder than I was expecting, but I managed to catch it against my chest.

Brandon laughed. "Not bad. But try catching it like this next time," he said, making a small triangle between his thumbs and index fingers. "The point of the ball should fit in the hole, then you close your hands around it. Now for throwing it..." He reached over and adjusted my hands around the ball. "Since you're right-handed, step forward with your left foot. Throw it whenever you're ready."

I tried my best, but it only covered half the distance to Jessica. I tried throwing it a couple more times, but it never spiraled as tightly or flew as far as when Jessica and Brandon threw it. 

"Can I try?" came a small voice. 

Lucy had rolled her jeans up around her knees and waded into the water, hair tied back in a ponytail and a look of curiosity and determination on her face.

"Heck yeah!" Brandon responded, heading over to her. He guided her hands around the ball the way he'd guided mine. He muttered something to her that I couldn't hear that made her laugh, and he pointed to Jessica. She nodded, and stepped forward with her right foot.

The ball flew five or six feet over Jessica's head, splashing into the water a fair distance behind her.

"Whoa," Lucy said softly, staring at her hands in disbelief. Brandon was beside himself with laughter.

"You didn't tell me your sister had a golden arm, Seeker boy!" he called. 

"She's a Chaser," I called back, beaming with pride. 

Jessica sent the ball back to me, and I managed to send it to Lucy. She wound up again and sent it directly to Jessica that time, the ball moving in a perfect tight spiral. 

Brandon laughed again. "Are you _sure_ you two are related?" he shouted.

Lucy and I exchanged a look and began laughing.

"Of course we are!" I shouted back. "And I'm proud of it!"

Later that night, I was losing to Brandon at cribbage when a massive boom shook the house. 

Lucy sprinted into the room, her face white. "What was that?"

"I don't know," I said breathlessly, but Brandon was laughing.

"Don't worry, the fireworks are just starting early tonight. Normally people wait until after it's dark, but-"

Another massive bang echoed outside. 

"Happy Fourth of July. You two came just in time for Tahoe's favorite holiday," Jessica said as she entered the room. "Once it's dark, we can take the Jet Skis out on the water and get closer, if you want."

Lucy and I exchanged a look. I knew how she felt about being on the water, and she knew how I felt about fireworks. We silently agreed that the more distance we had, the better.

Lucy smiled tentatively. "What about a picnic on the beach? For dinner? Or we could just bring snacks."

"I like the way you think!" Jessica exclaimed. "Let's go start packing it! We have a picnic basket and everything!"

I exhaled slowly through my nose in relief when they left and the fireworks stopped for the moment. Lucy was a saint.

I ended up losing, but in the next game we played, I very nearly won. I liked cribbage more and more the more I played it.

Another window-rattling boom announced that the fireworks were officially beginning. We made our way down to the beach with blankets and a basket of food.

"We'll have to have a bonfire at some point," Brandon said, "but we'll skip it tonight so we can see the fireworks better."

A massive yellow firework exploded, and Lucy laughed delightedly. "I think we'll see them just fine!"

She planted herself firmly at my side and turned to offer me an encouraging smile. "Don't worry," she whispered in a voice only I could hear. "They won't burn anything with the lake right here. It's safe."

"Thanks, Lu," I said.

She lifted her hand as if to stifle a yawn, but another firework shot into the sky, and her tiredness seemed to disappear.

"You know, a friend of mine once tried to turn someone's quill into a firework," Brandon said after a few more explosions.

Lucy giggled. "I have friends who fed a salamander a firework once."

"No way! What happened?"

"It landed in the fireplace, so I extinguished it quickly before the common room exploded."

"Who was it? Wait, never mind, I know who it was," I corrected with a laugh.

"The Weasley twins are famous," Lucy explained to the Richardson twins. "Best pranksters Hogwarts has ever seen, or at least that's their goal. I'm guessing Ilvermorny has something similar?"

Jessica and Brandon exchanged a brief look before bursting into a bout of laughter. The fireworks served as background music to the stories of pranks --- gone wrong as well as successful --- flowed easily between the four of us. It was the most relaxed I had ever been around fireworks. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow that night, sunburn and all.

* * *

A few days later, Lucy and I had fully adjusted to the time change and were ready to go exploring. Brandon recommended the Glen Alpine trail, near a place called Fallen Leaf Lake, and Lucy and I agreed readily. 

"It's not exactly legal for me to drive us," he said slowly, "but at least I have a license. Doesn't bother you, does it?"

Lucy snickered. "You're more qualified than... other friends of mine."

"Fred and George again?" Jessica asked, recalling the Fourth of July conversation.

Lucy started to shake her head, then stopped. "Well, yes, actually. They've driven a couple of times. But I was thinking of my friends who drove a flying car to Hogwarts."

" _What_?" the Richardson twins asked in astonished unison.

" _Your_ friends?" Jessica asked. "You're, like, what... thirteen?"

"We were twelve at the time, actually," Lucy said with a nod. "They missed the Hogwarts Express, and Ron's dad had driven the flying car --- driven, not flown --- to the station, so he and Harry flew it to the school."

Brandon shook his head. "The more I hear about your friends, the more I understand you, Lucy."

I laughed. "Same here."

She smiled sheepishly and glanced at me. "Ced, you knew about that."

"Hufflepuffs always get the watered-down version of Hogwarts gossip," I chuckled. "Gryffindor starts it, Ravenclaw passes it along, Slytherin warps it to make Gryffindor look crazy, and Hufflepuff gets whatever is left of the truth after everyone else has tried to tell the story."

Jessica laughed with a glance at her own brother. "What would that be for Ilvermorny?"

"Thunderbird starts everything, of course," he said right away.

She smiled and shook her head. "He's not wrong, but he is biased. He's dating a Thunderbird."

"Peyton is something else, to say the least," he explained. "She'd get along well with Fred and George."

"Okay, so Thunderbird starts it, Horned Serpent tries to figure out why everything happened. They tell Wampus what they think is most likely to be true, then Wampus simplifies it as much as possible before passing it on to Pukwudgie."

"What houses are you?" Lucy asked. "What are the houses like?"

"I'm a Wampus," Brandon said with a slight puff of his muscled chest. "It favors warriors, and it's supposed to represent the body of a wizard-"

"Or witch," Jessica added pointedly. "I'm a Horned Serpent, which is more mind-oriented. Then Thunderbird is more of the soul of a witch or wizard, and Pukwudgie is the heart of a healer type of house."

I pursed my lips. "Sounds like I'd be a Pukwudgie."

"Definitely," Lucy agreed immediately. "I don't know what I'd be."

"As much as I'd love to claim you as a Wampus with how far you can chuck a football, I'd say you strike me as more of a Pukwudgie like your brother," Brandon said.

"Well, we'll see how adventurous she is on the hike," Jessica said with a laugh. "I wouldn't assign her quite yet."

As it turned out, Lucy was just as adventurous as we were. After about twenty minutes of hiking, we reached a small waterfall.

"Glen Alpine Falls," Brandon announced. "Beautiful, of course, but this is the best part."

He walked off the trail and tossed his backpack aside to scramble up the rocks. 

"I'm staying here," Jessica said, firmly sitting on the rocks and taking out a water bottle, "but you two are free to monkey around with my brother. I promise I'm not offended, I'm just not a fan of heights."

Lucy sounded scandalized. "Not even flying?" she asked in a hushed voice.

Jessica shook her head violently. "Nope. Never in a million years. I leave that to my brother."

Lucy let out a low whistle. "Well, if you're sure you don't want the company..." She looked longingly over her shoulder.

"Honest, I don't mind. I'm just going to sit in the shade and catch my breath anyway. I enjoy the peace and quiet."

"In that case, we'll be back! Come on, Ced!"

Lucy took off running toward the rocks and began climbing after Brandon. Since I was taller than she was, I quickly passed her, but I was careful to stay close in case she needed me.

"Don't wait for me, Cedric, I'm small! I have short arms and short legs!" she called. "Go! I'll meet you at the top!"

I nodded and scrambled up until Brandon and I stood on top of the tallest rock.

"Wow," I breathed.

"The view only gets better from here," he promised. "But I love climbing the rocks."

"Me too," panted a voice behind me, "but unfortunately, I am small. Ced, do you mind?"

I laughed as I turned around and grabbed Lucy's hand. I hauled her up onto the rock next to us, and we stood silently to admire the view.

I don't know how long we stood there, but we eventually climbed back down to Jessica and continued our hike. Despite the warmth of the day, Lucy wore long sleeves and jeans. I wasn't sure why at first, but when we passed a group of hikers whose eyes immediately locked on her face, I understood. I moved casually to walk in front of her, which she accepted without protest.

It had taken me a while to get used to the scars. It wasn't that they were hard to look at because they were ugly or anything like that... they were hard to look at because I hated confronting the reality that I had been unable to protect her. At home, she came home with scrapes and bruises and occasional broken bones and bite marks, but nothing marked her quite like that first full moon at Hogwarts. In some ways, it was helpful, in that it distracted from her preexisting scars and gave her a solid alibi for the future. But to people who didn't know the story, to strangers like the Muggles we passed on the trail, she was scarred in a way they'd never understand. Nobody would ever be able to see past the scars again. Even _I_ found it hard sometimes to remember her face before, which was part of why I liked giving her the old pictures on her birthday. In time, I feared that nobody would be able to see past the scars.

I was thankful for Brandon and Jessica, who had asked me the very first night what had happened, as soon as Lucy fell asleep on the couch. I had answered with the sleepwalking story, and their reactions were (appropriately) equal parts horror and sympathy. It had only come up the one time, for which I was glad, and Lucy seemed relieved too. She grew more and more comfortable the more time passed, and honestly, I felt more at home after a couple days than I had felt in a very long time.

As promised, the view got better and better, but nothing quite matched the way I felt standing on top of the rocks, looking out at the valley below. I would remember that view as long as I lived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even though there's nothing from the books in it. This chapter and the next will be drawn almost entirely from my own vacations in Lake Tahoe, and I hope you all enjoy the miniature adventures the Diggorys and Richardsons share. See you all next chapter with America, part 2! Thanks for reading!


	36. This Perfect Day

_It was a perfect day  
What I'd give if I could find a way to stay  
Lost in this moment, now  
Ain't worried 'bout tomorrow  
When your busy living, feels like dreaming,  
Slowly drifting through this perfect day_

_"Perfect Day"  
Lady A_

* * *

LUCY:

I was ecstatic when Dad said we'd be staying in Tahoe another week. Sure, it meant the full moon would be the same day we got back. Sure, it meant Cedric and I would be doing nothing but homework as soon as we got home. But according to Harry, the Weasleys were in Egypt until the end of August anyway. Truthfully, I wanted to stay in Tahoe as long as possible.

"We're heading to the beach!" came Brandon's voice on our second-to-last full day. "You two coming?"

Jessica glanced toward me, and I shrugged. "Sure. You want to go?"

She pulled her shirt off her shoulder to show the straps of the bikini top she was already wearing. "We'll be right down!"

I glanced at the clock, and jumped slightly. It was 3:58. "I'll meet you down there in a couple minutes," I said, getting to my feet and hurrying up the stairs.

I wrenched the diary out from its hiding place between the mattress and the bedframe and pulled a quill out from my drawer. I flipped to the most recent page of conversations and waited.

The pages of the books were enchanted to glow slightly when there was an unread message. They were also enchanted to erase all of their messages as soon as every page was full to make room for more messages. We hadn't filled the diaries yet, but I reckoned they would be full by the end of summer. Between Ron accidentally getting Harry in trouble with his aunt and uncle and Hedwig not being allowed to send letters, I was the only person from the wizarding world he could talk to, which led to us talking a lot, whenever we could.

I watched Jessica's small electronic clock, waiting for it to read 4:00 (meaning it was midnight in Little Whinging) so I could be first to wish him a happy birthday. I knew that this year, I might be the only one who could.

When 4:00 came, I put my quill to the paper and wrote in my nicest handwriting.

_HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HARRY! I'm sorry I'm not there to celebrate with you in person, but I wanted to be the first person to wish you a happy birthday. Here's to many more years of adventure. (Hopefully the non-lethal type, but I'll be there for you every step of the way anyway.) I hope you're asleep right now, because you should be, but you should see this in the morni-_

Before I could even finish writing, a couple of letters began to appear. I set the quill down and laughed to myself as his words appeared.

_Okay, first of all, you're one to talk when it comes to sleeping habits. But thanks, Lucy, I'll admit I was happy to see the pages start glowing. I didn't even realize how late it was._

_Working on homework?_

_Yeah, that essay about Wendelin the Weird_

_How fun. Well, I'll leave you to it because you really should be sleeping_

Harry's handwriting was shaky, and I had learned that meant he was laughing as he tried to write.

_Lucy, again with the sleeping thing_

_But happy birthday again_

_Thanks, Lu, I'll talk to you later_

_Good night, Harry!_

I closed the diary and quickly changed into shorts and a loose Gryffindor t-shirt. The more time I spent around Jessica, the more confident I felt in my body in spite of my scars. She never stared, and she never asked questions, and I loved her for it. Cedric had explained to them both at some point what had happened, and they left it at that. I was still much too shy to wear any kind of swimsuit, but I'll admit that it was nice not to be suffocating in jeans and long-sleeved shirts in the 30 degree weather. (Or 90 degrees, as Brandon and Jessica said.)

"Where have you been?" Jessica called, gesturing for me to join her on the towel as our brothers tossed a football back and forth.

"Got distracted," I answered, pulling my hair up into a ponytail.

She narrowed her dark eyes at me. "Hmm."

"What do you mean, hmm?" I asked, feeling my cheeks heat with something other than sunburn.

She studied me a second further before shaking her head. "Never mind. I'll get it out of you eventually."

"Get what out of me?"

"Oh, we'll see. Do you want me to braid your hair?"

"Sure," I relented, knowing that she would have braided my hair eventually even if I had said no. I scooped some sand out in front of her so I could sit in the depression and be at the right level for her to do whatever she wanted. We'd spent most of our afternoons this way, the boys in the water and us on the sand. Sometimes we threw the football between the four of us, sometimes we'd play an informal version of volleyball in the sand. I even went in the water from time to time, never that deep, but deep enough to let the freezing water cool my sun-baked skin and watch the minnows flash around my feet.

This afternoon was little different. Jessica and I sat in comfortable silence at first as she braided my hair, then we wandered into our typical game that she called 20 questions. We rarely actually answered 20 questions, either losing interest after 10 or going on well past 30, but it was a fun way to pass the time while our brothers did whatever brothers do. This time, however, was different.

"Should I start, or should you?" Jessica asked.

"Do you have a question already? I don't."

"I'll go first, then. What's the most bizarre compliment you've ever received?"

I pursed my lips. "That's hard." I twisted my ring out of habit, then jumped. "Oh! I know! I told you about how the ring is a mood ring that's half me and half my best friend, yeah?"

"Yeah, you did."

"Well, there's this kid at school who acts like he's better than everyone else most of the time. He hates Harry and Ron and Hermione, and just about everyone else I care about, but when he overheard me explaining to someone else about how the ring works, he was actually sort of impressed. He implied that I was good at charms and told me I should stick to that instead of playing Quidditch."

"What a jerk!" she exclaimed. 

"Trust me, coming from Draco Malfoy, that was a high compliment," I replied with a sarcastic snort. "Alright, my turn... um, if you could instantly perfect one single magical skill, what would it be?"

"You know, now that you ask, charms. I'd love to be able to make cool things like your ring."

I blushed slightly, thinking about how much harder the secret diaries had been. "It wasn't too difficult, honestly. You could probably figure it out. I got lucky."

"Oh, shut up. You're too humble. It's a seriously cool piece of magic you did there. But I digress. If you could have one of your friends from school here with you, who would it be?" she asked. "I'll let you count the twins as one person, if that helps."

I laughed. "Thanks, but the answer is actually easy and straightforward. Harry."

"Harry? As in Harry Potter?"

I nodded, or at least as well as I could while her fingers tugged at my hair. "Yeah. His family isn't the best. I bet he'd love it here anyway, but I wish I could help by getting him away for a little bit." I cleared my throat, asking my question before she could ask for more details. "What's your happiest memory? Ever?"

She paused. "That's a good one."

"You can think about it. I don't mind waiting."

The braid forming on the back of my head got looser as her mind wandered. "One time, my best friend and I snuck out in the middle of the night, completely spontaneously, and managed to make it outside without getting caught. While we were outside, it started snowing for the first time that year. It was super late, and it felt like the snow had come just for us. We stayed out as long as we could, and as soon as it got too cold, we headed back to our common room, where we thawed out by the fire and fell asleep on top of each other."

A wistful sigh escaped my lips. "That sounds amazing."

"It was. Can I ask the same question back to you, or is that cheating?"

"I don't know what my answer is," I chuckled, "so I'll say it's cheating. Ask me a different question."

"Okay. Well, what's your saddest memory? Maybe not worst, necessarily, but saddest."

An image popped into my mind immediately. "This happened last year," I said, not even thinking twice before the story started pouring out of me. "It was right before my second Quidditch match. My friends and I had... well, disagreed, I guess, but Harry and I were starting to get more comfortable, joking with each other before the match just to alleviate some of our nerves. I was genuinely excited to play, because it would have been my first match against Cedric, but my Head of House came out onto the field and told us to go back to our common rooms immediately. Everyone knew something was wrong right away, and I can still see in my mind's eye the terrified look on Cedric's face. But before he could get to me, Professor McGonagall told Harry and Ron and I to follow her, so we did, and it turned out that my best friend, the fourth person in our little group so to speak, had been petrified."

"Petrified? Like... by a basilisk?"

I nodded again. "She was totally fine later, of course, but I just remember feeling so... hopeless. I had promised to protect her, but I couldn't."

She let out a low, sympathetic whistle. "Ilvermorny has never had something like that happen to us. I can't even imagine how horrifying that must have been."

"Thankfully, no one died," I said. "Everyone was okay in the end."

"That's good. But still..."

"Yeah, still... anyway, what's your favorite song?"

"Lucy," she laughed, "do you really expect to switch topics just like that?"

I managed an embarrassed giggle. "Yeah, I guess I did. Do you want to keep asking me questions?"

"I mean, yeah! A basilisk in your school? That's crazy!"

"If we start talking about Hogwarts being crazy now, we'll never stop!" I declared.

"We've got all the time in the world," she replied, tying off the braid with a hair tie. "And for the record, 'Boot Scootin' Boogie' by Brooks and Dunn. I'll play it for you tonight."

(I had never heard a song like it, but by the end of the night, I knew every word. Jessica and I danced around her room until we collapsed onto our beds in fits of giggles. That night, I dreamt of cowboys in a dimly-lit bar spinning me in circles.)

* * *

It seemed I had just closed my eyes that night before a persistent rapping at the door yanked me from sleep.

"Who, wha-?" Jessica called.

The door banged open to reveal our brothers, grinning from ear to ear.

Jessica launched a pillow at Brandon. "What d'you want?"

He flicked the light on. "The Diggorys have to see a sunrise before they leave! C'mon!"

"Fine, fine," Jessica groaned. "Lucy, you up?"

"Yeah, I am," I said as I sat up. "What time is it?"

"5:30!" Cedric said cheerfully. "See you girls downstairs!"

I smiled. "See you there."

Jessica and I stumbled around in the dark, clumsily changing into shorts and t-shirts. I slipped my birthday gift from Cedric under my shirt --- with less than two days to my transformation, I was already uncomfortably hot, something that would not be remedied by the summer weather.

"This reminds me of Quidditch practices," I said, feeling more alert by the second. "Our captain woke us up at-"

"The butt crack of dawn?" she chuckled.

I laughed. "Yeah, that. I enjoyed it, actually. This isn't the worst."

"Well, I've never played Quidditch, so this is cruel and unusual punishment for me."

Despite her complaining, we arrived in the living room a couple minutes later. Cedric pulled me to his side in a gentle hug. "Ready to make the most of our last day?"

I nodded. "I'm counting on it."

There's nothing quite like watching a sunrise on a lake, especially one like Lake Tahoe. None of us spoke as the sky and the water alike were painted in beautiful colors. The chill morning air clung to the exposed skin of my face and neck and hands, but it didn't feel heavy. It just felt... present. It was there. And I was glad it was there.

The reverent moment was interrupted by someone's stomach growling, so we headed up to the cabin to make one last (huge) batch of pancakes. My pre-full-moon stomach helped me set a record for most pancakes eaten in a single sitting; even Brandon was impressed. Brandon and Jessica played cribbage downstairs while Cedric and I packed. I was nearly done when he came in to check on me.

"What do you want to do today, Lu?" he asked as he leaned against the door frame.

I studied his face and huffed a laugh. "You look like you have something in mind."

He grinned. "Only if you're up for it, of course."

I tried to cock an eyebrow, but the motion only made him snicker slightly. "Now I'm nervous," I said.

"Lu, I swear that riding a Jet Ski is in the top three greatest experiences of my life. You should do it before we leave."

I gnawed on my lower lip. "You really think so?"

"You don't have to," he said quickly, "but you could ride with me. I wouldn't let anything happen. You know, I've never really asked, but what scares you about the water, anyway?"

I shuddered as various images came to mind. "I just... the thought of drowning is terrifying. Being surrounded on all sides by something you can't even really _see_ that's pressing you down and suffocating you just-"

"Hey, it's okay," he said, knowing to interrupt me before I spiraled into more anxious thoughts. "If I promise not to let you drown, will you ride with me?"

I waited a second before nodding, just to make him nervous. I figured I might as well take advantage of every last unique opportunity in Tahoe before we left, no matter what it was. "Sure. But I'm not going to try to convince Jessica."

"Don't worry. That's Brandon's job. I knew he was the only one who stood a chance of convincing her, so I-"

A squawk of "No way!" could be heard below us.

"Sounds like it's going well," I commented. "Hey, Ced, if I do this, you reckon you could rally for a bonfire tonight? Jessica and I talked about that, apparently while you and Brandon were scheming about the Jet Skis."

He chuckled. "You know what, that's fair. You face your fear, I face mine."

"What scares you about fire?"

It was his turn to shudder. "It's so unpredictable. And so damaging. I know what you mean about drowning, but I imagine being on fire would be so much worse. With water, there's a way out, if you can find it. There's always a way up. But once a fire has started..." He shuddered again. "It takes a lot to make it stop."

I nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense. Well, we'll keep the fire under control tonight. And all else fails, there will be millions of liters of water right there next to the fire pit."

"You have a point," he admitted with a laugh. "And you'll be wearing a life jacket, so you won't drown."

"Do they have one small enough for me?" I asked.

The answer was no. But as I stood on the dock, in a swimsuit for the first time in probably five years or more, Cedric was determined to make it work.

He yanked a strap as tightly as he possibly could, grunting with the effort of it. "Is that any better?" he asked, his grey eyes analyzing the situation.

"Yeah, it's tighter," I said. 

"I'll tighten the rest if you want," Brandon offered. 

"You just want an excuse to escape your sister's murderous glare," I accused jokingly.

Jessica huffed. "You got that right. I can't believe you agreed so readily, Lucy. Are you absolutely crazy?"

"Maybe I am," I chuckled. Cedric grunted as he tightened the next strap. "I don't know if it has to be quite so tight, Ced, you've had a lot of practice driving at this point. I know you won't flip it."

"Oh, he's not worried about flipping it," Brandon called, jumping on a Jet Ski and pulling his sister down behind him. I could have sworn he was smirking as he revved the engine and pulled away. "Meet you out there!"

"What does he mean by that?" I asked as Cedric yanked on the last strap.

He shrugged.

"You're a horrible liar."

He shrugged again, jumping on the front and offering me his hand and a smile. "Hold on tight, okay?"

"Oh, I get it now. You're worried that I'll fly off because I'm small and light, huh?"

"Yeah, that's it," he muttered unconvincingly. "Grab on."

I wrapped my arms around Cedric's torso and pressed my face to his life jacket. I took a deep breath. "Okay. Go ahead."

I was glad to be holding on as tight as I was. The Jet Ski lurched forward with unprecedented speed, and I instinctively shut my eyes. A bitingly cold wind whipped around us, but I had never felt so comfortable before a full moon in my life. It was invigorating.

I cracked my eyes open and watched as small white-capped waves rushed out of our way. I opened my eyes further and lifted my head.

"See, Lu? Nothing to be afraid of."

"Whoa," I breathed, glancing around. 

It was still early enough in the morning that the four of us were the only people we could see on the water. In front of us, blue seemed to stretch on forever; only the mountains and trees separated the lake from the sky. I found myself recalling something Jessica had said.

_I know it sounds like a sappy tourist thing, but we always say that here the fabric is thin between heaven and earth._

In that moment, I believed it.

I slowly loosened my grip on my brother. He instantly glanced over his shoulder at me. "You okay, Lu?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay." I took a deep breath and managed a smile. "This is..."

When I couldn't find the right word, he turned back around and nodded. I could hear the smile in his voice as he replied. "I know."

We continued on in a straight line until we reached the middle of the lake. Brandon and Jessica signaled for us to stop, so Cedric killed the engine. 

"Ready to show the girls some real speed?" Brandon called.

"Yeah!" Cedric called back, the engine roaring to life again.

"Real speed?" I squeaked. "But that was already so-"

Cedric gunned it. An involuntary scream escaped me. I barely got my arms around him in time. I could tell he was laughing.

"It's not funny!" I shrieked, but the sound of my own laughter betrayed me. After a couple minutes, I loosened my grip and sat back up, not wanting to miss this view even if the speed terrified me. I tried not to think about the water below me. I focused instead on the smell of the pine trees in the air, and the way the sun had lightened Cedric's hair to a more caramel color in the past weeks, and the sound of the purring machine cutting through the waves.

Or so I thought. Before I knew what was happening, the Jet Ski became airborne and splashed back down. And before I registered that, I was airborne again, this time without the Jet Ski. I screamed again before I hit the water, but my scream was cut short as my head was fully submerged. 

With a single kick and the help of my life jacket, I bobbed to the surface again. Cedric whirled the Jet Ski around. 

"Are you okay?" he shouted.

I flashed a thumbs-up as I coughed some of the lake water up. "Yeah!" I croaked.

Brandon turned around too. "You good? That was some serious air!"

I laughed. "Glad I could impress you!"

Cedric hauled me back onto the Jet Ski. "Sorry about that," he chuckled. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, just wet."

He smirked. "Only one way to fix that."

I wrapped my arms around him just as he gunned it again. This time, I also looped my fingers around the straps, for an extra layer of launch protection. It seemed to help, because I wasn't bucked off again.

As promised, I was almost completely dry by the time we returned to the dock. 

"That was more fun than I'd like to admit," I said softly to my brother as we shed our life jackets. "Thanks for convincing me to do that, Ced."

"Of course, Lu. That was the easy part."

I offered an encouraging smile. "Your end of the bargain comes tonight. Oh, watch out!" 

I elbowed him out of the way and jumped up to catch the football Brandon had lobbed at his head.

"Rude!" Cedric called.

Brandon laughed. "I had to get your attention somehow."

I launched the ball back at Brandon, and laughed as he jumped too high and landed on his butt in the sand. "Karma!"

"Oh, you asked for it!" He stood to his feet and sent the ball flying at me. I caught it against my chest, but the sheer force of the ball knocked me off balance, and I splashed down into the water.

I kicked to the top in a panic with no life vest to help me. Cedric was already offering a hand up. "Are you alright?"

I nodded, grabbing his hand and scrambling back to the safety of the dock. "I'm not hurt. Just don't like the water."

"Do you want to head up to the cabin and catch your breath?"

"It's okay," I said with a shake of my head. I snatched the ball up and tucked it under my elbow. "Hey, Brandon, pick on someone your own size!" I teased.

"With an arm like yours, you'd think you _were_ my size!" he protested. "Not my fault you're tiny!"

"Tiny, huh?" I called, sprinting toward where he stood on the beach. I wound up as I got closer, planning to peg him with the ball. "You better hope you're faster than me!"

A flicker of genuine uncertainty flickered across his face, and I was suddenly laughing too hard to throw the ball. The rest of the day passed that same way, bantering back and forth and tossing the football and splashing in the water and turning pink under the summer sun.

Later in the afternoon, I volunteered to help Brandon build the fire while Cedric and Jessica got the food together.

"I usually build what I call a chimney," he explained as we got firewood from the side of their cabin. "Try to grab two pieces of wood that look kind of like this."

I studied what his arms already held and reached for one that looked similar. "Like this?"

He nodded. "Exactly. You got it?"

I wrinkled my nose. "What, you think it's too heavy for me?"

He raised his eyebrows and tried not to look surprised as I grabbed two massive pieces of wood. "No, apparently not."

"Apparently?"

He shook his head as we trudged back down to the fire pit on the sand. "You're full of surprises."

I felt a blush creep to my cheeks as I recalled the last time someone had told me that. "So I've been told."

"Oh, I know what we should play tonight. Remind me about it later. Time to build a fire!"

I watched as he arranged the wood into a square. While he went to get a couple more pieces of firewood, he sent me off in search of dry brush. I returned with a bunch of dead pine needles and leaves, and dumped them in the middle as he placed his wood on top of the little "chimney" he had formed.

"Now we just need a wand and a good old-fashioned fire spell," I commented.

He grinned. "Time for some No-Maj technology," he replied as he reached into his pocket for a slim metal box. "This is a lighter. If you flip the lid back-"

I jumped as it clicked to life, a small flame suddenly coming from the corner.

"Pretty cool, huh?" 

I nodded. "Muggles, I mean No-Majs, are surprising sometimes. That's brilliant!"

"Comes in handy over summer while our wands are stuck at Ilvermorny," he replied with a shrug. "Now, you want to try to catch the dry brush first, because that will burn most easily. Once part of it catches, blow on it. It'll make it bigger."

I leaned as close as I dared, inhaling deeply. "Now?"

"Now!"

I blew as hard as I could, and the flames danced across the brush. I recoiled slightly, surprised by what I had done.

"Attagirl! Watch it grow! Try again!"

I blew again, and the fire continued to grow. By the time Cedric and Jessica had returned with sweatshirts, a picnic basket, and things that looked like stretched-out forks, the fire was glowing merrily against the darkening sky.

"Hot dogs, corn on the cob, and everything we need for s'mores!" Jessica announced. "Oh, and a few cans of soda, of course."

I sat close to Cedric as we started roasting our hot dogs over the fire, just in case he got scared, but he seemed to be alright. He was in high spirits, though I knew he was just as sad to be leaving in a couple of hours as I was. 

I had finished half of my hot dog when Brandon announced that we had to play a game.

"I was thinking Two Truths and a Lie," he announced. 

"Ooh, that's perfect!" Jessica agreed. "Have you two played before?"

We shook our heads.

"What games do you play at school? If you don't play this, or twenty questions?"

"Exploding Snap, wizard's chess," I said with a shrug. "Quidditch."

"These are much more fun. Anyway, you play by saying three things about yourself, but only two of them are true. We have to guess which one is false. I'll start." She chewed thoughtfully on her hot dog for a moment before speaking again. "Let's prohibit siblings from guessing the lie, if possible. Otherwise it's too easy."

We all nodded our agreement.

She swallowed and nodded. "Okay, I know. I made out with a prefect last year, I've dyed my hair purple, and I once charmed my friend's hat to make it sing every time she put it on. Which one do you think is the lie?"

No one answered right away.

"You haven't dyed your hair purple?" I guessed.

"Nope! I did it on a dare last year! Guess again!"

"There's no way you snogged Tyler!" Brandon laughed. "I call BS!"

Her smirk told us all we needed to know. We all laughed loudly.

"I didn't think you would ever charm someone's hat to sing," Cedric said. "That's complicated magic just for a prank."

"Yep! That was the lie."

"It _is_ possible, though," I said. "Or at least, I think it is. I charmed someone's underwear once."

Jessica chuckled. "Save it for your turn, you'll run out of material. That's a lie, obviously."

"No, seriously," I laughed. "I did! They changed my hair to red, I charmed their underwear to scream at them. Fair is fair."

Brandon choked on his hot dog. "Like I said, I guess. Full of surprises. Your turn."

"Alright. Uh..." I bit my lip. "I've been to the Forbidden Forest three times, I was blinded by a professor who tried to fix my broken nose, and I'm a huge Holyhead Harpies fan. Which is the lie?"

Cedric looked at me, bewildered. I snickered and looked to the twins for their reactions.

"There's no way a professor blinded you," Jessica said. "Right?"

"Unfortunately, that one is true."

"What? No way!"

Cedric nodded to back me up. "She took a Bludger to the face during a Quidditch match that broke her nose. Our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at the time tried to fix it up, but he blinded her for a month instead."

"That's insane! Well, so you must be bluffing about the Forbidden Forest."

I shook my head. "Nope, I've been three times. I'm a Magpies fan."

"How the heck am I supposed to compete with that?" Brandon chuckled, shaking his head. 

"Let me guess," I laughed, "I'm full of surprises?"

He nodded. "Okay, my turn. I once knocked our referee out cold during a Quidditch match with a Bludger, I asked Peyton out while I was in the infirmary with a concussion, and I would be playing No-Maj football if I weren't, you know, a wizard."

"There's no way you knocked a referee out," Cedric guessed.

"Yeah, you got me. I honestly forgot I had asked Peyton out until I woke up holding her hand three days later. She'll never let me live down how un-romantic that was."

I giggled. "Honestly, I think it's sweet. If someone asked me to be their girlfriend while they were half-dead, it'd be hard to say no."

"I guess she felt the same way. Your turn, Ced."

He pursed his lips. "Harry Potter beat me to the Snitch last year at the age of eleven, I can produce a patronus charm, and I was in the same room as Madam Pomfrey, our school's healer, when she was petrified my first year."

"You see, I feel like this should be easy," Brandon said slowly, "but it's not, because Hogwarts is _that_ crazy."

"Tell us about it," Cedric said with a wry grin. He looked at me. "Try the Philosopher's Stone next. See if they believe that you helped rescue it."

Jessica pressed her hands to her head. "One freaky thing at a time! I'm going to guess Harry didn't beat you."

"Nope, he did."

"I really want to guess the last one, but I'm going to have to say you can't produce a patronus."

"Correct! I can't. I think it's a sixth- or seventh-year spell."

"I can't wait to learn how to cast a patronus," I said with a sigh. "They're so pretty!"

"Right?" Jessica agreed excitedly. "I haven't been able to cast one yet, but I have a friend whose patronus is a dragon. It's _so_ cool."

My jaw dropped. "I didn't even know that was _possible_. I want _mine_ to be a dragon!" I laughed. "Anyway, your turn again, Jess."

And so the night went on in a blur of smoke and laughter. The sun sank lower and lower until it dipped behind the mountains. To see a sunrise and a sunset on the same day was something I'd done several times before, especially the past year with all of my sleepless nights, but there was something particularly magical about that day. Something about being with my brother, being with our new friends, being on the shores of Lake Tahoe. Something about how for all of the pain I'd been through in the past year, beautiful things still waited on the other side. It would have been easy, too easy, to mourn the fact that we were leaving, but as I sat there, my head against Cedric's shoulder and plucking the gooey marshmallow off of the tip of my campfire fork, I felt nothing but contentment.

My eyes glittered with tears as we said our final goodbyes that night. Jessica hugged me tightly, promising to write as often as she could. Brandon picked me up and spun me around, saying he'd see me on the Quidditch Pitch one day when I was playing for England, or maybe on an American football field. I smiled bravely, not letting the tears fall until I was alone in my room back home. I buried my face in Tuck's fur and held tight for several minutes as reality settled back in. The full moon was coming. As amazing as my vacation had been, the moon didn't stop for anything or anyone.

* * *

August 2, 1993 - 9:30 AM

_Hi, Harry! Well, I'm home from America, but I think the time difference is messing with me. I don't feel great. If I'm a little slow to reply, it's because I'm sleeping it off. I hope your birthday was better this year than last year!_

August 2, 1993 - 9:30 PM

 _I'm sorry you're sick! Feel better soon! My birthday was actually much, much better. Hermione, Ron, and Hagrid all managed to send me things, so that was a pleasant surprise. Everything arrived shortly after you wished me a happy birthday, funny enough, so it's a good thing I was awake so late. I won't be able to talk too much the next couple of days, either --- my Aunt Marge is here. Well, she's not_ my _Aunt Marge, but that's what I've always had to call her. My family told her that I attend St. Brutus’s Secure Center for Incurably Criminal Boys, so I've had to keep up that facade. I wouldn't be able to bear it if it weren't for getting my Hogsmeade slip signed. My uncle said he'd sign it as long as I didn't say anything about my "abnormality," as they call it. I hope to talk to you soon!_

August 4, 1993 --- 11:42 AM

_Sorry it's taken me so long to reply. I was more sick than I realized. Best of luck with your relative! That sounds like a nightmare. From what I've heard, Hogsmeade is worth it, though, so I hope it works out for you._

_I'm glad you're feeling better! So far so good, I think. I hope it's good enough. Only time will tell, I suppose._

_I have faith in you. Keep your head up, Harry. You can do it._

_Thanks, Lu. I hope so._

August 7, 1993 --- 8:30 PM

_Lucy, I messed up. I'm writing by the light of a street lamp. I can't go back there. I_

August 7, 1993 --- 8:52 PM

_I'm so sorry, Harry, I just saw this! What's going on? Is everything okay? I won't leave until I hear back from you. I promise._

August 7, 1993 --- 10:03 PM

_I'm okay. I'm in the Leaky Cauldron now. I don't know how to explain what happened_

_It's okay, Harry. I'm glad you're okay. Do you want to talk about it?_

_I blew up my aunt._

_What?_

_I accidentally made her glass explode the other night when she made me angry. I don't remember the last time I lost control of my magic, but I did. And I did it again tonight. I didn't make her explode, but she swelled up like a balloon and I ran away. I wrote to you as soon as I stopped running, but there was a big black dog in the alley behind me, and I freaked out a bit, and before I could keep writing, the Knight Bus showed up. It brought me here, and Cornelius Fudge was waiting for me. I'm not even expelled or anything. I'll be staying here until school starts again._

_Sounds like quite the night. I'm so glad you're alright. Just breathe. It's okay now, it's over._

_Yeah. Yeah, you're right, it is._

_I'm guessing you didn't get your Hogsmeade slip signed?_

_No. And Fudge refused to sign it, which seemed odd to me. If not even the Minister of Magic can give me permission, who can?_

_I guess we can keep each other company at school, then. I'm sorry you didn't get yours signed either._

_Wait, why isn't yours signed?_

_It's signed, but Cedric and I aren't allowed to go until Sirius Black is caught again. My parents are terrified of him._

_Oh, okay. Well, selfishly, I'm glad I won't be alone._

_Selfishly, me too. We'll try to think of something fun to do just the two of us, okay?_

_Okay. I like the sound of that. I should probably go to sleep, but thanks for staying up to talk to me. I didn't have anyone else tonight._

_I'll always be here, Harry, as much as I can be. Just write if you need anything, okay? I'll keep this close while I catch up on homework the next couple weeks._

_Okay, thanks. G'night, Lucy._

_G'night, Harry._

August 9, 1993 --- 9:13 AM

_The Weasleys and Hermione are going to meet me in Diagon Alley the last week of summer holiday! Do you know if you'll be coming then, too?_

_I wish, but my parents did all of our shopping for us already. Sirius Black again. It's like they expect him to jump out from behind every corner, I swear._

_That's too bad. I was really hoping to see you. I miss you._

_I miss you too. See you September first?_

_Write to me before then?_

_Of course! How have you been?_

_Honestly, I'm having fun. Being here instead of the Dursleys is better than words can express._

_I'm glad you got out, even if circumstances were... less than ideal. To say the least._

_All's well that ends well, I suppose!_

_That's one way to put it, for sure! Sorry, but I should get back to homework. Enjoy Diagon Alley extra for me, since I'm not going this year!_

_Will do. Bye, Lu!_

_Bye!_

August 13 _._ Four pages.

August 14. Three pages.

August 15-22. Twenty-five pages. 

August 22-29. Thirty-two pages. 

August 30 --- 2:34 AM

_I promise I'll be on the Hogwarts Express, but I'm really sick again. I don't know how much I'll be able to write to you before I see you. Is everything okay? Are Ron and Hermione there with you?_

August 30 --- 8:42 AM

_Yeah, everything's okay. They're coming today, I think. Don't worry about me, Lu, just take care of yourself. I'm okay. Are you?_

September 1 --- 7:14 AM

_I'm feeling a little better. I'm not contagious, I promise. Just tired. Excited to see you, though, and Hermione and the Weasleys. See you on the train!_

_See you there, Lu. Glad you're better. I've missed you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Well... that was different! Please let me know what you think down below! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter! As always, thank you for reading!


	37. Impossible

LUCY:

Cedric and I shuffled through King's Cross on our own. Mum and Dad had both been taken away from their typical jobs to help look for Sirius Black. They hated leaving us to our own devices, but Cedric flashed his prefect badge and his most winning smile to convince them that we'd be okay. He spotted Percy (who had been appointed Head Boy) right away and followed him onto the train so he wouldn't miss the prefects' meeting. Just after he disappeared, Hermione launched herself at me with an excited shriek.

"I missed you so much! How are you?" 

I managed a smile, trying to force away my exhaustion. "I'm alright. How was France? You're so tan!"

"So are you!"

Before she could go any further, Ginny sprinted up to hug me. "Lucy! Hi!"

"Hi, Ginny, how was Egypt?"

"It was great!" she gushed.

"Bit disappointing, really," someone said behind me.

"Yeah, we tried to leave Percy in a pyramid, but Mum caught us and didn't approve."

I turned a disapproving glance at the twins as they each pulled me into a quick hug. "Let me guess, the Head Boy talk was too much for you two?"

"Too much for all of us," Ron said, pulling me into a side hug. I turned to look at him, but I had to tilt my head back just to see his freckly face.

"What the heck? When did you get so tall?"

"I've always been tall," he replied defensively. "C'mon, let's get on the train."

"Wait, where's Harry?" I asked, scanning the crowd for his familiar messy black hair or the gleam of his glasses.

"Talking to my dad. They're starting to shut the doors, we'll save Harry a seat."

I climbed up onto the train behind them. Ginny followed the twins down the corridor to find Angelina and Alicia, leaving Ron and Hermione and me to find what seats we could.

Banging on a nearby door attracted our attention.

"Oh, there he is," I said, throwing the door open so Harry could scramble onto the train. 

"Thanks," he panted. He glanced around at the three of us. "I need to talk to you in private."

"We'll find a compartment." I looked up at Harry. He'd grown a fair amount over summer as well.

He noticed me looking and smiled. "What?"

"Just thinking about how unfair it is that everyone got taller except for me." 

Ron rested his elbow on top of my head. "Get used to it, Lu. We'll only get taller from here."

I wrinkled my nose at that and followed the boys and Hermione into a compartment. It was occupied by only one other person, an adult. He was sound asleep, but even in sleep, his pale face was troubled. His robes looked as if they had several more years of wear than they were intended to have, and my heart twisted in sympathy for the man. Though I did envy him his sleeping state --- I was trying to put up an energetic front, but I was exhausted. Mum and Dad had forgotten to leave me wideye potion, so sleep tugged down on every part of me, begging me to give in. I refused. Harry needed to talk to us.

Ron automatically took the seat next to Hermione, a habit that had formed last November while I had been in the Hospital Wing and asked him to look out for her. Harry and I settled into the seats across from them.

“Who d’you reckon he is?” Ron asked softly.

“Professor R. J. Lupin," Hermione replied.

“How’d you know that?”

“It’s on his case."

“Wonder what he teaches?”

“That’s obvious. There’s only one vacancy, isn’t there? Defense Against the Dark Arts.” 

“Well, I hope he’s up to it. He looks like one good hex would finish him off, doesn’t he?" 

"He can't possibly be worse than Quirrell and Lockhart," I reasoned. "Quirrell tried to kill Harry, and Lockhart tried to erase all of our memories." I shuddered. "Anyway. What did you want to tell us, Harry?"

He sighed heavily. "I accidentally overheard Ron's parents arguing last night. Apparently Sirius Black escaped to come after me."

I felt my stomach drop to my toes. I knew I was already pale after the full moon, but I reckoned my face grew even paler.

"Cornelius Fudge wanted to keep me in the dark about it, and your dad pulled me aside to tell me today, Ron, but I admitted that I'd already heard them talking. He made me promise not to go looking for Black, which seemed to me something rather odd to say. But he made me promise nonetheless, and now here I am."

Hermione slowly lowered her hands from her face to reveal a horrified expression. “Sirius Black escaped to come after _you_? Oh, Harry, you’ll have to be really, really careful. Don’t go looking for trouble, Harry.”

Harry stiffened beside me. “I don’t go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds _me_.”

“How thick would Harry have to be, to go looking for a nutter who wants to kill him?” Ron's voice trembled.

"Are you scared, Harry?" I asked.

He shook his head. "I mean, any place with Dumbledore is safe, as far as I'm concerned. And Mr. Weasley said something about the Azkaban guards being at school, too. And I'm not planning on going after Black, despite everyone else's apparent concerns about that."

"But..." Ron's voice was still shaking violently. “No one knows how he got out of Azkaban. No one’s ever done it before. And he was a top-security prisoner too.”

"Dumbledore's never guarded Azkaban before," I commented, and Harry managed a small smile.

"My point exactly."

“What’s that noise?” Ron asked suddenly. He jumped up. “It’s coming from your trunk, Harry.”

He pulled out what looked like a small Sneakoscope, which was going ballistic.

Hermione rose to her feet. “Is that a _Sneakoscope_?”

“Yeah, it is. Mind you, it’s a very cheap one. It went haywire just as I was tying it to Errol’s leg to send it to Harry.”

Hermione raised her eyebrows and smirked. “Were you doing anything untrustworthy at the time?”

“No! Well, I wasn’t supposed to be using Errol. You know he’s not really up to long journeys. But how else was I supposed to get Harry’s present to him?”

“Stick it back in the trunk, or it’ll wake him up," Harry said after a particularly shrill whistle made me clamp my hands over my ears. He turned toward me. "You alright, Lu?"

I nodded and lowered my hands. "Just a bit of a residual headache," I lied. "From being sick a couple days, I mean."

Ron sat back down. “We could get it checked in Hogsmeade. They sell that sort of thing in Dervish and Banges, magical instruments and stuff. Fred and George told me.”

Hermione straightened up excitedly. “Do you know much about Hogsmeade? I’ve read it’s the only entirely non-Muggle settlement in Britain-”

“Yeah, I think it is,” Ron interrupted, “but that’s not why I want to go. I just want to get inside Honeydukes!”

Hermione furrowed her brow. “What’s that?”

“It’s this sweetshop where they’ve got _everything_! Pepper Imps, they make you smoke at the mouth, and great fat Chocoballs full of strawberry mousse and clotted cream, and really excellent sugar quills, which you can suck in class and just look like you’re thinking what to write next, and massive sherbet balls that make you levitate a few inches off the ground while you’re sucking them.”

Hermione talked over him, looking eagerly at me. “But Hogsmeade’s a very interesting place, isn’t it? In _Sites of Historical Sorcery_ it says the inn was the headquarters for the 1612 goblin rebellion, and the Shrieking Shack’s supposed to be the most severely haunted building in Britain!” I shifted uncomfortably at the mention of the Shrieking Shack, so Hermione looked from me to Harry. “Won’t it be nice to get out of school for a bit and explore Hogsmeade?”

It was his turn to shift uncomfortably. “‘Spect it will. You’ll have to tell me when you’ve found out.”

“What d’you mean?” Ron asked.

“I can’t go. The Dursleys didn’t sign my permission form, and Fudge wouldn’t either.”

“ _You’re not allowed to come_? But... no way! McGonagall or someone will give you permission! Or we can ask Fred and George, they know every secret passage out of the castle-”

Hermione looked horrified. “Ron! I don’t think Harry should be sneaking out of the school with Black on the loose!”

“Yeah, I expect that’s what McGonagall will say when I ask permission,” Harry admitted. 

"Sounds like you're stuck with me for company," I said, smirking slightly. "How unfortunate it is that Fred and George have already told me about the passage that leads directly from the castle to Honeyduke's."

Harry grinned. "Really? You'd sneak out of the school?"

"Assuming I still fit under the cloak with you, gladly."

"Lucy!" Hermione scolded. "Do you really think that's a good idea? What if Sirius Black is waiting for him in Hogsmeade?"

Ron perked up. “But Hermione, if _we’re_ with him, Black wouldn’t dare-”

“Oh, Ron, don’t talk rubbish! Black’s already murdered a whole bunch of people in the middle of a crowded street, do you really think he’s going to worry about attacking Harry just because _we’re_ there?”

"But with the Invisibility Cloak-" I started to say, but Hermione had started to undo the straps of her new basket, which sent Ron into a panicked frenzy.

“Don’t let that thing out!” he yelped.

"Let what out?" I asked as a cat leapt from the basket and onto Ron's knees. "Hermione, you got a cat! What's his name?"

"The Devil himself," Ron spat, shoving the cat onto the ground. "Scabbers is terrified of him."

"His name is _Crookshanks_ -" Hermione corrected in a loud voice, but she froze when Professor Lupin stirred. She continued in a lower voice when he settled back into deep sleep. "This is Crookshanks, Lucy."

"Hi, Crookshanks," I said gently. "Wow, the color of your fur is beautiful. It'll be nice to have a new face in the dormitory."

Ron scowled. "Keep him there. He scares Scabbers."

"How's Scabbers, Ron? Did he enjoy Egypt?"

He shook his head sadly. "I don't think Egypt agreed with him. He's been sickly ever since."

I frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that. Did you get him medicine?"

"I did, but..." He glared pointedly at Crookshanks, and the cat climbed into my lap to escape Ron's fury.

"Noted," I said, stroking the cat's head. 

When the lunch cart came, Hermione tried to wake Professor Lupin up, but he was sound asleep.

Ron studied the man with concern. “I suppose he is asleep? I mean... he hasn’t died, has he?”

I laughed. "No, he's definitely alive. Just tired, I suppose."

As for my own tiredness, I was too excited about being with my friends again to really feel the sleepiness that had tugged at my eyelids earlier in the day. Everything just felt... right. Ron told Hermione (and Harry and me by extension) all about ancient Egyptian wizards, Crookshanks still purred contentedly in my lap, and I took advantage of my enhanced sense of smell to pick only the tasty Every-Flavour Beans I had gotten from the trolley while Harry ate Chocolate Frog after Chocolate Frog looking for new cards.

"You know, Lucy, there is one card that you have that I don't," Harry said, loudly enough to get Ron's attention.

Looking back, I should have known I was walking into a trap, but my sleep-deprived brain was slow on the uptake.

"Well, I _have_ been collecting longer than you have," I said. "I probably have a couple more than you."

"You're right," he replied, "but I remember you having one card in particular. Didn't you say it was a new card, completely unique?"

Ron looked at me excitedly. "No way! Who is it?"

I bit my lower lip in thought and looked at Harry. "You lost me. I have no idea which card you're thinking of."

He looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh. "Maybe you have it with you. I can't quite remember the name on it, but the picture showed a little girl with missing front teeth and-"

I jolted in my seat in realization. "Harry!" I swatted his arm playfully. "No! I'm not showing them that card!"

"Aw, why not? You should show Ron so he knows what to look for. _Very_ limited edition. He might miss it!"

I felt my face flush bright red. "Unfortunately, I think I own the only one ever made."

Harry laughed, glancing at a very confused Ron. "I tried to trick her into giving you the Chocolate Frog card her brother made for her birthday last year. It has her birthday on it."

"No fair!" Hermione whined. "Harry knows before _me_? Do I at least get a hint?"

I swatted Harry's arm again. "Look at the mess you've created."

He looked very pleased with himself as he bit the head off of another Chocolate Frog. "Go on, Lu, give her a hint. Don't be shy."

My face turned even more red. "Fine. You and Ron both get a hint. My birthday happened while you were petrified."

Hermione started counting on her fingers. "That narrows it down to..."

"Hopefully a lot of days," I interrupted. "Hopefully you're puzzled for a long time."

"We can still ask Cedric," Ron pointed out.

I shook my head. "Oh, no you can't. He is sworn to complete secrecy, and I know he won't break that."

"Why not? How do you know?"

"Just trust me on this," I said mysteriously. "He won't tell you. And hopefully Harry won't, either...?"

He grinned and shook his head. "Honestly, it's fun being the only one in on the secret. I'll protect it for you."

I relaxed slightly. "Thanks." I turned to Ron and Hermione. "Well, there you have it. You're never finding out when my birthday is."

We were interrupted by the opening of our compartment door. I groaned as Malfoy and his goons swaggered in.

“Well, look who it is. Potty and the Weasel.” Malfoy turned his gaze toward Ron. “I heard your father finally got his hands on some gold this summer, Weasley. Did your mother die of shock?”

Ron jumped to his feet, knocking Crookshanks's basket to the floor. Professor Lupin stirred slightly, making Malfoy step back.

“Who’s that?” Draco asked, seeming somehow less confident all of a sudden.

"New teacher," I replied casually.

Harry rose to his feet beside Ron. “What were you saying, Malfoy?”

He shook his head and turned to Crabbe and Goyle. “C’mon."

Ron and Harry sat back down as they left.

Ron was still scowling, rightfully so. “I’m not going to take any crap from Malfoy this year. I mean it. If he makes one more crack about my family, I’m going to get hold of his head and-”

Hermione grabbed his arm and pointed at Professor Lupin, whispering, "Ron, be careful!"

He sighed and sat back against the seat, looking somewhat bothered by the fact that he hadn't gotten to punch anybody. As the sun began to sink, I left to change into my robes. I talked briefly to the twins and Archie on my way down to the end of the train, then disappeared behind a curtain to change.

I shoved my Muggle clothes into my bag quickly as I felt the train start to slow down. I didn't think we were actually that close to Hogwarts, but maybe I had missed something in my tired stupor. I couldn't believe I had managed to stay awake for the whole train ride; my level of alertness was rapidly crashing.

I started making my way down the hallway, watching as people's heads popped curiously out of compartments to see what was going on. I had nearly reached my own when was grabbed by both shoulders and yanked into someone else's compartment.

"Who in the- oh, hi, Percy. Hi, Cedric. What's going on?"

The Head Boy's face was pale. "I don't know. I'm going to go ask and see-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the whole train was plunged into darkness. I instinctively reached for Cedric's hand and squeezed it. He squeezed back, and moved to stand slightly in front of me.

The door to the compartment creaked open, revealing a massive cloaked figure. I gulped. I had only seen the creature in books before; in real life, the dementor was even more terrifying.

Cedric jumped backward, dragging Percy and me with him. The dementor reached forward with a rotting hand, and I gasped involuntarily, shutting my eyes and clinging to my brother.

I heard distant shouts, someone calling my name. I wanted to say I was alright, but I couldn't respond. I couldn't move. The cold froze everything within me.

Above the shouts, I heard a single word whispered. "Impossible." I heard a loud crack, and the cold began to fade.

"Lucy, Lucy, please, wake up."

I opened my eyes to see Cedric's face, drawn and pale and worried and desperate. "Ced?"

"Oh, thank Merlin," he said, pulling me up to his chest in a hug. "How are you feeling?"

"Cold," I admitted, my voice sounding fragile even to my own ears.

He laid a hand on my forehead. "You are. Let's get you something warm to drink-"

"She should go to Harry's compartment, like Professor Lupin said. We'll need to have another emergency prefects' meeting to discuss the dementors," Percy said. I glanced up to see him massaging his temples. He studied me through his horn-rimmed glasses. "Are you well enough to walk there, Lucy?"

I nodded, slowly rising to my feet. "How long was I...?"

"A couple of minutes," Cedric said, laying a hand on my shoulder to stabilize me. I hadn't realized I was swaying. "I'll make sure she gets there, then gather the rest of the prefects."

I clung to Cedric's arm as I stumbled down the hallway to the compartment. I was vaguely aware of everyone's stares and Cedric's quiet explanation as I collapsed in the seat next to Harry. Cedric disappeared down the hallway, and Hermione's face swam in my vision.

"She looks as bad as you, Harry," she murmured, placing a hand on my forehead. "Cedric said she fainted, too."

"Did anyone else?" I asked, shivering from the residual cold.

Hermione shook her head.

"It did get cold, though," Neville said, and I noticed for the first time that he and Ginny were in the compartment now as well. "It was horrible."

Ron hovered at Hermione's shoulder, looking from me to Harry. "It felt weird. Like I'd never be happy again."

Ginny whimpered, and Hermione rushed over to put her arm around her.

"But didn't any of you fall off your seats?" Harry asked.

"No," Ron said, "but Ginny was shaking like mad. Cedric said Lucy was standing, then she just went rigid and collapsed."

I felt a new shiver race down my spine. Harry glanced at me, and I saw just how pale he really was.

"Was it you who screamed?" he asked.

"No. At least, I don't think so."

"But you heard screams too, right?"

I shook my head. "No. Sorry."

His face grew more troubled, and he looked down at his hands, which seemed to be holding... chocolate?

Professor Lupin returned and smiled. "I haven't poisoned that chocolate, you know."

Harry reluctantly broke off a piece of the massive lump in his hand. He broke off a second piece and offered it to me.

"It actually helps," he said.

I accepted it from his shaking hand with my own shaking hand. "Thanks." Surely enough, a bit of warmth spread through my body as I chewed.

"We'll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes," Professor Lupin continued. "You alright, Harry? Lucy?"

"Fine," Harry mumbled as I nodded. Once Professor Lupin walked down the hallway, I released a trembling sigh. Out of curiosity, I glanced at the ring around my finger. Hermione's half was bright purple, a couple dots of blue swimming around. But my half, somehow, was nearly blank. If I squinted, I could see faint purple and blue hues, but it was as if the dementor had sucked all emotion from me. 

As if sensing how cold and empty and confused I felt, Crookshanks once again perched himself in my lap, resting his head on Harry's thigh. I lifted one of my hands, with no small amount of effort, and slowly stroked his back. Muttered conversations swirled around the compartment, but I focused what little energy I had left on the orange cat in my lap and on the boy next to me, whose cold hand grazed mine from time to time as he stroked Crookshanks too.

Harry and I stuck close together on our way to the thestral-drawn carriages, Hermione and Ron giving us long glances when they thought we weren't looking, as if expecting us to drop again in dead faints. They sat across from the two of us, this time not hiding the fact that they were watching our every little move for any sign of distress.

Just before the carriage took off, Fred and George flung themselves inside. 

"We're here to make sure Lucy makes it up to the castle without fainting, falling asleep on her feet, or otherwise incapacitating herself," Fred explained as he slid in next to Hermione.

"Cedric said he'd do it himself if he could," George added as he squeezed beside me and shut the door, "but Percy insisted he ride with him in a different carriage."

"I'm fine," I lied with a half-hearted smile. "Sorry my brother put you up to this. He worries too much."

Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but George beat her to it. "Are you kidding? We can't let our Cub incapacitate herself!"

I managed a laugh, unconvincing though it probably was. Fred immediately launched into a discussion about a prank product they had seen in Egypt, and I tried to pay attention, but as we passed through the front gates of the school, a fresh wave of cold flooded the carriage. Harry's hand shot out for mine, and I accepted it without second thought. I don't know who was comforting who. We didn't loosen our grip until we could breathe normally again, normally being a subjective term. 

Of course, the first person we saw climbing off was Draco Malfoy, looking like Christmas had come early.

“You fainted, Potter? Is Longbottorn telling the truth? You actually fainted?” he asked tauntingly.

“Shove off, Malfoy,” Ron grumbled.

“Did you faint as well, Weasley? Did the scary old dementor frighten you too, Weasley? Wow, Diggory, you look like you've seen a ghost! Now you know how everyone else feels who's seen your face.”

"Please leave us alone, Draco," I said as forcefully as I could manage, but he opened his mouth to say something else.

"Hey, she asked nicely," George said, jumping out of the carriage. "Leave her alone."

"Is there a problem?"

We all turned to see that Professor Lupin was approaching us, having just gotten out of his own carriage.

Draco looked him up and down and smirked. “Oh, no --- er --- _Professor_.”

"He's bullying professors now, too?" I asked bleakly as he marched Crabbe and Goyle up the steps. "What's he going to do next, try to kill Dumbledore?"

"I wish," Harry muttered in a voice only I could hear. "He'd never get away with it, so that'd be a life sentence to Azkaban, I reckon."

I snickered, and we started making our way to the Great Hall. Just before we entered the warm room, however, a voice made us stop in our tracks.

"Potter! Granger! Diggory! I want to see you three!"

All three of us whirled around to see Professor McGonagall calling over the crowd. We exchanged brief glances and began weaving through the crowd to her.

“There’s no need to look so worried, I just want a word in my office. Move along there, Weasleys!”

Ron and the twins watched with confused and concerned expressions as we walked away. I offered a shrug and turned to follow the others.

The only time I had been in Professor McGonagall's office was the year prior, after returning from the Chamber of Secrets. At the time, I had been covered in slime and blood, both mine and Harry's. I realized with a bit of amusement that I didn't feel much better the second time around. I was still covered in a thin sheen of cold sweat, and my head was spinning with exhaustion.

I sat between Harry and Hermione as Professor McGonagall sat behind her desk. She glanced from me to Harry. “Professor Lupin sent an owl ahead to say that you two were taken ill on the train.”

If I hadn't been so cold, I would have been blushing furiously. I glanced at Harry, whose cheeks were definitely beginning to turn pink.

“I’m fine, I don’t need anything,” he stammered, but Madam Pomfrey entered at that moment and swooped to his side.

“Oh, it’s you, is it? I suppose you’ve been doing something dangerous again?”

“It was a dementor, Poppy,” Professor McGonagall explained. "Miss Diggory fainted as well."

Madam Pomfrey studied my face as she felt Harry's forehead. "You can't catch a break, can you, child?"

I shrugged, not meeting Harry's questioning eyes.

Madam Pomfrey shook her head sadly and returned her attention to Harry. “Setting dementors around a school. They won’t be the last ones to collapse. Yes, he’s all clammy." She reached over and felt my forehead. "So is she. Terrible things, they are, and the effect they have on people who are already delicate-”

“I’m not delicate," Harry muttered, glancing at me. I refused to meet his eyes, but I smiled sheepishly.

"I don't think I'm delicate, but I _was_ sick the past few days."

Hermione's eyes widened in realization, and I shot her a warning look before she said something compromising.

Professor McGonagall seemed to have read the situation and asked, “What do they need? Bed rest? Should they perhaps spend tonight in the hospital wing?”

"Wouldn't be the first time," I said with a small laugh. "At least I'd be able to see the sunrise."

"I'm fine," Harry protested, and I met his eyes for the first time. I could tell he knew I was less fine than he seemed to be, and I looked away.

“Well, they should have some chocolate, at the very least,” Madam Pomfrey said, pressing her fingers to my wrist. 

“I’ve already had some. Professor Lupin gave me some. He gave it to all of us,” Harry said, clearly impatient now. "I'm alright."

Madam Pomfrey raised her eyebrows in approval. “Did he, now? So we’ve finally got a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who knows his remedies?”

I nodded. "I feel alright too, Madam Pomfrey. Just a little tired."

A small sigh escaped her lips. "I'd imagine so."

“Are you sure you feel all right, Potter? Diggory?”

Harry and I nodded, Harry a lot more emphatically than I.

“Very well. Kindly wait outside while I have a quick word with Miss Granger about her course schedule, then we can go down to the feast together.”

Once outside Professor McGonagall's office, I leaned back against the closest wall and closed my eyes.

"Are you sure you're okay, Lucy?" Harry asked, concern lacing his tone. "I mean, what was Madam Pomfrey talking about, you not being able to catch a break?"

"I'm alright," I said, opening my eyes and trying to offer a smile. "Don't worry about it." I stood up a little straighter. "I was serious about Hogsmeade if you were."

"Oh, I was completely serious. I'm not scared."

"Me neither. My parents' paranoia just makes me want to go all the more."

Harry spoke again after a brief moment of silence. "Where's the secret passage to Honeyduke's?"

"Third floor of the Turris Magnus. I'm too tired to remember the password, but I'll show you sometime." I couldn't help but laugh.

"What's so funny?" he asked with a grin.

"We both just had possibly the strangest experience of our lives, but here we are talking about Hogsmeade."

"Well, I was going to ask you something, actually. Before we got sidetracked."

"Sorry," I chuckled. "I was just thinking a Chocolate Frog sounds good right about now."

"Yeah, it does." His grin faltered. He crossed his arms and stared at the ground. "Lucy, if you didn't hear screams... what _did_ you hear?"

I adjusted my position on the wall, my smile fading as well. "Someone shouting my name. Maybe multiple people."

"Percy and Cedric?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so. I mean, I didn't hear Professor Lupin come to our compartment, but he apparently did."

"Are we losing our minds, Lu?"

"Maybe," I admitted with a shrug. "But maybe we're just tired."

He nodded. "You look tired. No offense."

"None taken."

Hermione emerged then, looking very pleased about whatever had just taken place. She and Harry headed down the corridor, but I lingered to talk to Professor McGonagall.

"Professor?" I asked tentatively.

"Yes?"

"Would it be alright if I headed up to my dormitory?"

"Of course," she said. "After the experience you and Potter have had tonight.... Well, are you sure you're not hungry?"

I shook my head. "I think I'd benefit most from as much sleep as possible."

"You would know best," she agreed. "The password is Fortuna Major. Will I see you in class tomorrow?"

I nodded. "You bet, Professor."

"Run along, now, before Miss Granger notices you're leaving and tries to follow."

I managed a grin. "Sure thing. See you in class tomorrow."

* * *

Hermione shook me awake the next morning. 

"Sorry to wake you, but you'll miss breakfast at this rate," she said.

I sat up and dragged my hand down my face. "I feel like I just blinked."

"Professor McGonagall told me to tell you it's alright if you miss her class today. We have Transfiguration second, so you'd only have to go to one class this morning."

"What's first?" I asked. "Wait, no, stop. Don't tempt me. I'm not missing the first day."

She sighed. "I had a feeling you'd say that. I don't know what's first, we need our schedules."

"What's gotten into you? Hermione Jean Granger, trying to convince me to miss class?"

"You really did scare us all last night. Harry too, but you especially."

"Sorry," I mumbled sheepishly. 

"Oh, don't be. It wasn't your fault. See you in the Great Hall?"

"I'll meet you down there," I said through a yawn. "Thanks for waking me up."

"Don't thank me. You still look exhausted."

"What else is new," I muttered, disappearing into the bathroom with my robes. I changed as quickly as I could and braided my hair with two taps of my wand. When I arrived in the Great Hall, I sat between George and Harry, who handed me my schedule.

"Sneaky trick you pulled last night, slipping off to your dormitory instead of coming to the feast," George commented. "Your poor brother thought Fred and I had failed in our task."

I groaned. "Sorry, I didn't even think of that. I was so tired-"

"Don't worry about it, Cub, I'm just giving you a hard time."

I glanced over at the Hufflepuff table and tried to catch Cedric's eye. 

"Allow me," George said, wadding up his schedule and lobbing it at my brother. It hit him square in the face, and he looked around for a second before his gaze landed on me.

"It wasn't me!" I called, holding my hands up in mock surrender.

"Just wanted you to see she was fine!" George said with a thumbs-up.

He chuckled. "Thanks." He tossed George's schedule back to him.

"What does your day look like, Lu?" Harry asked.

I held my own schedule up and scanned it. "Oh, I have Ancient Runes first. What do you have first, Harry?"

"Divination. I think we'll have everything else together, though, those are our only different classes."

At that moment, Hagrid entered the Great Hall with a dead polecat in one hand. He clapped me on the back with his free hand. "Good ter see yeh, Lucy! I was worried! Alrigh', Harry? Yer all in my firs’ ever lesson! Right after lunch! Bin up since five getting’ everthin’ ready… hope it’s okay… me, a teacher! Hones’ly!”

"Hagrid!" I exclaimed. "You're the Care of Magical Creatures professor?"

He beamed with pride. "Tha's right, yeh weren't here las' night! I am!"

"That's great! I'm so excited for you! Will you give me a hint about today's lesson?"

He shook his head, still smiling. "You'll see. I think it'll be a great firs' lesson fer everyone."

I smiled. "I can't wait!"

Hagrid gave one last dazzling smile before heading up to the staff table, still clutching the polecat.

“Wonder what he’s been getting ready?” Ron's voice was slightly nervous. He glanced around the Great Hall, which was beginning to empty. “We’d better go, look, Divination’s at the top of North Tower. It’ll take us ten minutes to get there.”

"See you three in Transfiguration," I said as they left, leaving me with the twins.

"Are you sure you're alright, Cub?" Fred asked, sliding across the empty spots on the bench so he was on my other side. "You definitely seemed more off than the rest of us last night."

I nodded. "I was sick a couple days ago. Couldn't have helped." I cleared my throat, trying to shift the spotlight away from me. "What do you two have first?"

"Charms with the Hufflepuffs, looks like," George said as he uncrumpled his schedule.

"I reckon that's your best subject, eh?"

"Flitwick's always been nicer to us than most teachers," Fred agreed. "Our natural charisma won him over from the start, I guess."

I laughed. "That, or the fact that you two are charms geniuses."

"Oh, we're _nothing_ compared to what some of the wizards in Egypt can do." Fred lowered his voice to a whisper. "You have no idea how advanced their pranks were. Our trip was very... inspirational."

I smiled. "You'll have to tell me all about it sometime. I should probably head to Ancient Runes, since it's a professor I haven't met yet."

"But you haven't eaten anything!" George protested.

I waved him off. "I'll eat at lunch. Bye!"

I found my way to the classroom quickly, and slid into an empty desk. I scanned the other students in the room; it appeared I was the only Gryffindor. I recognized a couple of the Hufflepuff students in the room. Ernie Macmillan and Justin Finch-Fletchley sat together, and Eloise Midgen and Hannah Abbott sat together behind them. Michael Corner and Terry Boot of Ravenclaw sat together, and four Ravenclaw girls settled themselves at the front of the room, already prepared to take notes.

I had just thought to myself how odd it was that there were no Slytherins when the door opened again to reveal three of them. Blaise Zabini and Daphne Greengrass took the last unoccupied desk, meaning...

"Excuse me, Professor?" Draco called loudly. "But do you have any more desks? I can't find a seat."

Professor Babbling, who had short brown hair and a gentle voice, peered over her desk at him with narrowed eyes. She scanned the room, her eyes landing on the seat next to me. "I see one right there, Mister...?"

"Malfoy, Professor." He smiled at her innocently, but when he turned to me, I could see the malice glittering in his eyes. I braced for the verbal blow that was inevitably coming. "As much as I'd love to work with Cedric Diggory's sister, I'm afraid I simply wouldn't be able to focus on my work, seeing her... face out of the corner of my eye all of the time. If I may repeat my question, do you have any more desks? I'd work better alone than with her."

Professor Babbling rose from her seat, and I realized she was taller than she appeared to be when she was sitting down. She smiled back at him, but there was no mistaking the steel in her voice for kindness when she replied. "It would seem you will have to learn how to make it work, Mr. Malfoy, just as she will have to learn to deal with sitting next to someone like you. If you'd like a different seat, I'd recommend coming to class a bit sooner. Please take a seat, Mr. Malfoy, so I can take roll and begin my class."

My face burned with embarrassment, but I couldn't help being impressed by the way Professor Babbling had handled the situation. Draco dropped heavily into the seat next to me, muttering something about his father, but I was still too stunned by the fact that Professor Babbling had actually stood up to him to hear anything past the roar of blood in my ears.

The rest of the period passed in a blur. Professor Babbling expressed several times how excited she was to have such a large class, considering the reputation her class had for being extremely difficult. She encouraged us to learn to ask our partners for help when we needed it, giving Draco another icy smile, and promised that she'd help however she could whenever we were struggling if our partners couldn't help, turning to me with a genuinely warm smile. As soon as the bell rang, Draco jumped from his seat and stalked from the classroom.

"Miss Diggory, may I have a word?" Professor Babbling called. "I won't make you late for your next class."

I approached her desk, ears burning. "I'm sorry about Draco. He doesn't like me very much, but I didn't expect him to cause a scene like that."

She laughed, but the sound was not unkind. " _You're_ apologizing to _me_ for _his_ behavior?"

I nodded, managing an embarrassed smile. "I guess so."

"No need. I just wanted to tell you how pleased I am to finally have you in my class. Your brother is one of the best students I've ever had, and the headmaster himself said you seem to have potential. I also wanted to apologize for the fact that your experience in my class had to start that way. I sincerely hope you'll enjoy yourself more from here on out."

"Cedric loves your class, and I know I will too," I said with a relieved giggle. "I'll try not to let Draco get under my skin. Thank you, Professor."

"Any time! Run off to class, now!"

I hurried through the hallway to Transfiguration and took the last seat in the classroom, in the back next to Harry.

"Hey, how was Divination?" I asked breathlessly.

"Not great," he muttered.

"What happened?"

Before he could answer my question, Professor McGonagall began the lesson, and I started scribbling notes on Animagi. It seemed I was the only one paying attention, though; people kept turning to glance at Harry, who stared straight ahead with a stony expression.

“Really, what has got into you all today?” Professor McGonagall asked after ten minutes of silence.

Everyone turned to look at Harry, and I wondered if he had fainted again.

Hermione raised her hand and said, “Please, Professor, we’ve just had our first Divination class, and we were reading the tea leaves, and-”

Professor McGonagall shook her head. “Ah, of course. There is no need to say any more, Miss Granger. Tell me, which of you will be dying this year?”

Harry sighed. "Me."

My jaw dropped. "What?"

Professor McGonagall gave me a small smile --- to me, she looked almost as if she were proud of me. "That's right. You're the only Gryffindor not taking Divination in this class." She took a deep breath and released it in a sigh. "Sybill Trelawney has predicted the death of one student a year since she arrived at this school. None of them has died yet. Seeing death omens is her favorite way of greeting a new class. Divination is one of the most imprecise branches of magic. I shall not conceal from you that I have very little patience with it. True Seers are very rare, and Professor Trelawney...” She sighed again. "In fact, I do believe it was your brother's death, Miss Diggory, she predicted two years back. As you can see, Cedric is alive and well to this day. And you look in excellent health to me, Potter, so you will excuse me if I don’t let you off homework today. I assure you that if you die, you need not hand it in.”

Hermione and I laughed at that, and Harry relaxed slightly. The lesson continued with a more attentive class, and we soon joined the rush to the Great Hall for lunch.

"I hope that Professor Trelawney hasn't changed your mind about Hogsmeade?" I asked Harry in a voice only he could hear. He smiled and shook his head. I smiled back. "Good."

For the first time I could remember, Ron didn't seem too hungry.

Hermione nudged food toward him. “Oh, Ron, cheer up. You heard what Professor McGonagall said.”

He lifted a fork with a shaking hand. “Harry, you haven’t seen a great black dog anywhere, have you?”

Harry stiffened slightly. “Yeah, I have. I saw one the night I left the Dursleys.”

The fork fell out of Ron's hand.

“Probably a stray,” Hermione reasoned.

“Hermione, if Harry’s seen a Grim, that’s... that’s bad! My... my uncle Bilius saw one and... and he died twenty-four hours later!”

“Coincidence."

“You don’t know what you’re talking about! Grims scare the living daylights out of most wizards!”

“There you are, then. They see the Grim and die of fright. The Grim’s not an omen, it’s the cause of death! And Harry’s still with us because he’s not stupid enough to see one and think, 'Right, well, I’d better kick the bucket then!'”

I busied myself with my stew, starting to feel hungry again, and Harry did the same, not wanting to get involved in their argument.

Hermione started reading her Arithmancy book. “I think Divination seems very woolly. A lot of guesswork, if you ask me.”

“There was nothing woolly about the Grim in that cup!”

“You didn’t seem quite so confident when you were telling Harry it was a sheep.”

“Professor Trelawney said you didn’t have the right aura! You just don’t like being bad at something for a change!”

“If being good at Divination means I have to pretend to see death omens in a lump of tea leaves, I’m not sure I’ll be studying it much longer! That lesson was absolute rubbish compared with my Arithmancy class!”

"What do you mean? You haven't even been to Arithmancy yet!"

She ignored him and flipped to the next page with an angry flourish. Harry and I exchanged a look before returning to our lunches.

We walked down to our next class in awkward silence, Harry and I wedging ourselves between Ron and Hermione, wordlessly reaching the conclusion that physical distance would be good for them. When we arrived, a very excited-looking Hagrid led us to a paddock just outside the Forbidden Forest.

“Everyone gather ‘round the fence here! That’s it, make sure yeh can see. Now, firs’ thing yeh’ll want ter do is open yer books-”

"How?"

I groaned at the sound of Draco's voice. I doubted Hagrid would stand up to him the way Professor Babbling had. After all, it was mostly the fault of Lucius Malfoy that Hagrid had been sent to Azkaban. Azkaban... I shivered at the thought of poor Hagrid completely surrounded by dementors. How had he done it?

I was jolted back to reality by Hagrid saying, "Eh?"

"How do we open our books?"

“Hasn’ anyone bin able ter open their books?” he asked in a sad voice.

I brought my book out, holding it in front of me. "You have to stroke them," I said.

"Yeah," he said, "yeah, like this." He grabbed Hermione's book and ripped the Spellotape off. He stroked the spine of the book, which fell open into his hands.

Malfoy cackled. “Oh, how _silly_ we’ve all been! We should have _stroked_ them! Why didn’t we guess!”

"You could have asked for help," I said in a small voice, looking at him meaningfully. He made a face and looked away.

“I... I thought they were funny,” Hagrid stammered.

“Oh, tremendously funny! Really witty, giving us books that try and rip our hands off!” Malfoy continued in his harsh tone.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry muttered.

Hagrid straightened up and tried to regain his stride. “Righ’ then, so... so yeh’ve got yer books an’… an’… now yeh need the Magical Creatures. Yeah. So I’ll go an’ get ‘em. Hang on…”

Malfoy still was not done. “God, this place is going to the dogs! Getting stuck next to Diggory in Ancient Runes, that oaf teaching classes, my father’ll have a fit when I tell him-”

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry said louder.

“Careful, Potter, there’s a dementor behind you, better use Diggory as bait, maybe they'll take one look at her face and-"

His tirade was cut short by the arrival of a dozen hippogriffs.

"They're _incredible!_ " I gasped.

Hagrid tethered the creatures to the fence and glanced at us with a wide smile. “Hippogriffs! Beau’iful, aren’ they?”

I nodded enthusiastically, coming closer to the fence, careful not to move too quickly so I didn't startle them.

“If anyone else wants ter come a bit nearer…”

A couple of reluctant people came up behind me, but I was still the closest.

“Now, firs’ thing yeh gotta know abou’ Hippogriffs is, they’re proud. Easily offended, Hippogriffs are. Don’t never insult one, ‘cause it might be the last thing yeh do. Yeh always wait fer the Hippogriff ter make the firs’ move. It’s polite, see? Yeh walk toward him, and yeh bow, an’ yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh’re allowed ter touch him. If he doesn’ bow, then get away from him sharpish, ‘cause those talons hurt.” He clapped his hands together. “Right! Who wants ter go first?”

I turned around to see the rest of the class back away. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were frozen in place, but at least they didn't back up.

I turned back around. "I'll go, Hagrid!"

He smiled. "Had a feelin' yeh might. Let’s see how yeh get on with Buckbeak.”

As I hopped over the fence, he untied the grey hippogriff. I positioned myself a safe distance away, excitement buzzing through me.

“Yeh’ve got eye contact, so try not ter blink. Hippogriffs don’ trust yeh if yeh blink too much."

I kept my eyes wide open. Buckbeak's eyes were a brilliant shade of orange, like the color of the sun just as it touches the horizon.

"Tha's it, tha's it," Hagrid murmured encouragingly. "Now bow."

I bowed deeply, counting to three before rising again. As soon as I did, Buckbeak dipped into a similar gesture, and Hagrid's entire face lit up.

“Well done, Lucy! I knew yeh would do it! Yeh can touch him! Pat his beak, go on!”

I eagerly reached forward and stroked his beak. He leaned into my touch and closed his eyes like he enjoyed it.

"D'yeh want ter ride him?" Hagrid asked.

I gasped. "You think I can?"

"On'y one way to find out!"

Hagrid grabbed me around the waist, since I was too short to reach the hippogriff's back on my own, and placed me just in front of his wings.

"Where should I hold on?" I called, but it was too late. Hagrid had nudged the hippogriff forward, and I was in the air.

I wrapped my arms around Buckbeak's neck, wobbling unsteadily to the beat of the wings. Buckbeak was no broomstick, but the feeling of the sun on my face and the sound of roaring wind in my ears made all of the emotional and physical exhaustion of the past 24 hours disappear in an instant.

The ride wasn't nearly long enough. Buckbeak landed with a thud, and I had to hold on tightly not to bounce off --- something told me falling off a hippogriff was a much worse experience than falling off a Jet Ski.

Hagrid beamed as I slid off of Buckbeak's back. “Good work, Lucy! Okay, who else wants a go?”

The rest of the class climbed carefully into the paddock, and I walked around helping people. However, I really should have been keeping an eye on Draco Malfoy.

I heard a shriek, followed by cries of, “I’m dying! I’m dying, look at me! It’s killed me!”

Hagrid rushed over and scooped Malfoy into his massive arms. “Yer not dyin’! Someone help me, gotta get him outta here!”

Hermione opened the gate as Hagrid raced up to the castle.

Archie was closest, so I walked up to him. "What happened?"

"The bloody idiot insulted Buckbeak," he said, kicking a rock. "I was just about to get mine to bow to me, too. Draco ruins everything."

The class silently streamed out of the paddock, but I remained frozen in place, horrified by what had just happened. Poor Hagrid...

"Are you coming, Lucy?" Harry asked.

I blinked. "What about the hippogriffs?"

"What about them?"

"I'm going to bring them back to the reserve," I said. "I'll meet you in History of Magic. Would you mind telling Professor Binns where I am, if I don't get to class in time?"

"Sure thing, Lu. I'll bring your bag."

"Thank you. See you in a bit."

He hopped over the fence, and I turned to the hippogriffs, carefully chaining each of them and leading them one by one to where Hagrid liked to keep them. I read every name tag and memorized every gleaming coat, wondering if this would be the last time I'd ever see them.

Archie was right. Draco _did_ ruin everything.

Guiding the hippogriffs back to their part of the reserve took far longer than I was expecting, and I was leading Buckbeak, the last one, when Hagrid returned.

He blinked in surprise. "You led them all back?"

I nodded. "Fireflutter didn't want to go, and Crownfeather nearly ripped my hand off, but they're all back except for Buckbeak."

"Thank you, Lucy," he said, still sounding surprised.

"Of course," I said with a shrug. "I just wanted to help, after... well, you know."

Hagrid sighed heavily. "I should've saved hippogriffs fer later. I almost did flobberworms, but I thought this would be more excitin' an' all..."

"It was! Oh, Hagrid, riding Buckbeak was incredible!"

"Yeh really think so?"

I nodded emphatically. "Really! What happened with Draco wasn't your fault. I heard that he insulted Buckbeak, which is why he attacked."

Hagrid looked crestfallen. "Bu' I _said_ not to do that... didn' I?"

"You definitely said not to, Hagrid. It's Draco's fault, not yours."

Buckbeak huffed, and I took the hint and started walking to where the other hippogriffs were. Hagrid followed in silence for a couple of minutes.

"Yeh know," he said slowly, "if yer thinkin' about a career with creatures, I'd love ter show yeh more of the reserve."

"You _would_?"

"I've never seen a hippogriff warm up ter someone so fast. And what I heard abou' yeh with Aragog las' year-"

"They tried to eat us! I thought I botched it."

"Come back with me sometime, an' maybe it'll go better."

I wasn't horribly convinced by the sound of "maybe," but I smiled nonetheless. "I'd love to, Hagrid. When can I start?"

He chuckled. "Whenever yeh wan' to. If yeh have a night with not much homework, or if Ron an' Hermione are at each other's necks, or somethin' like that. Yeh don' need a reason."

Hagrid was helping me slip Buckbeak's collar off of his neck when I spied a flash of black out of the corner of my eye.

I gasped and jumped back, the memory of the cold sending a shiver down my spine.

"'Smatter?" Hagrid asked.

I gulped. "Dementor. Why is it so close?"

It was hovering near the edge of the Forbidden Forest, floating over the trees.

"Dunno," he muttered. "Le's go to my hut, quick."

We hurriedly threw the collar to the ground and rushed to his hut, closing the door firmly behind us. I sank to the couch, cradling my head in my hands.

"Hagrid, how did you bear it?" I croaked. "One dementor was enough to make me faint last night, and make me feel sick for hours after. I... I can't even imagine..."

He didn't answer at first. "Dunno," he said after a minute. "But I don' ever wanna go back. I hope... well..."

I lifted my head when I heard a sloshing sound. He seemed to be pouring himself a drink that looked a lot like firewhisky. "You're afraid Draco just put you in danger of that again?"

He took a deep drink before answering. "Maybe."

"He'd never get away with it," I said as confidently as I could manage.

"Hope not," he replied. He sighed and looked out the window at the setting sun. "Yeh'd better head up to the castle. Wouldn' want yeh ter miss dinner. I don' see the dementor anymore." 

"Are you coming to dinner, Hagrid?"

He shook his head. "Don' want ter show my face."

"I understand," I said slowly, "but just know it's not your fault, okay?"

"Okay." He didn't seem convinced, but I had done the best I could.

I sprinted back up to the castle, terrified of seeing another dementor, and reached the Great Hall panting.

Ron and Hermione seemed to be talking again, so I joined them and Harry at the table.

"Did I miss anything in History of Magic?" I asked.

Harry shook his head. "Review of Wendelin the Weird. I turned your essay in for you, by the way. Here's your bag."

"Thank you. Did he notice I was gone?"

He grinned. "Doubt it. You're in the clear."

"How'd you get them all back?" Ron asked.

I shrugged. "One at a time. I just did what Hagrid did to get them out. Hagrid helped with the last one."

"Where is he now?" Hermione's voice was high and anxious.

"He stayed in his hut," I said. "He... seemed like he wanted to be alone."

"How is he?"

"Upset with himself. Afraid of going back to Azkaban. We saw a dementor while we were taking Buckbeak's collar off, and I think it scared him even more."

“That was a really bad thing to happen in Hagrid’s first class," Ron said bitterly.

“They wouldn’t fire him, would they?" Hermione asked.

“They’d better not." Ron sighed. "Well, you can't say it wasn't an interesting first day back."

I echoed his sigh. "Let's hope our next first classes are better."

Our first Charms class was fun, because we were learning the Full Body-Bind Curse. (Since Hermione and I already had it mastered, we had fun casting it at each other and undoing it quickly to see if we could stay on our feet.) Herbology was fun too, because we finally got to see the Mandrakes in their final form.

As expected, our first Potions class was a nightmare. Draco returned to classes halfway through the lesson, complaining far too much about his heavily-bandaged arm and making Harry and Ron cut his daisy roots and skin his shrivelfigs and slice his caterpillars. Hermione and I then lost Gryffindor five points each for helping Neville with his potion after Professor Snape threatened to feed it to Trevor.

Defense Against the Dark Arts, however, proved itself to be an interesting class from the beginning.

My curiosity piqued when Professor Lupin entered the classroom saying, “Good afternoon! Would you please put all your books back in your bags. Today’s will be a practical lesson. You will need only your wands.”

I was sitting next to Ron that day, who muttered, "I swear to Merlin, if he pulls out a cage full of pixies..."

I giggled quietly, then stood to follow Professor Lupin out of the room.

Around the corner, Peeves was stuffing chewing gum into the keyhole of the door to one of Filch's broom closets.

When the poltergeist saw Professor Lupin, he sang mockingly, "Loony, loopy Lupin!" over and over again.

Professor Lupin smiled cordially. "I'd take that gum out of the keyhole if I were you, Peeves. Mr. Filch won't be able to get to his brooms."

Peeves blew a raspberry in response. Professor Lupin sighed, and turned to us.

"This is a useful little spell. Please watch closely." Pointing his wand at the keyhole, Professor Lupin exclaimed, "Waddiwasi!"

The gum shot down Peeves's left nostril in a matter of seconds. I couldn't help but laugh, making a mental note to ask the twins later if they knew that spell. 

"Cool, sir!" Dean exclaimed.

"Thank you, Dean. Shall we proceed?"

We followed Professor Lupin into the staffroom, where Professor Snape was lounging in an armchair. Professor Lupin started to close the door, but Professor Snape rose to his feet.

"Leave it open, Lupin, I'd rather not witness this. Probably no one's told you, but Neville Longbottom is in this class. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult, unless Miss Granger and Miss Diggory are whispering instructions in his ear."

My face grew hot. "He's the best Herbology student in the class!" I hissed to Professor Lupin. 

"I was hoping Neville would assist with the first stage of the operation, and I am sure he will perform admirably," Professor Lupin replied calmly. Snape smirked and left.

Professor Lupin led us to the back of the room, where the wardrobe where Harry, Ron, and I had hidden in the year prior was waiting. As we approached, it lurched forward, making us all jump back.

“Nothing to worry about, nothing to worry about. There’s a boggart in there.”

I felt my stomach drop to my toes. _No no no no no..._

Professor Lupin launched into his explanation with a smile. “Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces. Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, the cupboards under sinks, I’ve even met one that had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday afternoon, and I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third years some practice. So, the first question we must ask ourselves is, what _is_ a boggart?”

Hermione answered first. “It’s a shape-shifter. It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most.”

“Couldn’t have put it better myself! So the boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears. This means that we have a huge advantage over the boggart before we begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?”

“Er... because there are so many of us, it won’t know what shape it should be?”

“Precisely! It’s always best to have company when you’re dealing with a boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a boggart make that very mistake; tried to frighten two people at once and turned himself into half a slug. Not remotely frightening! The charm that repels a boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a boggart is _laughter_. What you need to do is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing. We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please: riddikulus!”

"Riddikulus!" the class echoed.

“Good, very good! But that was the easy part, I’m afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough. And this is where you come in, Neville.”

He took a reluctant step forward.

“Right, Neville, first things first: what would you say is the thing that frightens you most in the world?”

"Professor Snape," he whispered, his voice almost inaudible.

Nearly everyone laughed, but I was horrified. Neville's greatest fear was a professor? I knew Snape was bad, but... this was a new level. I swore to myself then and there that I'd stand up for him in Potions every chance I got.

Professor Lupin didn't laugh, either. “Professor Snape… hmmm… Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?”

“Er, yes, but I don’t want the boggart to turn into her either.”

Professor Lupin smiled. “No, no, you misunderstand me. I wonder, could you tell us what sort of clothes your grandmother usually wears?”

“Well… always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top. And a long dress --- green, normally --- and sometimes a fox-fur scarf.”

“And a handbag?”

“A big red one.”

“Right then! Can you picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind’s eye?”

He nodded.

“When the boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape. And you will raise your wand, and cry ‘riddikulus,’ and concentrate hard on your grandmother’s clothes. If all goes well, Professor Boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, and that green dress, with that big red handbag.”

The whole class howled with laughter, making the wardrobe shake violently.

“If Neville is successful, the boggart is likely to shift his attention to each of us in turn. I would like all of you to take a moment now to think of the thing that scares you most, and imagine how you might force it to look comical.”

A number of horrific images immediately sprung to mind. Truly, my greatest fear was the knowledge of what I could do when I was a werewolf, but the last thing I wanted to do was expose myself that way. I thought then of drowning, but like Cedric had said to the Weasleys, how was a boggart supposed to take that form? The most tangible fear I had would be a dementor, but how did you make that less scary?

I envied Ron, who whispered, “Take its legs off.” I wished my greatest fear was something other than myself. I wished my fears had such an easy answer. But to eliminate my fear would be to eliminate myself, and... well...

“Everyone ready?” Professor Lupin asked.

I was very much not ready, but the whole class nodded, so he turned to Neville.

“Neville, we’re going to back away to let you have a clear field, alright? I’ll call the next person forward. Everyone back, now, so Neville can get a clear shot!”

We retreated back to the walls, and I glanced at Harry. He looked as unprepared as I felt, staring straight ahead and not meeting my eyes. I looked forward too and watched as Neville pushed his sleeves up.

Professor Snape lunged out of the wardrobe, bearing quickly down on Neville. With a crack, he was suddenly wearing the exact clothes Neville had described as being his grandmother's typical outfit. The class laughed, and Parvati was called forward, then Seamus, then Dean, then Ron, then Lavender, then me.

I stepped forward, wand at the ready, but the boggart was completely baffled by me. 

It first took the form of a werewolf, small and covered in wiry brown hair. I realized with horror that it was me. But before I could manage to squeak "Riddikulus," the wolf yelped and changed into what I immediately recognized as Cedric's dead body, clearly mauled by some type of animal --- I knew from the claw marks across his face that it had been a werewolf that had killed him. It shifted again, to a massive dementor that drifted toward me.

"No!" I gasped, forcing the boggart to take the shape of the werewolf again. "Riddikulus!"

With a crack, the me-wolf became a puppy, spinning in a circle and yipping. The class laughed, and I staggered backward in relief.

Professor Lupin stepped in front of me, and the boggart changed to a full moon.

With a crack, the moon became a cockroach, and Professor Lupin called, “Forward, Neville, and finish him off!”

The boggart again assumed the shape of Professor Snape, and with a crack was once again wearing Neville's grandmother's clothes. Everyone behind me laughed heartily, and the boggart exploded into wisps of smoke and disappeared.

“Excellent! Excellent, Neville. Well done, everyone! Let me see, five points to Gryffindor for every person to tackle the boggart, and ten for Neville because he did it twice, and five each to Hermione and Harry.”

“But I didn’t do anything,” Harry said slowly.

“You and Hermione answered my questions correctly at the start of the class, Harry. Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on boggarts and summarize it for me, to be handed in on Monday. That will be all.”

I slipped out of the classroom quickly, ducking through the crowd. I started running as soon as my feet hit grass, and I didn't stop until I was safely at the top of the Quidditch Pitch. I sat down to catch my breath and rested my head in my hands, the images of everything the boggart had become flashing through my mind.

I had never seen myself in werewolf form, except for the occasional reflection I glimpsed in puddles, but there was no doubt that it was me. The fur was the same color as my hair. I hoped against hope that nobody else had noticed that.

I figured there was a good chance of that, given how quickly it had switched to Cedric. Oh Cedric... truly, my worst fear was somehow killing him while in werewolf form. I trembled at the memory. It was too much to take.

But if that was my worst fear, why the dementor? Was the dementor just my most recent fear? And if it was just a boggart, why had I started feeling cold and clammy all over again? 

I sat there for a long time, trying to force the events of the afternoon to make any kind of sense, but nothing came.

I was so lost in thought, I didn't hear someone coming up the stairs until they sat down next to me.

"So I guess neither Diggory is very fond of boggarts."

I huffed a laugh and glanced at my brother out of the corner of my eye. "I guess not. How'd you hear?"

"Fred and George overheard Harry ask Hermione if you were in the dormitory. She apparently snapped at him that it wasn't her job to know where you were every second of every day, which surprised him enough to ask the twins if they had seen you. They asked why you went missing in the first place, and he said something about a boggart, so they found me right away and said it sounded like an older brother situation."

I rested my head against Cedric's shoulder. "Sounds about right."

"They didn't say anything about what the boggart actually _was_. What happened?"

I sighed shakily. "That's just the thing. I don't really know. It changed."

"Changed?"

I explained as best I could, pausing from time to time when Cedric reminded me to breathe. 

"It all happened so fast," I said in a choked whisper. "They probably didn't say anything because I doubt anyone really saw what happened. Except for Professor Lupin, maybe. Oh!" I sat up straight as puzzle pieces clicked into place. "Sleeping on the train, a full moon boggart. Ced, he's a werewolf, too!"

He nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense to me."

"Should I tell him? Do you think he already knows? I mean, well, my boggart _was_ me, _as_ a werewolf, meaning a full moon is there somewhere, but it wasn't the full moon. Should it be the full moon? Am I broken for having three different boggarts?"

"Breathe, Lu," Cedric said. "It's alright. You're not broken. Anxious, maybe, but not broken."

I drew a deep breath and released it in yet another shaky sigh. "I guess so." I paused. "Oh, Cedric, can I ask a random question? It's been bothering me for a couple of days but I've been forgetting to ask."

"Go for it."

"Why were you and Percy alone in a compartment on the train ride here?"

"Oh, that," he said with an embarrassed laugh. "I asked him for advice. Being a new prefect and all, I thought maybe the Head Boy was a good person to ask. We were just about to leave when you walked by outside, and it was kind of funny, we both just reached forward and grabbed you without talking about it."

"Older brother instincts," I said immediately. "Definitely older brother instincts."

"Yeah, sounds about right," he chuckled. "Well, are you feeling any better?"

I nodded reluctantly. "A little. Thanks for talking to me. I like being here with you. After how much time we got to spend together this summer, I've missed you even more than usual here."

He grinned. "Don't worry, Lu. I'm not going anywhere. The boggart was just trying to scare you."

"Well, it succeeded."

He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me close to him. "Try not to let it bother you. See? I'm right here."

I buried my face in his chest and nodded, closing my eyes tightly and enjoying the warmth of his sweater in the brisk September breeze. "Right here," I repeated, letting the images from the afternoon fade from my mind.


	38. Garden of Shadows

_Come little children  
I'll take thee away,  
Into a land of enchantment  
Come little children  
The time's come to play  
Here in my garden of shadows_

_"Come Little Children"  
Erutan_

* * *

LUCY:

September's full moon was beautifully and blessedly simple. Sure, I still felt horrible before and after, but the peace of mind I felt knowing that I'd spend the night sound asleep and comfortable in the Room of Requirement was a tremendous weight off my shoulders. Cedric had volunteered for prefect patrol duty that night, and he timed his route so he'd be able to pick me up at dawn. I headed to the common room, having no need for a wideye potion, and Cedric noticed with a delighted laugh that I almost had a spring in my step.

Hermione was sprawled across a potions essay in the common room, snoring softly. I knew she was taking a lot of classes, too many, hence why I had gotten her a planner for her birthday. Surely enough, I could see a corner of the purple book poking out from underneath her parchment. I woke her up gently before heading up to get ready for the day.

Classes had settled into a predictable routine. Defense Against the Dark Arts would include a discussion about a new creature every week; I was still dreading the werewolf chapter, but I consoled myself with the fact that it was at the back of the book and that I still had six months or so before we'd reach it.

Hagrid seemed to have lost his enthusiasm after the Draco incident, so we spent our Care of Magical Creatures classes working with the incredibly dull flobberworms. I didn't mind that much, though, because every Saturday after early morning Quidditch practice, I would help Hagrid by going around the magical creatures reserve and feeding all of the creatures. I learned that chimeras preferred their steaks still bloody, but that fire crabs preferred to burn their food before eating it. I grew especially fond of the porlocks in the pasture, who always rushed over to greet me with an affectionate rub of their furry heads against my legs. My Care of Magical Creatures education had never been better.

The only class I hated was Ancient Runes. I felt horrible; I loved Professor Babbling, and I really wanted to love her class too. I got perfect marks on every piece of homework and on every single exam, but Draco Malfoy seemed determined to make that class a living hell for me in every way he could. Despite my promise to Professor Babbling that I wouldn't let him get under my skin, he was an expert at making cutting comments I simply couldn't ignore.

"So Cedric's a prefect now, isn't he?" he asked one day while Professor Babbling told us to talk with our partners to discuss mistakes on our homework. Mine, of course, was perfect, but to my chagrin, Draco's was nearly always perfect too. With nothing to discuss, Draco saw this time as the perfect opportunity to tear me down.

No matter what he said, I swore to myself that I'd never let him _see_ how much he upset me. As I braced for whatever was coming, I kept my voice level and cool and as polite as I could manage. "Yes, he is."

"You think Dumbledore will make you prefect?"

I shrugged.

"You honestly don't know?"

"A lot can happen in two years," I replied noncommittally.

"You know why I think he never would?"

"Why?"

"Because the sight of your face would frighten the first-years. Prefects are supposed to show the school in a positive light, you know. Can't have you running around, scaring innocent children. I mean, can you imagine how horrified someone would be if they saw you patrolling the halls at night? Spooky! I mean, it's like you and Cedric aren't even related."

I gave him a thin smile. "You can just admit you have a crush on my brother. I know the whole school thinks he's handsome."

He looked stunned for a second, a flash of red brightening his cheeks, but he quickly composed himself and grinned. "Oh, it takes much more than just good looks, which you obviously don't have, to be prefect. Isn't Cedric top of his class?"

I stiffened. He had struck a nerve. I had to fight harder to keep my voice emotionless. "Yeah, he is."

"Are you?"

I bit my lip. "I know you already know the answer to that question."

"Where are you in the class ranks? Second to last? I mean, you're in this class, so you're obviously not as dumb as Longbottom at least-"

"Neville's not dumb," I snapped. I took a deep breath to calm myself. _Don't let him get a rise out of you, don't let him get a rise out of you..._

He snorted. "If you think Neville Longbottom has an inkling of intelligence, you're even dumber than he is."

"I know for a fact he performed top of the class in Herbology last year," I replied.

"Yeah, plants. Great. You only think that class matters because of your mother."

"What does she have to do with any of this?"

"Such a shame she turned down the offer of Head Auror just to take care of you," he said with a pretend-sad shake of his head. "I bet she regrets it now."

I clenched my jaw. "How do you-"

He leaned back in his chair and adjusted his bandaged arm. "Father tells me everything that goes on in the Ministry. He makes it his business to-"

"To know everyone else's?" I hissed.

He either missed the anger in my tone or elected to ignore it. He smiled. "Exactly."

Draco was seemingly satisfied with how much grief he had given me that day, so he went silent and left me to my thoughts. I pretended to read ahead in our textbook, but my mind was whirling.

Mum had been a very successful Auror. The hours were good, the pay was good, and she was happy. But when Patricia Rakepick became a problem, her days got longer and more dangerous, and when Cedric headed to Hogwarts, she said she wanted to take up a career in Herbology. Gardening had always been her escape, and a number of vacancies had opened up in that field. Desperate to make her stay, the Ministry had offered her the position of Head Auror, but she refused, citing taking care of me as a reason to spend most of her days working from home. Obviously, no one knew I was a werewolf, but she argued that with Rakepick on the run, she didn't want to leave a nine-year-old girl home alone all day.

She never talked about her days as an Auror. She never _told_ us that she missed it, but we all knew that she missed the adventure, the adrenaline. She did love magical plants, but it just wasn't the same. But I never really wondered if she regretted her decision.

Was I worth that?

As the bell rang, Draco let one last verbal blow fly.

"What's it like being the inferior Diggory?"

I clenched my jaw and walked quickly to Transfiguration, eager to get as far away from Malfoy as I could. Harry and Ron arrived the same time as I did.

"Where's Hermione?" I asked.

Ron whirled around. "She was right behind us!"

Just as he said the words, she rounded the corner, out of breath and clutching her very-full bag to her chest.

"I'm not late, am I?" She sounded dazed and frantic.

"No, it's okay," I replied. "I just asked the boys where you were."

"You were right behind us," Ron said indignantly. "Where did you go?"

"Oh, nowhere," she said, pushing past us to get into the classroom.

"What is she hiding?" Ron muttered in my ear.

"I don't know," I replied.

He shook his head and stomped off to take a seat next to her. Harry and I slid into a nearby desk and started getting our books out.

"You reckon Ron's been bored while we're at Quidditch practice?" I wondered aloud.

"You mean with Hermione working constantly?"

I nodded.

Harry chuckled. "He _does_ have Scabbers for company, at least."

Professor McGonagall began the lesson at that moment, and for the rest of the period, I actually forgot about Draco's words. Harry and I made quiet jokes the whole time we transfigured cats into cauldrons and back again, and I went to lunch feeling so much better. I kept my distance from Malfoy in Care of Magical Creatures by intentionally partnering myself with Harry, Archie, and Cam, who happened to be three of his least favorite people to be around. But in our next Ancient Runes class, he went right back to tormenting me.

"My hand is cramping," Draco whined. "These bandages make it nearly impossible to write. Will you take notes for me today, Lucy? I mean, it was _your_ hippogriff that inflicted such a ghastly injury."

I nodded and slid his parchment over to my half of the desk without a word. I hated the thought of being his slave, even just for a period, but I hoped that if I did this, it would pacify him to an extent. I hoped wrong.

"You're left-handed?" he asked.

I nodded again.

"Wow, you're even more of a freak than I realized."

I kept my mouth shut and copied my notes onto his.

"Cat got your tongue today, Scars? Or do you just know I'm right?"

I weighed my words carefully before speaking. "I was just thinking... you know, speaking of scars," I said slowly, "it's amazing that your arm hasn't healed yet." I set my quill down and rolled up the right sleeve of my robe. "Madam Pomfrey healed all of these cuts in a little over a week. They cover every single centimeter of my body, and now they're just little white marks. But your arm..." I tugged the sleeve back over my wrist and shook my head sadly. "You must be weaker than I am, for it to still be causing you so much pain."

"I am not," he hissed, snatching the parchment back. "I can take my own bloody notes."

"If you're sure," I said with a shrug. "Just let me know if you want help."

He snorted derisively and started writing again. "Yeah, right," he muttered.

I bit my lip to keep from smiling. I was still enjoying my little victory that night as I wrapped Cedric's gift, a cribbage board in honor of our summer in Tahoe.

"Ooh, is that for your brother?" Parvati asked.

I grinned. "Yeah, it is. Do you still have a crush on him?"

She and Lavender giggled, exchanging a glance.

"Well, I do still think he's handsome," she said.

"He's gorgeous!" Lavender gushed. "Definitely! But she has her eyes on someone more... attainable."

"Ooh, ooh, who?" I asked, hurriedly tying the bow and hopping onto Lavender's bed across from them.

She turned a bright red. "Well, I've been studying with my sister and her friends, and..."

"Terry Boot!" Lavender exclaimed. "I mean, have you seen the way he smiles? Have you seen the way he smiles at _her_?"

I giggled. "I'll take your word for it. What about you, Lavender?"

She pouted. "The boy I fancy is never by himself. It's not fair! I have to watch Parvati and Terry flirting in the corner of the library by themselves, but every time I try to flirt with Seamus, Dean is always right behind him, just laughing at everything I say!"

"That's rough," I said sympathetically. "They _are_ rather inseparable, aren't they?"

"They are!" She dropped her voice to a whisper. "Come on, Lucy, your turn. Who do you fancy?"

I felt my cheeks begin to burn. "Oh, I... I don't know."

"Ooh, she's turning red!" Parvati squealed. "Who is it? Come on, you can tell us!"

"What? No! I don't-" I giggled, trying to stop blushing so furiously. "I don't fancy anybody."

"Alright, that's fine," Lavender said vaguely. "We'll just have to figure out who it is for ourselves."

"No!" I yelped. "Honestly! I don't fancy anybody!"

"Maybe not yet," Parvati replied, "but we'll be the first to know when you do, right?"

I nodded, relieved. "Sure."

Lavender sighed. "I'm sure you fancy somebody. At least a little bit."

"I don't honestly think so," I said, feeling a pinprick of sorrow beginning to blossom in my chest. I smiled. "Well, I should probably shower and head to bed, since Cedric's gift is done. And Lavender, I think I overheard Ron challenging Seamus to a game of wizard's chess, so now might be a good time to try to flirt."

She and Parvati giggled and hurried out of the room. I let my smile fade as I grabbed my pajamas and disappeared into the shower.

I had told the truth. I didn't fancy anybody. But I didn't want to admit why. Not to them. Not even to myself.

Brandon Richardson was attractive. I had seen him without a shirt a fair amount of the time I was in Tahoe, and I had to admit that his tanned Beater body was muscular. I liked the way his eyes sparkled when he laughed, and the way his short black hair stood up when it was wet. But I didn't let myself have a crush on him.

With a face that would frighten first years, it seemed only logical that my face would frighten away anybody who might otherwise love me, too.

As the water washed over my body, I thought back to what I had told Draco. I _was_ covered from head to toe in small white lines. They had faded slightly with time, but they would always be a part of me, in addition to whatever new scars I happened to acquire over the years.

When I got out of the shower, I studied my reflection in the mirror. My hair now reached quite a bit past my shoulders, but it was still thin and shapeless, especially when it was wet. And my eyes... oh, how I wished for Cedric's grey eyes still.

I tore myself away from the mirror and shuffled off to the dormitory. I climbed into bed and cast a silencing charm on the curtains that surrounded me. I had gotten into a habit of doing that my first year, when my nightmares first started waking the others up. After the dementor on the train, I had taken up the habit again, just in case. I dropped off into sleep that was, thankfully, free of any dreams, nightmares or otherwise.

* * *

Harry and I had agreed to let Hermione and Ron go alone to Hogsmeade the first time, to make sure it was in fact possible for us to be there without being spotted, so we woke up early on Halloween morning (rather, _he_ woke up early --- Halloween was also the night of the full moon, so I never even went to sleep) and headed to the Quidditch Pitch.

"You know, I've actually grown to love Wood's early morning practices," Harry commented.

"Me too," I admitted. "I love being up before everyone else, and getting to see Hogwarts so..."

"Still?"

I smiled. "Yeah. That's a good word for it."

"I can't wait for our first match- Oh! Wait! It's next week, isn't it?"

"Oh, yeah, it's Saturday! Let's hope this match goes better than last year's first match."

Harry laughed. "Well, I don't see how it can be any worse."

Harry and I stayed on the Pitch for hours, only stopping because of how hungry we were. After lunch, Harry and I were at a loss for what to do. Neither of us wanted to head up to the common room, but we didn't really feel like going to the library to do work, either. I was feeling worse and worse as the day wore on, but I tried to be as upbeat as possible for Harry's sake. I knew that not being at Hogsmeade was eating at him. We wandered the castle aimlessly, trying to think of something to do.

"Hello there!" called a portrait of a girl with a parasol and a white dress.

"Hi," I replied with a smile. 

"You're that sleepwalking girl, are you not?"

I blushed furiously as Harry doubled over with laughter. I swatted his arm and turned back to the portrait.

"I am," I admitted. "Have we met?"

"We have now. I don't believe you've wandered down this corridor before."

"I'm sorry, I'll try to add it to my routine," I replied, making her giggle and Harry laugh even harder.

"You're a legend, Lu," Harry said between bouts of laughter as the girl in the portrait hurried away to the next portrait over and pointed at me.

I giggled a bit. "So it would seem."

"Harry? Lucy?"

Professor Lupin's head was poking out of his classroom door. “What are you doing? Where are Ron and Hermione?”

"Hogsmeade," Harry replied, trying to sound casual. "We've been trying to think of something to do other than homework."

"In that case, why don't you two come in? I’ve just taken delivery of a grindylow for our next lesson."

"A grindylow?" I repeated. "Wow!"

"What's a grindylow?" Harry asked as we followed Professor Lupin into his classroom. Surely enough, a moderately large grindylow was pressing its face to the glass of its tank in the corner, leering at us all.

“Water demon. We shouldn’t have much difficulty with him, not after the kappas. The trick is to break his grip. You notice the abnormally long fingers? Strong, but very brittle.”

I held my hand up to the glass for reference, making Harry laugh. "Your hands are so small in comparison."

I shrugged. "Big enough for Quaffles and Golden Snitches, and that's all I care about."

Professor Lupin laughed. “Cup of tea? I was just thinking of making one.”

"Alright," Harry agreed with a shrug.

But my stomach was beginning to churn with pre-full-moon anxiety. I doubted I could keep anything down. How was Professor Lupin doing it? "I'm alright, but thank you."

Professor Lupin studied me for a split second before tapping his tea kettle and drawing a tea bag from a tin. “Go ahead and take seats. I’ve only got teabags, I’m afraid, but I daresay you’ve had enough of tea leaves, Harry?”

“How did you know about that?” Harry asked, smiling slightly when he saw the knowing look on Professor Lupin's face.

He handed Harry the tea cup. “Professor McGonagall told me. You’re not worried, are you?”

Harry shook his head, his smile fading. "No."

I looked from Harry to Professor Lupin, then back to Harry. He might not have been worried about the Grim, but he was very obviously thinking of something else.

“Anything worrying you, Harry?” Professor Lupin asked.

“No... well, yes. You know that day we fought the boggart?”

"Yes?"

“Why didn’t you let me fight it?”

“I would have thought that was obvious, Harry,” Professor Lupin replied, raising his eyebrows.

“Why?” Harry asked again.

“Well, I assumed that if the boggart faced you, it would assume the shape of Lord Voldemort." He paused and studied Harry, who was looking rather surprised. "Clearly, I was wrong, but I didn’t think it a good idea for Lord Voldemort to materialize in the staffroom. I imagined that people would panic.”

I cracked a smile. Harry looked as if puzzle pieces were clicking into place in his mind. “I didn’t think of Voldemort. I... I remembered those dementors.”

"Then I brought one out," I said softly. "Sorry, Harry, I didn't think about it affecting you, too."

"Not your fault," he replied. "I know you couldn't have been happy to see it, either."

Professor Lupin turned to me. "You, Lucy, did something that day I've never seen. I still must admit I don't understand how you managed it."

I cocked my head. "What do you mean, Professor?"

"Well, I have never seen someone's boggart change forms the way yours did, first of all. Did you do that on purpose?"

I shook my head fiercely. "Not at all. Not at first, anyway. I just... couldn't decide on my greatest fear, I suppose. But when I saw the dementor..." I shuddered. "I don't remember what I did, but I guess I changed it somehow, to the-" I stopped myself, wanting to navigate carefully. I realized with bitter humor that Harry was the only person in the room that wasn't a werewolf. "I realized that puppies weren't all that frightening, whereas the dementor very much was, so I focused on that and it changed."

Professor Lupin was about to say something else, but a knock at the door distracted all three of us. "Come in," he said.

Professor Snape entered, carrying something that was unmistakably wolfsbane. I swallowed back the instinctive bile that crawled up my throat at the thought of it.

Professor Lupin smiled. “Ah, Severus. Thanks very much. Could you leave it here on the desk for me?”

Snape's eyes darted between Harry and Professor Lupin and me, obviously confused.

“I was just showing Harry and Lucy my grindylow,” Professor Lupin explained pleasantly.

“Fascinating. You should drink that directly, Lupin.”

“Yes, yes, I will."

“I made an entire cauldronful, if you need more.” Snape's eyes turned to me, and I silently begged him not to say anything about me, and to my relief, he didn't.

“I should probably have some again tomorrow. Thanks very much, Severus.”

"Not at all." Snape's eyes flickered once more around the three of us, then he swept out of the room.

Harry turned toward the goblet, looking terribly curious. I very determinedly focused on the grindylow, trying to hold my breath so I couldn't smell it.

“Professor Snape has very kindly concocted a potion for me. I have never been much of a potion-brewer and this one is particularly complex. Pity sugar makes it useless,” he said as he took a sip.

“Why...?"

“I’ve been feeling a bit off-color. This potion is the only thing that helps. I am very lucky to be working alongside Professor Snape; there aren’t many wizards who are up to making it.”

Harry considered this for a moment, glancing briefly at me. I offered a weak shrug. He looked back at the goblet suspiciously.

“Professor Snape’s very interested in the Dark Arts,” Harry said suddenly.

“Really?”

I tried not to gawk at how casually he was sipping the awful potion.

“Some people reckon... some people reckon he’d do anything to get the Defense Against the Dark Arts job.”

He downed the last of the potion bravely, wincing as he set the empty goblet down. “Disgusting. Well, you two, I’d better get back to work for a bit before the feast begins. See you there?"

Harry and I nodded. Part of me wanted to stay and talk to Professor Lupin longer, but if he was already drinking wolfsbane, I needed to leave. And soon.

Harry brightened considerably when he saw that the sun was beginning to set outside.

"They must be back now," he said cheerfully. "Let's go see if they're in the Great Hall."

I swallowed hard. "Actually, I-I don't feel that great. You head down without me."

He turned to me, his smile slowly giving way to an expression of concern. "What's wrong?"

"I-" I was drawing a blank. I'd never really had someone ask before. "I don't know. I just feel hot."

He reached forward and laid a gentle hand on my forehead. "Oh yeah, you're burning up. I'll go to the Hospital Wing with you."

I shook my head. "It's okay, Harry, really-"

"Lucy, it's right on the way. C'mon, let's go."

I couldn't protest, because he grabbed my shoulder and steered me in the direction of the Hospital Wing. I felt my cheeks grow even hotter at his touch, but I pushed the thought to the back of my mind and scrambled to find some kind of explanation for him.

Before I could say a word, however, he dropped his hand and looked at me.

"Is this what happened over summer, too?"

I nodded. I wanted to tell as much of the truth as I could.

He bit his lip. "And you don't know what it is?"

"Not really," I said in a soft voice.

"Fred and George told me once that you just get stressed and need to cool down from time to time," he said, "but if it happened even over summer-"

"Wait, what?" I squeaked.

"Oh, don't worry, I know now that's not it. I just wish I knew what it was so I could help."

I opened and closed my mouth without saying anything. Fred and George? Did they know? No, they couldn't have known, Cedric never would have told them. But they had the Marauder's Map, and they weren't stupid...

Harry glanced at me again. "Are you sure it's just a fever? You look queasy."

I swallowed and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "I promise I'm not contagious," I said, forcing a smile. "Cedric took care of me over summer, and he didn't get sick once."

"I'm not worried about _that_ , I'm worried about _you_ , Lu."

"I'm sure I'll be fine in the morning," I said as we slowed to a stop in front of the Hospital Wing door. I swallowed again, trying to ignore the fluttering in my stomach. "Thanks for walking with me. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"If you're not at breakfast, I'll come say hi before class. Try not to wander off, alright?"

I laughed, a genuine laugh. "Trust me, the last thing I need right now is the Forbidden Forest. Hopefully I don't get any ideas while I'm asleep."

He grinned. "Better not. Bye, Lu."

I waited until he turned a corner, then I spun on my heel and sprinted up to the seventh floor, cursing myself for letting it get so late. I launched myself up the last few steps and sprinted toward where the familiar doorknob always was, but it wasn't there.

I looked around wildly, making sure I was in the right place. Surely enough, Barnabas the Barmy was beaming at me, but the door wasn't there.

Anxious tears rose to my eyes. Tonight of all nights, I didn't have time for this.

I turned on my heel again and hurtled myself down the stairs. I didn't have time to get to the Shrieking Shack. I just needed to get to the Forbidden Forest.

With my ears as sharp as they were, mere minutes away from the full moon, I was able to choose the least crowded hallways. I burst outside and immediately kicked it up a notch, sprinting toward the Forbidden Forest with all I was worth.

I reached the forest just in time. I hadn't gone ten steps into the trees before the pain began. I was too out of breath even to scream as the first moonbeam struck me right between the eyes.

* * *

_At 9:00 PM, Lucy was running deeper into the forest, following the scent of rabbits. She didn't know who she was or where she was or even really what she was doing, so all things considered, she was feeling better than she had been a couple hours prior._

_At 9:00 PM, Harry was still enjoying the Halloween feast. He helped himself to a pumpkin pasty and laughed as Ron very confidently bit into a dirt-flavored jelly bean that Fred had sworn was chocolate. His eyes wandered to the hole between Fred and George that was always occupied by Lucy, and he wondered if she was feeling any better._

  
_At 11:00 PM, Lucy had settled on the edge of a clearing, tired of running, and was just about to close her eyes when a mournful howl pierced the quiet Halloween night. But it wasn't a werewolf; she would have known if it was. This was the howl of a dog._

_At 11:00 PM, Harry jumped out of his sleeping bag, rushing over and tapping the tall Hufflepuff prefect on the shoulder, hoping it was Cedric. "Lucy was in the Hospital Wing. Did someone make sure she's okay?" It was in fact Cedric, and his face grew paler in the moonlight even though he nodded. "She should be okay."_

  
_At 1:00 AM, a man stepped into the clearing. Lucy's eyes snapped open, and she lunged toward him with a snarl. The man leaped back. "Remus! Don't! It's me!" When the wolf still snapped at his legs, the man held his hands up. "I know you take wolfsbane now, so you know who I am. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, but I can explain, please let me explain." Lucy lunged at him again, but the man sidestepped, not even trying to attack. "Y-You're not Remus. At least, not the Remus I knew and loved." He sighed. "I suppose I'm not really myself anymore, either." Lucy jumped again, this time reaching for his throat, but the man had disappeared into the darkness of the trees._

_At 1:00 AM, Harry rolled onto his side and saw that Hermione was still awake, too. He was surprised to see tears sparkling in her eyes. He asked what was wrong, and she swiped at her eyes before lying, "I'm just scared, Harry." He suspected there was more behind her tears than that, but he didn't push her further. She inched closer to him, and he closed his eyes, though he knew sleep was still far away._

  
_At 3:00 AM, Lucy had still not seen the man again. She was about to give up the hunt and go to sleep for what was left of the night when a massive black dog stepped in front of her. She cowered backward, unsure of what this new beast had in store for her. When it began to twitch, she turned and ran with her tail between her legs._

_At 3:00 AM, Harry was still awake, but feigning sleep. He could hear a whispered conversation taking place a few paces away from him._

_“Headmaster? The whole of the third floor has been searched. He’s not there. And Filch has done the dungeons; nothing there either.”_   
_“What about the Astronomy tower? Professor Trelawney’s room? The Owlery?”  
“All searched."  
“Very well, Severus. I didn’t really expect Black to linger.”  
“Have you any theory as to how he got in, Professor?”  
“Many, Severus, each of them as unlikely as the next.”  
“You remember the conversation we had, Headmaster, just before the start of term?”  
“I do, Severus."  
“It seems almost impossible that Black could have entered the school without inside help. I did express my concerns when you appointed-”  
“I do not believe a single person inside this castle would have helped Black enter it." _

  
_At 5:00 AM, Lucy still had not gotten a wink of sleep. She was still running around the forest, terrified of coming across the massive dog again. It had followed her on and off for the past two hours, but every time it had tried to corner her, she had gotten away. But this time, the dog caught her by surprise. It jumped in front of her and growled in frustration. Having had enough, the werewolf attacked. It was faster, but the dog was stronger; much stronger. The dog knocked the werewolf unconscious with a single well-placed blow to the back of her head, and the werewolf crumpled to the ground._

_At 5:00 AM, Harry had finally fallen asleep, but his dreams were far from peaceful. A massive black dog, a Grim, raced back and forth in front of him like a shadow. He tossed and turned in his sleeping bag fitfully, and Ron and Hermione, both awakened by his jerky motions, exchanged a concerned look, silently debating whether or not to wake him up._

* * *

When I opened my eyes, I was on the edge of the Forbidden Forest closest to Hagrid's hut. I massaged my aching temples, trying to remember how I had gotten there. I froze when I remembered the night's events.

The man in the forest was Sirius Black. And the dog was the Grim.

My first thought was of Cedric, who was probably checking the Room of Requirement for me at that exact moment. My second thought was of Harry, who was in terrible danger with Sirius Black so close. I pushed myself to my feet and began to run in the direction of the castle as quickly as my shaky legs would allow.

Cedric was just leaving the castle as I rushed toward it. His shoulders relaxed in relief when he saw me, and I launched myself at him, nearly knocking him over with the ferocity of my hug.

A rapid flow of words tumbled from my mouth. "The room didn't open for me so I had to run all the way to the Forbidden Forest. I'm so sorry, I probably scared you half to death."

"You did, but it's okay, I'm just glad you're okay." He tried to push me away to see if I had any noticeable cuts or bruises, but I locked my grip around him even tighter. "Lucy, what's wrong, what happened? Are you alright?"

"Cedric, I know it sounds crazy, but... but I saw... he was in the... I..."

"Lucy, breathe." Cedric gently but firmly grabbed my shoulders and pried me off of him. I took a deep breath and released it in a shaky sigh. "It's okay. What did you see in the woods?"

"I-" My voice cracked, but I cleared my throat and tried again. "I saw Sirius Black last night, we need to warn Harry that he's so close to the castle!"

Cedric sighed heavily. "He already knows."

I staggered backwards. "What?"

"Not about you," Cedric corrected quickly, "don't worry. But he knows Sirius Black is close because he tried to break into the Gryffindor common room last night."

My hands flew to my face. "Oh my- is everyone okay?"

Cedric nodded. "No one was hurt. Everyone's okay." He pulled me back into a hug and held me close. "If you don't need to go to the Hospital Wing right away, Lucy, we need to tell someone what you saw. Professor McGonagall's office is closest."

"Okay. I'm alright, let's go." My voice trembled, but I tried to steady myself as Cedric and I navigated the dark corridors. When Cedric knocked, the door opened to reveal a very careworn-looking Professor McGonagall.

Her tired eyes widened at the sight of us. "Cedric? Lucy? What's the matter?"

"Lucy saw Sirius Black in the Forbidden Forest last night," Cedric said in his best prefect voice. "Your office was closest, and I thought a teacher needed to know."

She nodded, opening her door and ushering me inside. "Take a seat, please, Miss Diggory. Mr. Diggory...?"

"I'm sorry to have to leave, Professor, but I ought to head back to the Great Hall before everyone wakes up," my brother said apologetically.

"The Great Hall?" I echoed, confused.

"Everyone slept there after word spread of Sirius," Cedric explained. "Just as an extra safety measure."

I nodded, feeling numb. After the night I'd experienced --- the night everyone had experienced, apparently --- I wasn't surprised.

"Go on then, Mr. Diggory. Your sister is in good hands." Professor McGonagall sent a cup of tea flying onto her desk with a flick of her wand and shut her door after Cedric left in the same motion. "When you're ready, Lucy, please tell me as much as you can about what happened last night. I trust Cedric already informed you of the break-in?"

I nodded, gripping the tea cup with shaking hands. I managed a couple of sips before I had to set it back down. I drew a deep breath.

"He kept trying to talk to me, as if he recognized me. I think..." I swallowed hard, looking away from her intense gaze before continuing. "I think he thought I was somebody else," I finished, staring at my shoes. "I kept trying to attack him, because I... well, it's instinct, I wasn't myself..."

"I understand," she said, in such a gentle voice I glanced up at her from my shoes. "It's alright. Did he attempt to attack you?"

I shook my head. "No. He didn't. Maybe I frightened him," I added in a small voice.

"It's more likely he has no wand," she said, "which is good for us all to know. If he had been in possession of a wand, he likely would have been more confident attacking you. But we can all be very glad that he did not attack you, wandless or otherwise."

I managed a small smile. "I guess."

"Is that all, Miss Diggory? How long was the encounter?"

"I think that's all... it was no more than a minute," I said with a shake of my head, "assuming I remember everything."

"What you have been able to remember will be very helpful moving forward. Thank you for sharing what you learned. I can't even begin to imagine how you must be feeling right now."

I managed another small smile. "To be quite frank, Professor, I'm just hoping Harry's alright. Do you know how he's doing?"

"You can ask him yourself," she replied. "Everyone should be waking up soon."

I nodded. "Alright. Thank you for the tea, Professor."

"Thank you for the information, Miss Diggory. I will pass it along to the headmaster immediately." I rose and started to head toward the door, but as I laid my hand on the door handle, Professor McGonagall called after me. "And Lucy, dear? Please try to get some sleep today. You look like you need it."

"Will do, Professor," I replied with a smile, stepping out into the hall and closing her door gently behind me. I made my way to the Hospital Wing quickly, knowing Harry would surely come looking for me soon enough. I downed my wideye potion in two swallows and assured Madam Pomfrey I was alright. I hadn't gone three steps before I saw Harry leaving the Great Hall.

"Harry," I gasped, running toward him and jumping up to throw my arms around his neck. "I heard about Sirius Black breaking into the castle last night. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," he replied, holding me tightly for a couple of seconds before setting me back on my feet. "How about you? How are you feeling?"

I laughed. "Harry, _you're_ asking _me_ if _I'm_ okay?" He made no reply, so I smiled as best I could. "Yes, I am."

"Feeling better?"

"Just a bit tired," I admitted. "Do we still have classes today? Wait, never mind, of course we do."

"Wishful thinking," he teased. "So I take it you're feeling well enough to go to classes?"

I nodded. Truthfully, I would have welcomed the chance to stay in bed all day after the night's events, but I couldn't.

I needed to talk to Professor Lupin. What a shame that DADA was last that day.

Sirius Black was all anybody could talk about in all of my other classes. I kept my mouth shut, knowing there was no way to explain what I had seen in the Forbidden Forest. Saying I was sleepwalking wouldn't cut it; there was no way Sirius Black would have let a human live. And I didn't want to tell anybody else what he had told me, not even Professor McGonagall or Professor Dumbledore or Hermione or Cedric, until I had talked to Professor Lupin. 

He must have been the Remus that Sirius was looking for. The Remus he claimed to have once known and loved. 

I needed to talk to Professor Lupin. But when I got to DADA, he wasn't there.

Professor Snape stood in his place, looking rather smug about it.

"Good afternoon, class," he said with an oily, self-satisfied smile. "Take a seat. We have much to cover today in Professor Lupin's absence."

Harry remained standing, thoroughly confused. “Where’s Professor Lupin?”

“He says he is feeling too ill to teach today." Ah. I realized he must have had a rough full moon, even with the wolfsbane. "I believe I told you to sit down?”

“What’s wrong with him?”

I held my breath as Snape considered what to say. Surely, he wouldn't dare tell the truth... right? “Nothing life-threatening. Five more points from Gryffindor, and if I have to ask you to sit down again, it will be fifty.”

Harry dropped into the seat next to me, looking equal parts baffled and concerned.

"He wouldn't have poisoned Lupin right in front of us," I whispered, but Harry still looked worried.

Snape sighed. "Professor Lupin has not left any record of the topics you have covered so far."

Hermione sat up straighter. “Please, sir, we’ve done boggarts, red Caps, kappas, and grindylows, and we’re just about to start-”

“Be quiet. I did not ask for information. I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin’s lack of organization.”

Anger surged through me. I clenched my hand into a fist around my quill.

“He’s the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we’ve ever had," Dean said, and the class nodded in emphatic agreement.

“You are easily satisfied. Lupin is hardly overtaxing you. I would expect first years to be able to deal with red caps and grindylows. Today we shall discuss... werewolves."

It was suddenly impossible to breathe. 

Hermione nearly jumped out of her seat. “But, sir, we’re not supposed to do werewolves yet, we’re due to start hinkypunks-”

“Miss Granger, I was under the impression that I am teaching this lesson, not you. And I am telling you all to turn to page 394. All of you! Now!”

I opened my book with a shaking hand, hazarding a glance at the mood ring on my finger. Both halves were messes of scarlet and purple --- anger and fear. Hermione looked at me out of the corner of her eye, mouthing, "You okay?" I shrugged ever so slightly and returned my attention to the front of the room, trying to force away the emotions burning in the pit of my stomach.

“Which of you can tell me how we distinguish between the werewolf and the true wolf?” Snape asked.

Hermione raised her hand tentatively. I continued to hold my breath.

But Snape ignored Hermione's hand. “Anyone? Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn’t even taught you the basic distinction between-”

“We told you, we haven’t got as far as werewolves yet," Parvati piped up. "We’re still on-”

"Silence!" We all sat back slightly at his harshness. He smirked. “Well, well, well, I never thought I’d meet a third-year class who wouldn’t even recognize a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make a point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are.”

Hermione couldn't take it anymore. “Please, sir, the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf-”

“That is the second time you have spoken out of turn, Miss Granger. Five more points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know-it-all.”

I opened my mouth to defend her as she lowered her head, tears glittering in her eyes, but Ron, who was sitting right next to her, beat me to it. “You asked us a question and she knows the answer!" he yelled, glancing from her face to Snape incredulously, his own face red with anger. "Why ask if you don’t want to be told?”

Snape slowly approached Ron, and bent down so close their noses were almost touching. “Detention, Weasley. And if I ever hear you criticize the way I teach a class again, you will be very sorry indeed.”

I clenched my hand so hard around my quill it snapped in half. Harry glanced at me, a surprised half-smile on his face. He nodded slightly, as if he were egging me on.

When I realized what he was getting at, I reached into my bag to grab another quill, and my hand grazed the note we had passed all those months ago in Lockhart's class. I stealthily pulled it out and slid it onto Harry's lap beneath the desk when Snape's back was turned.

His smile widened when he read the note, and he nodded in Snape's direction. "He deserves it," he mouthed.

I nodded, but I found it hard to be angry anymore. Seeing Harry impressed, amused by my anger rather than afraid of it made me feel better, somehow. I glanced at the note briefly before tucking it back into my bag, where I had kept it all this time. 

_I pity the poor soul who receives your full unbridled anger one day._

_I pity them too. Don't worry, I don't plan on exploding at anyone._

_Unless they deserve it?_

The rest of the class period was spent in silence as we took notes on werewolves. I had to stop periodically and take a silent deep breath to calm myself. It seemed so obvious to me that Professor Lupin was a werewolf; I hoped that nobody else would see the signs and that this horrible lesson would be forgotten as soon as the period ended. However, my hopes were mercilessly squashed as the bell rang.

“You will each write an essay, to be handed in to me, on the ways you recognize and kill werewolves. I want two rolls of parchment on the subject, and I want them by Monday morning. It is time somebody took this class in hand. Weasley, stay behind, we need to arrange your detention.”

With that, the class was finally over. But I sat in my chair, frozen. Recognize and _kill_?

"Yeah, I can't believe he gave us homework either," Harry remarked, getting up and tossing his bag over his shoulder. 

I blinked hard, trying to snap myself out of it. "Yeah. That's not cool." I rose to my feet and grabbed my bag. I felt like I was drowning. I couldn't breathe. I needed to get out of that room.

Hermione came to my rescue, as always. "Come to the bathroom with me, Lucy?" It was more of a statement than a question, and she gripped my elbow so tightly it felt like a padlock.

I nodded, glancing once more at Professor Snape with horror before leaving the classroom. The expression on his face was unreadable, except for a slight upward turn at the corner of his mouth.

"Meet you in the Great Hall, Harry," Hermione said, practically dragging me from the room and not stopping until we were safely in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, ignoring the OUT OF ORDER sign on the door.

I leaned my back against the wall and sank to the floor, cradling my head in my hands. Myrtle's mournful sobs echoed around the tiles, and I thought for a second I might join her. 

Hermione knelt in front of me. "Are you alright?"

"Are you?" I asked weakly.

"Lucy, everyone calls me a know-it-all except for you and Harry," she said with a humorless laugh. "I'm used to it by now."

"And I thought I was used to..." My voice trailed off. "I mean, everyone _should_ know how to kill... for their own safety... but I never thought..."

Hermione sat beside me and rested her head against my shoulder. "I doubt anyone will actually write the essay, Lucy. He's not our real teacher, he can't give us homework."

"But what if Professor Lupin doesn't..." I swallowed my words, forcing the thought away.

"He will. You're never ill for very long, Lucy, I'm sure he'll be back soon. Besides, he can take wolfsbane, and you can't. That must be what Snape gave him yesterday, no?"

I nodded. "It was." I sighed shakily. "You're right. I'm probably worried over nothing."

"Are you ready to head to dinner?"

I managed a nod. 

"You don't look terribly convinced."

"I'm not terribly hungry, but I need to be more careful now that... well, just in case people do actually write the essay. I need to act as normal as possible as much as possible. Besides, being around people just makes me feel better," I added with a shrug, remembering how Harry had taken my anger from 100 to 0 just with a single amused look. He had a unique way of making me feel better.

"Alright," she relented, and we pushed ourselves to our feet. "Let's go see how our boys are holding up."

I grinned. "Our boys?"

She nodded and shrugged. "I mean, they are."

I laughed. "If you say so, Mione. I like the sound of that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So... what did you all think? I really hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to comment your thoughts down below! Is Draco being too mean, or does he have a point? Will Lucy ever actually let herself have a crush on somebody? Why was the Room of Requirement closed? What will Lucy say when Professor Lupin's back? Will Harry be the next person to figure out Lucy's secret? 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! I love you all!


	39. Nothing But the Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I don't want to talk at the end, so instead I'll tell you now I hope you enjoy this chapter! Please leave your thoughts down below... you might have quite a lot to say.)

LUCY:

"You excited to be playing your brother in the morning, Cub?" George asked.

I groaned and tossed my Ancient Runes textbook onto the table. "Draco Malfoy is the biggest pansy I've ever met, which is ironic considering there's a girl named Pansy in his house. He asked me to take his notes today because he claimed his arm was hurting too badly to write. He's milking this for all it's worth. Watch, it'll be miraculously healed come Sunday."

"It'll be miraculously healed as soon as we flatten Hufflepuff," Fred chuckled. "Because we _will_ flatten them, right, Harry?"

Harry glanced out the window just as a massive lightning bolt forked across the sky. "I can't help but think Cedric's size will help in this weather. He's less likely to be blown off course than me."

Angelina giggled nearby. Fred turned to her with one eyebrow raised. "What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing," she lied, glancing at Alicia and bursting into laughter. I felt my face growing red. It was _definitely_ about my brother.

"Looks like you'll be carrying the team tomorrow goal-scoring-wise, Cub," George teased. "Your fellow Chasers will be too busy drooling over the new Hufflepuff captain to even think about the Quaffle."

Fred clapped his hand to his forehead. "Oh, so _that's_ why they made a fifth-year captain! They're hoping everyone on the opposing team will swoon before the match!"

"Oh, shut _up_ ," I giggled, my face turning red. "This is so weird. How would you feel if everyone in the school was obsessed with Charlie?"

"Oh, they were," George said, "but he was a lot like your brother. He didn't have eyes for a single one."

I bit my lip. Cedric _did_ have eyes for one girl, but I was (obviously) sworn to secrecy. "He didn't?" I asked instead, fighting to keep the focus on Charlie and off of Cedric.

"Not at all," Fred replied. "Charlie just likes dragons, his family, and a couple of close friends. Nothing more, nothing less. He's a simple man, and sure fun to be around."

I nodded thoughtfully. "I'll have to talk to him more next time he's at your house. I mean, I like dragons, too."

"Boom, instant friendship," George laughed. "That's pretty much all it takes."

"Hey, Lucy?" came a soft voice from behind me.

I turned around to see an uncharacteristically-shy Ginny. "Hi, Ginny, what's up?"

"Can I talk to you?" she asked, looking around. "If you're not busy?"

"Oh, of course," I replied, immediately jumping off the couch and swooping up my textbook. "I can't focus on homework anyway with my teammates all crushing on my brother. Gross."

She managed a small laugh. "Okay."

I followed her up to her dormitory, which was empty except for us. She flopped onto her bed with a frustrated sigh.

"What's the matter?" I asked, perching myself on the corner of her bed.

She lifted her face off the bed and twisted her head to look at me out of the corner of her eye. She sighed again, this time with more resignation than irritation. "Well..." She pushed herself to a sitting position, playing with the corner of her quilt instead of meeting my eyes. "My parents said I should find a person to talk to instead of a diary. Which makes sense, considering... well, you know. And they thought you were a good person for that, and Percy agreed. Sorry if that's weird, I-"

I nodded. "No, it's okay. I understand. I'm happy to be that person for you." I sat up straighter and reached for my Ancient Runes textbook, holding up an imaginary quill and pretending to take notes. "So, what seems to be the trouble, Ginevra?"

She giggled. "Trust me, you don't want to take notes about this."

"No notes, then!" I declared, dramatically tossing the book aside. I rested my chin on my hands and leaned forward. "Just two listening ears."

"That's all I need," she said, her voice growing more serious. "Lucy, I..." She hesitated for a few seconds, biting her lower lip.

"You can just tell me whatever it is," I said, reaching forward to lay my hands on top of hers. "Honest. It's okay."

"I just feel like nobody likes me," she said rapidly, as if she were scared of chickening out if she said it any slower. "I feel like everybody is scared of me after what happened last year and I don't know how to make it better."

"Oh, Gin, come here." I pulled her into a hug, and she cried into my chest.

"I know I messed up, Lucy, but I thought-"

"You didn't mess up," I said firmly. "What happened last year isn't your fault. It's Voldemort's and no one else's. I'm just sorry you got caught up in it in the first place."

"That's what Mum always says," she cried, "but that doesn't change the fact that everybody thinks I'm... I'm..."

She burst into fresh sobs, and I stroked her hair gently. "Just let it out," I murmured. "I'm right here. It's okay."

"Colin Creevey has more friends than I do," she whimpered after a couple of minutes. "And Lucy, he's _boring_. He only wants to talk about pictures. He takes them all the time, and just talks about how he wants to develop them, and I thought maybe I was more interesting, but then yesterday everyone spent the day with him in the common room and I was by myself and no one noticed-"

"Ginny! You were by yourself all day?"

She sniffled and nodded. "I didn't want to look at his pictures, so I left, but nobody followed me. I would have found you, but I knew you were in Hogsmeade with everyone else-"

"Ginny, Harry and I stayed here. His form isn't signed, and my parents don't want me going to Hogsmeade until they catch Sirius Black."

"Really?"

I nodded. "Really. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I thought... well, rather, I _didn't_ think you'd be alone. But I'll make it up to you. How about you and I head to the Quidditch Pitch on the next Hogsmeade day?"

"What about Harry?"

"Can you keep a secret?"

She managed a watery laugh. "I kept the diary a secret all last year, Lucy. Yes, I can keep a secret."

I leaned closer to her and lowered my voice to a whisper. "Then just between you and me, Harry wants to try to sneak to Hogsmeade next time. I'm too scared of getting caught to try, but he doesn't know that, so spending the day with you is the perfect cover story." I sat up and spoke in a normal voice again. "So what do you say? Want to hang out together on the Pitch next time everyone else goes to Hogsmeade?"

Ginny nodded, wiping her nose and hiccuping. "That would be fun."

"And in the meantime... well, I have an idea for how to find you some better friends starting tomorrow. Sound good?"

She nodded. "Yes, please."

I reached for a scrap of parchment on her bed and summoned a quill. I drew a rough sketch of the Quidditch Pitch and marked part of it with an X. "Here, you'll find my friends Archie and Cam, and a bunch of their Hufflepuff friends. If you tell them I sent you, I'm sure they'd love to watch the game with you."

"Are they your age?" she asked apprehensively.

I nodded. 

"Wouldn't they not want to be seen with a younger kid like me?"

"Ginny, they'll love you. But I'm guessing you'd want some friends your own age, too?"

She nodded. "I don't like not having a partner in classes," she admitted softly.

"Your friends aren't limited to your house, Ginny. I mean, Archie and Cam are some of my favorite people, and they're in Slytherin! And they're best friends with the Hufflepuffs! And one of my roommates has a crush on a Ravenclaw! That's the beauty of Hogwarts, Gin, you can be friends with anyone if you want to be, even if they're not in your house. It sounds like the Gryffindors in your year aren't quite your speed, so it's okay to reach out and find people who are, whatever house they're in."

She took a deep breath. "I think I can do that."

"I know you can," I assured her. "You're Ginny Weasley, the sister of a curse breaker and a dragon tamer and a Head Boy and legendary pranksters and-"

"And Ron?"

I laughed. "And the best chess player in Hogwarts history," I finished. "C'mon, give him more credit."

She smiled. "Okay, okay. I will." She threw her arms around my neck. "Thank you, Lucy. I'll try all of those things."

"Good. Let me know how it goes, yeah?"

"I will," she said with a nod.

I pushed myself up from her bed. "If you're feeling better, I should probably try to get some sleep before the big match tomorrow."

The dormitory was flushed with a blue light, followed by a crack of thunder that made the window panes rattle.

Ginny laughed. "Good luck with that! What a storm!"

"What a storm," I agreed, taking the stairs two at a time to reach my dormitory. I showered quickly and jumped into bed, casting as many silencing charms as I could. I added a muffling charm to my own ears for good measure, and I was sound asleep in no time.

* * *

The thunderstorm seemed to set my entire team on edge, but I found it hard to be nervous. I was excited to redeem Quidditch for myself, after my first match as Chaser had been ruined by Lockhart blinding me and my second match had been cancelled because of Hermione being petrified. I headed down to breakfast with a definite spring in my step.

A flash of lightning illuminated the ceiling, and the subsequent boom of thunder made the whole team jump.

Oliver gulped uncertainly, looking around at all of us. “It’s going to be a tough one,” he said nervously.

Alicia shook her head. “Stop worrying, Oliver, we don’t mind a bit of rain.”

"You should eat, mate," George said, trying to nudge the basket of toast closer to Oliver's plate, but our captain shook his head. George and I exchanged a concerned look.

I shrugged. "We can't make him eat if he's not hungry."

Fred nudged Oliver. "Just a bit of rain, Wood. We've practiced in worse than this."

"Not since last year!" Oliver protested. Another thunderclap shook the Great Hall, and Oliver turned even paler. We ate the rest of the meal in silence, not wanting to upset our troubled captain even further.

I changed in my locker again and took a seat between Harry and George for Oliver's pre-match speech, but it never came. Every time he tried to talk, a strange squeak escaped his mouth instead. He looked at Harry. "Catch the Snitch as fast as you can." He looked at us Chasers. "Score as many goals as you can." He looked at the twins. "Keep the Bludgers away from everyone, they could kill us in this weather." He gulped. "Alright, let's go."

I fell into step next to Harry. 

"Hey, try to stay on your broom this time," I teased him, trying to lighten the mood.

He grinned. "Try not to take another Bludger to the face."

I rolled my eyes. "Touché. Be careful, Harry."

"You too, Lu."

We stepped into the rain, which drenched us in a matter of seconds. Cedric smiled at Wood as he shook his hand, but Wood looked rather constipated and only nodded. I hazarded a glance at Angelina and Alicia, rolling my eyes again when I saw their starstruck expressions. I smiled at Cedric and flashed him a thumbs up.

"Good luck," I mouthed.

"You too," he replied with a cheerful grin.

We mounted our brooms, and with Madam Hooch's whistle, took off into the sky. I was the first to the Quaffle, but it slipped out of my gloved hands immediately and into the waiting arms of the Hufflepuff below me. I swore under my breath and chased after her, Angelina on my tail. A particularly rough gust of wind knocked her off course, sending the Quaffle flying again. I tried to lunge for it, but I was caught up in the same draft and forced suddenly upward. Another curse escaped my mouth as I fought for control, and I heard nearby laughter as Fred knocked a Bludger away from me.

"Hang in there, Cub!" he shouted over the rain, taking off again as the Bludger began to chase Alicia, who had caught the Quaffle and was heavy enough to sustain the battering wind.

I streaked after Alicia as she flew off toward Henry, trying to knock one of the Hufflepuff Chasers out of the way. But I was easily overpowered by the bigger Hufflepuff player, so I ducked beneath Alicia and held my hands out in front of me in case the Quaffle fell. I wasn't a moment too soon --- the Quaffle slipped from her hands and dropped into my arms. I held onto my broom with only my legs as I shot up toward the goal hoop, holding onto the ball for dear life. I lobbed it at Henry as hard as I could, but it slipped at the last second and flew ten feet too far to the right. He knocked it out of the way easily, and I groaned as a Hufflepuff player caught it.

As the game continued, I tried to stay a level lower than everybody else, always ready to catch the Quaffle when it inevitably slipped or was knocked out of the hands of whoever was above me. I was far too small and lightweight to compete with the wind, and with the rain being too thick to even distinguish red robes from yellow robes, I was secretly terrified of accidentally throwing the Quaffle to Angelina or Alicia, only for it to be a Hufflepuff Chaser. But when the Quaffle dropped into my hands, I managed to score a goal nearly every time. I was still too fast on my Nimbus 2001 for anyone to compete, and all of my hours spent throwing a football over summer paid off --- my aim was impeccable as long as my fingers didn't slip.

I had just scored my seventh goal when a bolt of lightning illuminated the sky in a ghostly glow. Madam Hooch's whistle rang out, and we splashed down into the mud and crowded under an umbrella.

"What's the score?" Harry asked, wiping his rain-flecked glasses on his soaked robes.

Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose.“We’re fifty points up, largely thanks to Lucy, but unless we get the Snitch soon, we’ll be playing into the night.”

“I’ve got no chance with these on!" Harry complained, waving his glasses around.

At that moment, Hermione burst into the center of our huddle, beaming. "Harry, give me your glasses, quick! I have an idea!"

He handed them to her without question.

She tapped his glasses with her wand. "Impervius!" She thrust Harry's glasses back into his hands. “There! They’ll repel water!”

Oliver's smile matched Hermione's. "Brilliant! Okay, team, let's go for it!"

I kicked into the sky with renewed vigor, trying to ignore how heavy my drenched robes felt and how my entire body was numb with cold. The game was all that mattered.

I swerved around a Bludger and undercut the Hufflepuff Chaser above me, snatching the Quaffle from his grip and darting off toward Henry's goal hoops. I chucked the Quaffle as hard as I could, sending it flying through the top of the center hoop. A crash of thunder drowned out every other sound and left my ears ringing. I'd never played in conditions like this before. I prayed someone, _anyone_ , caught the Snitch soon so I could go thaw out in the common room.

I rejoined the formation, watching as a Hufflepuff Chaser zigzagged up the field toward Oliver --- whether her jerky movements were intentional or wind-driven, I had no idea. I swooped down below her, waiting to catch the Quaffle if it fell, but everything around me seemed to suddenly move in slow motion. I thought for a second the wind had shifted and was pushing me back, but a hush had fallen over the stadium. The sky turned black, and cold washed over me.

"We need to get back to the hotel, baby girl." 

I couldn't see the man's face, but the tension in his voice was palpable.

A young girl replied, not hearing the same strain I could detect. "Daddy, I'm five now. I'm not a baby anymore!"

"You'll always be my baby girl, Lucy. Let's just go back-"

A rustling sound whooshed in my ears, followed by a loud snarl.

"Lucy!" the man bellowed. "Lucy, no, not my Lucy! Get away from her!"

I heard the unmistakable sound of sharp teeth tearing into flesh, followed by a high-pitched scream of agony.

"Lucy! Daddy's coming! Hang on, baby girl! Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!"

I heard another feral snarl, followed by a whine of pain. I heard a scuffle nearby, the shouts growing fainter. Then, above the sound of fading chaos, a single whisper. 

"Impossible."

With a crack and a flash of light, I was submerged once again into blackness.

* * *

"Lucy, please, wake up."

My brother's voice sounded far away. I couldn't bring myself to reply. The darkness, the coldness, kept my head underwater. I felt like I was drowning, but I didn't want to struggle. I didn't want anyone, not even Cedric, to see my turmoil. I tried to focus on the conversation swirling around me instead, not wanting to acknowledge everything that I had just heard.

Angelina. "Lucky the ground was so soft."

Alicia. "I thought they were dead for sure, Harry especially."

George. "But he didn't even break his glasses!"

Alicia. "That was the scariest thing I've ever seen."

Fred. "Harry! How are you feeling?"

I kept my eyes closed, not wanting the team to know I was awake.

Harry spoke next. "What happened?"

Fred. “You fell off. Must’ve been, what... fifty feet? More?"

Alicia. "We thought you'd died."

Harry. “But the match! What happened? Are we doing a replay?”

Cedric. "I'm so sorry, Harry, I didn't realize what had happened until I already caught the Snitch. I begged Oliver for a rematch, but he refused."

George. "But they won fair and square, even Wood admits it."

Harry. "Where is he?"

Fred. “Still in the showers. We think he’s trying to drown himself. C’mon, Harry, you’ve never missed the Snitch before.”

George. “There had to be one time you didn’t get it."

Fred. “It’s not over yet. We lost by a hundred points.”

George. “Right? So if Hufflepuff loses to Ravenclaw and we beat Ravenclaw and Slytherin… no offense, Cedric-”

Fred. “Hufflepuff’ll have to lose by at least two hundred points."

George. “But if they beat Ravenclaw-”

Fred. “No way, Ravenclaw is too good. No offense, Cedric. But if Slytherin loses against Hufflepuff-"

George. “It all depends on the points, a margin of a hundred either way-"

Madam Pomfrey. "Alright, team, let Harry have some peace and quiet."

Fred. “We’ll come and see you later, hopefully when Lucy's awake, too. Don’t beat yourself up Harry, you’re still the best Seeker we’ve ever had.”

Harry. "Wait, what happened to Lucy? Did she..."

Cedric. "Fred and George were close enough to grab the back of her broom and get her to the ground before she fell."

Hermione. “Dumbledore was really angry. I’ve never seen him like that before. He ran onto the field as you fell, waved his wand, and you sort of slowed down before you hit the ground. Then he whirled his wand at the Dementors. Shot silver stuff at them. They left the stadium right away. He was furious they’d come onto the grounds.”

Ron. “Then he magicked you onto a stretcher, and walked up to school with you floating on it while Cedric carried Lucy. Everyone thought you were…”

Hermione, in a softer voice. "The team's gone, Lucy. You can open your eyes now."

I sighed softly and forced my eyes open, pushing myself up on an elbow. "How'd you...?"

She held up her hand and waggled her ring finger.

Cedric sat next to me on the bed and tucking a strand of wet hair behind my ear. "How much did you hear, Lu? How are you feeling?"

I looked down at the ring on my hand, not trusting myself to make eye contact with anyone without bursting into tears. "Just about everything, I reckon." I forced a smile and swatted Cedric's hand away, still not meeting his eyes. "You should go celebrate with your house, Captain Diggory. I'm alright."

"Are you sure? I'm more than happy to stay."

I nodded. I knew if anyone in this room would see how close I was to falling apart, it was Cedric. "I'm sure. Go have a party. You've earned it."

"Not really," he muttered, "but I'm sure the rest of the house is happy about the win, nonetheless."

I nodded. "A win is a win."

"I'll come back later," he promised, squeezing my hand as he rose to his feet. 

I nodded again, rolling onto my back to stare at the ceiling. I heard the scrape of chairs on the ground as Ron and Hermione settled between my bed and Harry's. I twisted my ring around my finger, fighting to keep my expression blank.

I curled up onto my side, pulling the sheets around my shoulder. I managed a smile and met Harry's eyes. "I thought you promised to stay on your broom this time."

"Well, sorry," he retorted, managing a smile too. I could see he was just as shaken as I was, trying just as hard to act normal as I was. As soon as Ron and Hermione left, we'd need to talk. "I really did try, you know." His expression clouded slightly. "Wait... Ron, Hermione, what happened to my broom?"

The two of them exchanged a panicked glance.

"Er," Ron stammered.

Harry's face fell. "What?"

“Well… when you fell off, it got blown away,” Hermione said.

"And...?"

“And it... it hit... oh, Harry, it hit the Whomping Willow.”

"And...?"

“Well, you know the Whomping Willow. It... doesn’t like being hit,” Ron said slowly.

“Professor Flitwick brought it back just before you and Lucy came around." Hermione grabbed a bag off of the ground and dumped the contents onto Harry's bed --- his beautiful broom was now no more than splinters.

He looked as if he'd been slapped across the face; I reckoned I'd have the same expression if something happened to my broom.

"I have an old Comet at home," I said after a couple of moments. "It would be better than using a school broom."

Harry nodded numbly, looking too grief-stricken to speak.

Hermione turned to me, twisting her ring nervously around her finger. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head, biting my lip to try to keep my emotions in check.

"Lucy, you can't hide from me," she pushed in a softer voice. "We're connected, remember?"

"I know," I replied around the lump in my throat.

"What happened?"

"I don't know." My voice was no more than a whisper. "I wish I could explain, but I have no idea what the hell..." I rolled onto my back and crossed my arms over my chest, blinking hard. "I just don't know, Hermione."

I knew she wanted to push me further, but Madam Pomfrey rescued me at that moment, handing chocolate to those of us who were bedridden and telling Ron and Hermione we'd be staying the rest of the weekend in the Hospital Wing so there was plenty of time to visit later. When Harry and I were alone and the chocolate disappeared, we exchanged a long look before saying anything.

"I'm guessing you heard more this time," Harry began slowly.

I nodded, swinging my legs over the side of my bed so I could face him.

He followed suit and sighed. "What did you hear?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "Honest, I don't. What did you hear?"

"It was my mum, Lucy." His voice was small and shaky. "I... I hear my mum being killed by Voldemort every time I..."

I silently rose from my own bed and sat next to him on his. He cradled his head in his hands, and I hesitantly laid a hand on his shoulder.

"That's not even... there's more."

He sat up and turned to me. I let my hand drop. "What is it, Harry?"

"What do you think of the Grim?"

I gnawed on my lower lip. "I don't necessarily think it will actually kill you, but I can't completely brush it off the way Hermione does."

"I saw it just before the dementors came."

"You did?" I felt my chest tighten, images of the Forbidden Forest flashing in my mind's eye. "Where?"

"In the Quidditch Pitch. At the top of one of the towers."

My stomach dropped. That was where I so often spent my alone time. "Do you know which...?"

"A Gryffindor one, I think. Why?"

I struggled with myself, not sure what to tell him. But after he had been so honest with me... I reckoned I owed him some version of the truth. "I managed to sleepwalk the night of Halloween. I don't know how I dodged all of the prefects and professors in my sleep, but I woke up in the Forbidden Forest with a massive black dog in front of me. I ran as fast as I could and got back to the castle alright, but..." I shuddered. "Harry, I study at the top of a Gryffindor tower in the Pitch. What if it's after _me_? Or both of us?"

He absorbed my words in silence for a couple of seconds. To my surprise, a slight smile turned up the corners of his mouth. "You can't be mad at me for falling off my broom."

I laughed. "Because I didn't hold up my end of the bargain and went sleepwalking?"

He nodded. "We're even after all." Harry sighed. "I don't know what to think anymore, Lucy."

I echoed his sigh. "Me neither."

"At least we're in this together, right?"

"Of course. Until the end."

A couple of moments passed in silence. I heard Madam Pomfrey shuffling papers in her office, so I quickly retreated to my own bed and crawled under the covers. I glanced out the windows disapprovingly.

"I could have actually seen the sunset this time, but the universe had the audacity to make it cloudy today," I complained.

Harry chuckled. "You really like sunsets, huh?"

"I prefer sunrises," I said with a shrug, "but I see more sunsets."

"I mean, I would hope so. I know you don't sleep ever, but-"

"I do!" I protested.

He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye knowingly.

"Sometimes," I relented.

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

I smiled, trying to look innocent, but I gave up and sighed. "On a serious note, I uh... I think I want to sleep most of tomorrow away. Or, more likely, 'sleep' tomorrow away."

"Okay. Why?"

I pressed my fists to my eyes. "I'm serious, Harry, I... I don't have the slightest clue how to explain what I heard an hour ago. I don't want to have to face everyone until I... have a better idea of what to say."

"That's alright," he said reassuringly. "When you're ready to try, we can figure it out."

I felt my cheeks redden at the word "we." I managed a reluctant nod. "Okay."

He shifted on the bed, trying to get more comfortable. He rolled on his side to face me, and I rolled onto mine to face him. "I think I'm going to try to sleep. I don't really want to face anyone either, at least not tonight. You should sleep, too."

"I'll try," I said. "Night, Harry."

He set his glasses on the table separating our beds as his eyes sank shut. "Night, Lucy."

I really did try to sleep. But my mind wouldn't stop racing, spinning in circles, replaying the voices over and over and over again.

I quickly reasoned that I was hearing the night I was bitten. Harry heard his parents being murdered by Voldemort, so it made sense that I would hear the worst night of _my_ life. That explained the snarling and the scuffling and the shredding of skin. But it didn't explain the voices...

I sat up ramrod straight. The first man had spoken with an American accent. And so had the little girl. Only the second man's voice, the one that whispered "Impossible," had been British.

I suddenly felt both burning hot and freezing cold as the confused clamoring in my head reached a climax. 

I remained locked in that position --- hands gripping the sheets, my neck tense and straight, my eyes staring unseeing at the empty bed across the room --- for several minutes as my mind jumped from conclusion to conclusion, each as wild and unfeasible as the last. I might have still been frozen in place when morning came if Harry hadn't cried out.

I jumped up and grabbed his hand in mine, squeezing hard. "Harry!" I hissed. "Harry, wake up!"

His eyes fluttered open, flickering around the room in a panic before finding my face. He relaxed back into his pillow and pressed his free hand to his forehead. "Lucy..."

"I'm here," I said, loosening my iron grip on his hand but not letting go. "You're alright. It was just a dream."

"But it happened."

"Was it about your mum...?"

He nodded and slipped his hand free to grab his glasses. "Sorry to wake you up."

"I was already awake," I said with a shrug. "If I'd been asleep, it would have taken the Hogwarts Express blazing through here to wake me up."

I hoped he'd laugh, but he only looked concerned. "You couldn't sleep, could you?"

I suddenly became very interested in my hands. "No, I couldn't. It'll make sleeping through tomorrow easier, I guess."

He sank back against his pillows. "Maybe the nightmares don't come if you sleep during the day."

"Maybe," I replied softly. I tucked a lock of hair behind my ear to look at Harry. "Are you okay? Relatively, I mean?"

He nodded. "You?"

"Yeah." I stumbled back to my own bed and once again slid beneath the covers. I twisted my ring off of my finger and held it in my palm instead, tucking my hand under my pillow. "Easier to fake being asleep this way," I explained in a small voice when I saw Harry watching curiously. "She won't see that I'm not wearing it if I don't let her see my hand."

He nodded. "What are you feeling, Lu?"

I closed my eyes and sighed, taking inventory of my many emotions. "I'm scared," I admitted. "And confused. And maybe even a little melancholy, I guess, because I'm so scared and confused."

"That's a big word," Harry teased, yawning. "Not bad for someone who fell off her broom earlier today."

"Shut up, Harry," I muttered, smiling nonetheless as we both slowly drifted to sleep.

* * *

To my surprise, I was actually able to sleep most of Sunday away. I had nightmare after nightmare, of course, hearing the voices play over and over again as my mind tried and failed to match images to the sounds, but it was still better than trying to explain myself to anybody.

I considered skipping classes on Monday just to have one more day to compose my thoughts and try to puzzle out more of what happened, but I ultimately decided to go to class so I could talk to Professor Lupin. If anybody could help me, I reckoned, it would be him, the only other werewolf I'd ever known... even if he didn't know yet that I was a werewolf too.

As we all expected, Draco's arm had miraculously healed. He tried to rub me the wrong way in Ancient Runes, making snarky comments about Gryffindor's loss and imitating Harry's dramatic fall through the sky, but I didn't even acknowledge him.

"Cat got your tongue again?" he taunted.

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye, considering saying something, but I decided against it and continued taking notes as if he didn't exist.

I was nervous walking to DADA, wondering if talking to Professor Lupin was such a good idea. I sat on pins and needles throughout the lesson on hinkypunks, and was planning to chicken out and not say anything at all. But when the bell rang, Professor Lupin called, “Wait a moment, Harry, Lucy. I’d like a word.”

Harry and I exchanged a look, shrugged in sync, and headed to the front of the room.

“I heard about the match, and I’m sorry about your broomstick, Harry. Is there any chance of fixing it?”

“No... the tree smashed it to bits.”

Professor Lupin sighed. “They planted the Whomping Willow the same year that I arrived at Hogwarts. People used to play a game, trying to get near enough to touch the trunk. In the end, a boy called Davey Gudgeon nearly lost an eye, and we were forbidden to go near it. No broomstick would have a chance.”

I felt as if a small shock had gone through my body. Of course! The Whomping Willow had been planted _for_ Professor Lupin! 

Harry shifted on his feet. “Did you hear about the dementors too?”

“Yes, I did. I don’t think any of us have seen Professor Dumbledore that angry. They have been growing restless for some time, furious at his refusal to let them inside the grounds. I suppose they were the reason you two fell?”

Harry and I nodded. We exchanged a brief glance, and it seemed we had the same question. We turned back to Professor Lupin, asking "Why?" in perfect unison.

“It has nothing to do with weakness. The dementors affect you worse than the others, Harry, because there are horrors in your past that the others don’t have. And Lucy... I suspect there are similar things in your past that aren't as, ah, well-broadcasted as Harry's." He gave us a long look and sighed. “Dementors are among the foulest creatures that walk this earth. They infest the darkest, filthiest places, they glory in decay and despair, they drain peace, hope, and happiness out of the air around them. Even Muggles feel their presence, though they can’t see them. Get too near a dementor and every good feeling, every happy memory will be sucked out of you. If it can, the dementor will feed on you long enough to reduce you to something like itself, soul-less and evil. You’ll be left with nothing but the worst experiences of your life. And the worst that happened to you, Harry, and you too, Lucy, is enough to make anyone fall off their broom. You have nothing to feel ashamed of.”

Harry stared down at the professor's desk. “When they get near me... I can hear Voldemort murdering my mum.” A moment of silence passed, none of us knowing what to say.

"Do you know why they came to the match, Professor?" I asked.

“They’re getting hungry. Dumbledore won’t let them into the school, so their supply of human prey has dried up. I don’t think they could resist the large crowd around the Quidditch field. All that excitement, emotions running high... it was their idea of a feast.”

"Azkaban must be terrible," I said in a soft voice, thinking of Hagrid.

Professor Lupin nodded. “The fortress is set on a tiny island, way out to sea, but they don’t need walls and water to keep the prisoners in, not when they’re all trapped inside their own heads, incapable of a single cheery thought. Most of them go mad within weeks.”

Harry looked up. “But Sirius Black escaped from them. He got away.”

Professor Lupin nearly dropped his briefcase. I thought of the man in the forest, how he thought I was Professor Lupin. I watched a flicker of pain cross his face before he spoke again. “Yes. Black must have found a way to fight them. I wouldn’t have believed it possible, because dementors are supposed to drain a wizard of his powers if he is left with them too long.”

“You made that dementor on the train back off,” Harry said.

“There are... certain defenses one can use. But there was only one dementor on the train. The more there are, the more difficult it becomes to resist.”

“What defenses? Can you teach me? Lucy, too, if she wants?”

“I don’t pretend to be an expert at fighting dementors, Harry. Quite the contrary-”

“But if the dementors come to another Quidditch match, I need to be able to fight them.”

Professor Lupin looked from Harry to me, then back to Harry. “Well, alright. I’ll try and help. But it’ll have to wait until next term, I’m afraid. I have a lot to do before the holidays. I chose a very inconvenient time to fall ill.”

Harry visibly relaxed. "That's perfect. Thank you, Professor."

"Of course." Professor Lupin looked back to me. "You look like you have another question, Lucy. Perhaps just for me?"

I nodded, feeling my cheeks turning red. "Am I that obvious?"

Harry cracked a grin. "Sometimes. Meet you in the Great Hall?"

"Sounds good."

He left the room with his head held higher than it had been when we walked in. Part of me wanted to beg Harry to stay, to tell him everything, but I couldn't. So instead, I watched him leave, knowing I might never have the heart to tell him about my secret, and turned back to Professor Lupin.

"Professor, I... well, if I don't say this now, I know I never will. So... here goes nothing." I glanced down at my shoes briefly before meeting his eyes again. "I know you're a werewolf," I said quickly, "but it's okay. I am, too."

He blinked, clearly stunned, and lowered himself onto a chair, wordlessly summoning a chair for me, which I sank into. To my surprise, he laughed. "Well, Lucy, I can say I wasn't expecting you to say that."

I grinned sheepishly. "Like my American friends said, I figured it would be easiest just to rip the Band-Aid off."

He set his wand on his desk and studied me with renewed interest. "I would agree. Did you really have a question for me, or were you merely hoping to get this off your chest?"

"I'll admit I have a lot of questions," I said, "but one is more pressing than others." I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck. "Professor, I think the memory I hear around dementors is the night I was bitten. And, well, I wanted to ask if that's even possible."

"It certainly is. You must remember it well."

I shook my head. "That's just the thing... I had never recalled anything from that night until the first time I was near a dementor on the train. I didn't even figure out that it was from that night until I heard more of the memory on Saturday. Professor, if that's what I'm hearing... why wouldn't it affect you as well?"

"I have had many years to come to terms with it all," he said slowly. "Had I encountered dementors at your age, I'm sure I would be reacting the same way you and Harry have been. Even then, you two have been remarkably resilient. Thirteen-year-old Remus Lupin would have run home with his tail tucked between his legs." He paused. "I was four years old when I was bitten. Fenrir Greyback climbed through my bedroom window and attacked me. My father got there in time to save my life, but the damage was done."

"I was five when I was bitten," I replied. "But I don't remember that night as clearly as you seem to."

"There could be many reasons for that. Everyone processes traumatic experiences differently." Professor Lupin sat up suddenly, looking rather like Hermione when she's just had an epiphany. "You know, Lucy, maybe your boggart changed because it wasn't sure how best to express your deepest fear."

"Oh!" I nodded thoughtfully. "It showed itself to me as a werewolf first, then as what I was capable of, then as my only link to the night I became a werewolf."

"My thoughts exactly."

I huffed a laugh. "Any chance you could teach me how to make it a full moon like yours? It's far simpler."

He smiled. "You'll be more prepared next time. Actually, Lucy, if you and Harry are going to be learning how to ward off dementors, you will want your boggart to be a dementor for now. I'd rather have you two face a boggart dementor than a real one."

I nodded. "I can do that. But looking back, the full moon seems like such an obvious thing to fear. I mean, it is what makes me, well, _me_."

Professor Lupin shook his head. "Don't let the full moon define you, Lucy. It took me a long time to learn, and I had a lot of help along the way, but the sooner you can separate yourself from the full moon, the better."

"Professor, did you tell your friends...?"

He chuckled. "I didn't tell them. But they were some of the cleverest and most devoted students in the entire school, so they figured it out."

"Hermione figured it out our first year," I muttered. "I'm glad she knows now, because she can cover for me when I need it and trying to keep a secret from her is nearly impossible. But when she first confronted me..." I laughed and shook my head. "I thought I was just going to die on the spot. I was so many levels of horrified. I wasn't planning on ever telling anybody."

"I know the feeling. Have you since changed your mind?"

I sighed. "Well... I'd still rather not tell anybody else. I trust Hermione to be able to help me keep my secret until graduation if need be."

"Ultimately, of course, it is your decision," Professor Lupin said slowly, "but one werewolf to another, I will say that the friends I told changed my life for the better. They were kinder and braver and more compassionate than I ever dared to hope. And I trust that you would be wise enough not to turn around and tell Draco Malfoy-"

I burst into a fit of giggles, shaking my head violently.

Professor Lupin smiled. "I know that if you were to tell certain other friends of yours, I'm sure you'd find that their love for you extends even to the part of yourself you hate most."

That sobered me up quickly. "You really think so?" I asked in a small voice.

He nodded. "You have good friends, Lucy, who would want to help. You might want to consider letting them."

* * *

The next day at lunch, Malachi dropped a note into my lap.

_Please meet me in my office instead of attending Transfiguration today. I have cleared it with Professor McGonagall. The password is "Chocolate Frog."  
Professor Dumbledore_

Suddenly, I was the furthest thing from hungry. I stroked Malachi's feathers, trying to talk my body out of going into fight-or-flight mode, but I trembled throughout the meal and couldn't even finish my soup.

"You seem jumpy," Harry commented as we left Potions. I had managed to avoid humiliating myself in class, but it was definitely some of my sloppiest work to date. My hands were too shaky to be as precise in my measurements as I always was. "What's wrong, other than the fact that we just had to go to Potions?"

"Nothing," I lied with a shake of my head. "Professor Dumbledore wants to meet with me. He said to go to his office instead of Transfiguration. I'll meet you in Defense Against the Dark Arts."

I ducked away before anybody could protest or ask any more questions, knees shaking so violently they knocked together. What did Professor Dumbledore know? And how on earth did he convince Professor McGonagall to let me miss class for this?

"Chocolate Frog," I said when I reached the entrance to his office, bouncing on the balls of my feet as the statue slowly swiveled.

I tried to calm my jitters as I made my way to the heart of the headmaster's office, but my heart fluttered like a trapped dragon in my chest. My throat was completely dry. I couldn't breathe.

Professor Dumbledore smiled kindly as I practically skidded around the corner in my hurry. I straightened up and fixed my tie, the sweat-soaked note clenched in my fist.

"You wanted to see me, Professor?" I asked in the most casual voice I could muster.

"I did. Come on in, take a seat."

I perched myself awkwardly on the edge of the chair closest to his desk, feeling as if the anxiety would tear me apart from the inside out.

"I suppose I should begin my story at the beginning, Lucy," Dumbledore said, setting aside his quill and leaning forward in his chair. "Or at least, as close to the beginning as I can."

He cleared his throat and launched into his story.

"When I first heard that dementors would be stationed around the school this year, I appealed to the Ministry of Magic to see if they could offer me any better alternatives. As you have witnessed firsthand --- on too many occasions, might I add --- my appeal ultimately failed, and the dementors were brought here. You can imagine my disappointment with this development, as you know how dreadful the creatures are."

I nodded in agreement.

"I was about to apparate to Hogsmeade to get back to the school when I was stopped by one Paul Midgen. I do believe you know his daughter, Eloise?"

"We've met. She's in my Ancient Runes class, and in Herbology."

"Has she ever mentioned that her father works for the Obliviator Headquarters?"

I shook my head, my throat suddenly feeling even more dry as my mind struggled to comprehend what might be coming next.

"He is the head of that particular department, actually," he continued, "and he asked me to have a drink with him. He seemed rather distressed, so I agreed. Now, Lucy, I'm going to ask you to make a choice. The first of many you'll have to make starting today. Do you trust me?"

I nodded slowly. "Of course. You're the headmaster, after all. What is it?"

"Would you like me to tell you about our conversation, or would you like to see for yourself?"

I was taken aback. "See for myself?" I echoed.

"Follow me," he said, rising from his desk and approaching what I recognized to be a Pensieve.

"Oh," I said, exhaling in relief. "You meant a Pensieve."

"Ah, very good. You know what a Pensieve is?"

I nodded. "I've read about them before, but never actually seen or used one."

"But you are familiar with how they work?"

I nodded again. "I am. I-I think I'd like to see your conversation for myself, sir."

He smiled. "Very well. Here." He tapped his wand to his temple and drew out a clear, slimy substance. He tapped the surface of the Pensieve, and gestured for me to submerge my head. I complied, and I was instantly dropped into a noisy bar. Dumbledore sat at a table in the corner of the room with who I supposed was Paul Midgen, each holding a mug but neither one drinking.

"Since the appeal was unsuccessful and dementors will be guarding the school, there is something I must tell you, Albus. A warning I must pass along, if you will."

Eloise's dad looked just like her. Dumbledore was right, he _did_ look distressed.

Dumbledore leaned forward. "A warning?"

Mr. Midgen nodded. He swallowed hard. "I made a decision nearly eight years ago that still haunts me to this day. I trust that you know Lucy Diggory?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Delightful girl. A diligent student with a kind heart, much like her brother, Cedric."

The other man shifted uncomfortably. "I'm afraid that my decision affects him, too, should Lucy choose to..."

Dumbledore waited patiently for the man to speak again. I understood that he must have been just as confused as I was.

Mr. Midgen took off his glasses and rubbed his nose. "My office sees something new every day. Someone's pet Kneazle escapes in the suburbs. A young wizard accidentally flies a broom too close to his Muggle neighbor's home. From time to time, we'll have a witch who asks us to remove her memories of a former lover, or an old wizard who wants to forget the pain of the war. But nothing could have prepared me for what I was asked to do that day.

"I had never known Amos Diggory all that well, seeing as we were a few year apart in school, but I trusted him. Being a Hufflepuff and all, I trusted that he had good intentions at the very least, so I agreed to hear him out when he arrived at my office early one morning with his wife waiting in the car. He explained as quickly as he could that he had been called to the Forest of Dean three nights prior to try to hunt down and detain Fenrir Greyback. He said that he was unsuccessful, but that he had come across a small girl who couldn't have been more than four or five years old who had been bitten.

"'A Muggle child would be dead,' he explained with a somewhat crazy look in his eyes, 'and whoever was with her at the time could very well be, if they were Muggles. I rescued her, and now I'm asking you to wipe her memories of her other family, as well as some of my son's, so we can raise her as our own.'

"I tried to fight back, but he convinced me in the end. He returned the next day with the children. Cedric was first. I carefully removed the memories of meeting Lucy for the first time, trusting that Amos had a plan for convincing him that Lucy had been there all along. But Lucy... Merlin, her face still haunts me. Even terrified, even being only five, as she told me when I asked, she was brave.

"I had made the decision overnight not to rewrite Lucy's story completely. I asked Amos to take Cedric somewhere for a couple of hours because the process would take a while considering I had to wipe so many things clean. This, of course, was a lie. Obliviation is instantaneous if done properly.

"Before I wiped her memories, I gathered many of them into small vials. I asked her about her happiest memories, her scariest memories, her saddest memories. I asked her about her mother, and her father, and her grandparents, and her brothers and sisters, and did my best to organize them, so that her story would always exist somewhere. She was so young, and her family..." He dragged his hand down his face. "For years, I saw her face on Missing posters in Muggle London, with the name underneath being Lucy Everlin, not Lucy Diggory. I had to live with the knowledge that I had... played a role in her disappearance. That I had been the one to come between her and her rightful family. Amos and Susan treat her well," he said quickly. "If I ever had the slightest inkling that they didn't, I would have given her all of her memories myself and personally seen to it that she found her biological family."

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "Why are you telling me this now, Paul?"

"The dementors," he answered, as if this should be obvious. "There are very few brings that render obliviation ineffective, but the trauma of the night she was attacked cannot be hidden from the dementors, though it may be hidden from her. I needed to know that Lucy would have someone to turn to, if she ever comes into contact with those foul, foul creatures. I considered telling Minerva," he said with half of a smile, "since Eloise tells me she's Lucy's Head of House. But I found you first, and I reckoned that the Headmaster was as good a person to tell as anybody."

Dumbledore nodded again. "Where are her memories now, Paul?"

"Safe in a vault in Gringotts under my name. If she'd like to see them, she need only write me a letter, and I will get them to her as quickly as possible with complete secrecy. I can't imagine Amos and Susan would be terribly pleased to hear of what I've done, but Lucy deserves the truth."

The memory began to fade, and I found myself in Dumbledore's office once more. I staggered away from the Pensieve and sat down heavily in a chair.

"Lucy Everlin," Professor McGonagall had called out on my first night at Hogwarts.

I had been so confident that it was a mistake at the time.

Yet all along, it was nothing but the truth.


	40. You Give Me One

_Lost my gloves  
You give me one  
Wanna hang out?  
Yeah, sounds like fun_

_"It's Nice to Have a Friend"  
Taylor Swift_

* * *

HARRY:

The morning of the Hogsmeade trip, I saw Hermione and Ron off and started wandering the castle, looking for Lucy. She had said she was going to get up early to hit the Quidditch Pitch with Ginny, but it was so cold and snowy outside I half-hoped they had called it quits and come in early.

“Psst, Harry!”

The twins were on the third floor, peeking around a statue of a one-eyed witch.

I cocked my head to the side. “What are you doing here? How come you’re not going to Hogsmeade?”

Fred winked. “We’ve come to give you a bit of festive cheer before we go. Come in here.”

I followed them into an empty classroom, George closing the door behind me.

George smiled. “Early Christmas present for you, Harry. Fred, if you will?"

Fred dramatically drew a piece of parchment from his robes and laid it out on a desk. I stared at it for a second, half-expecting it to jump up and start dancing. When nothing happened, I asked, “What’s that supposed to be?”

George patted the parchment fondly. “This, Harry, is the secret of our success."

“It’s a wrench, giving it to you, but we decided last night, your need’s greater than ours.”

“Anyway, we know it by heart. We bequeath it to you. We don’t really need it anymore.”

I still suspected that they were playing me. “And what do I need with a bit of old parchment?”

Fred closed his eyes and hissed as if I'd stabbed him and insulted his mother. “A bit of old parchment! Explain, George.”

“Well, when we were in our first year, Harry --- young, carefree, and innocent --- well, more innocent than we are now --- we got into a spot of bother with Filch.”

“We let off a Dungbomb in the corridor and it upset him for some reason-”

“So he hauled us off to his office and started threatening us with the usual-"

“-detention-”

“-disembowelment-”

“-and we couldn’t help noticing a drawer in one of his filing cabinets marked _Confiscated and Highly Dangerous_.”

I started smiling. "Don't tell me..."

Fred rolled his eyes. “Well, what would _you’ve_ done? George caused a diversion by dropping another Dungbomb, I whipped the drawer open, and grabbed this.”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds, you know. We don’t reckon Filch ever found out how to work it. He probably suspected what it was, though, or he wouldn’t have confiscated it.”

“And you know how to work it?” I asked.

“Oh yes. This little beauty’s taught us more than all the teachers in this school.”

“You’re winding me up,” I said.

“Oh, are we?” George took his wand out and tapped it to the paper ceremoniously. “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.”

The parchment came to life then. Green words appeared at the top of the page.

Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs  
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers are proud to present  
THE MARAUDER’S MAP

I stepped forward to take a closer look at what I soon realized was a map of Hogwarts. Tiny dots labelled with even tinier names moved around the map. Dumbledore was pacing in his office. Peeves was flying in circles in the trophy room. I glanced around the map further and saw a bunch of secret passages that all seemed to lead...

“Right into Hogsmeade,” Fred said, as if reading my mind. He traced them with his finger as he began to explain. “There are seven in all. Now, Filch knows about these four, but we’re sure we’re the only ones who know about these. Well, us and Lucy. She's never used them, but we've shown her. Don’t bother with the one behind the mirror on the fourth floor. We used it until last winter, but it’s caved in, completely blocked. And we don’t reckon anyone’s ever used this one, because the Whomping Willow’s planted right over the entrance. But this one here, this one leads right into the cellar of Honeydukes. We’ve used it loads of times. And as you might’ve noticed, the entrance is right outside this room, through that one-eyed old crone’s hump.”

I nodded, figuring I should just pretend Lucy hadn't told me anything about the passages.

George patted the map fondly. “Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. We owe them so much.”

“Noble men, working tirelessly to help a new generation of lawbreakers.”

“Right. Now, don’t forget to wipe it after you’ve used it-"

“-or anyone can read it.”

“Just tap it again and say, ‘Mischief managed!’ And it’ll go blank. Oh, and Harry, one more thing." George grew uncharacteristically serious. "Just one... condition."

"Name it, and it's yours," I said, admiring the map.

"Well, now you hold the secret to our success as professional Lucy-finders," Fred began. "But with the two of us and Cedric graduating soon enough, we reckoned it was time to start trying to find someone who could take care of her the way we've tried to."

"The key is to know when to follow her and when to give her space," George said. He pointed to the Quidditch Pitch. "If she's in the stairwell, she's almost always studying. You can study with her if she's there, but good luck trying to have a conversation. But if she's in the stands, it's because she's thinking too much about something. Sometimes, Cedric is already there, and if he's there, he's taking care of her. But if she's alone and Cedric's dot is nowhere near there, you should find her and see what's on her mind before she self-destructs."

"If she's in the Hufflepuff common room, don't worry about it. We don't know how to get in, she refuses to tell us, and she's always there with Cedric and Henry and a couple other people anyway," Fred informed me.

"If she's at the Black Lake, though, she _really_ wants to be alone. Not even Cedric can talk to her when she's there." George sighed. "She's been there a lot lately. There and the Hufflepuff common room."

I scanned the map. "Looks like she's in the Gryffindor common room at the moment. I'll see if she wants to go to Hogsmeade with me."

"That's the spirit," George said with a wink.

Fred puffed up his chest and did his best Percy impression, even pushing imaginary glasses up his nose. “So, young Harry, mind you behave yourself.”

"And we'll see you in Honeyduke's."

With identical winks, they slipped out of the room, leaving me alone with the map and my thoughts. Knowing immediately what I had to do, I snatched up the map and shoved it in my robes. I darted up to the Gryffindor common room, where Lucy was still sitting on the window seat, gazing out of the window with a sad look on her face. 

I tried to wedge myself into the empty half of the seat, without much success. I snickered. "You know, we fit a lot better in this tiny seat two years ago."

Lucy smiled and stretched out her legs mockingly. Her stockinged feet still didn't touch the other end of the seat. "You're the only one who grew." 

I tried to stretch my legs out like her, but my knees were still bent at a sharp angle when my feet hit the wall, making her laugh. "I don't know, Lu, I think I still fit."

"Yeah, mhm, of course you do." Her smile grew ever so slightly. "Are you heading to Hogsmeade? I know the twins were, ah, giving you your Christmas gift early."

"You know about the map?" I asked.

She nodded. "I've only actually used it a couple of times, but yeah. Pretty awesome, isn't it?"

"I'll say. Well, I headed up here to ask if you wanted to go to Hogsmeade with me since you're here by yourself. So... Lucy, do you want to go to Hogsmeade with me?"

"Sorry, Harry, I wish," she sighed, "but I'm waiting for a package today. I need to get it from Malachi before Cedric does."

"Oh, it's okay," I said, though I felt a pang of disappointment. I grinned. "Is it his Christmas gift?"

"Something like that," she replied. She smiled. "Well, have fun! Don't get killed by Sirius Black or the Grim without me. Oh, and just in case you've forgotten, the spell for the statue is dissendium."

"Alright, thanks for the reminder. See you when I get back?"

"If you want to find me, you might want to use the map. I don't want to sit here all day," she laughed.

I headed out of the common room and made my way back down to the third floor, watching my little dot as I went. Once I reached the statue, I watched as my dot drew his wand and tapped the statue, "Dissendium" appearing in a little speech bubble by his head. I quickly copied the action, and a small hole opened up in the statue. Checking one last time to make sure I was alone, I shoved the map into my robes and jumped in.

After sliding for a bit, I landed on solid ground. It was dark, so I illuminated my wand.

"Mischief managed," I said smugly, wiping the map clean. Mischief had in fact been managed, and I was going to make the most of it.

It took what I guessed was an hour to reach Honeyduke's. I banged my head against what seemed like a trap door, and I froze, hoping nobody had heard me. But when nothing seemed to have happened, I edged my way out of the door and crawled up the stairs.

Nobody paid me any mind as I slipped through the crowd of Hogwarts students. I couldn't help but laugh to myself when I imagined the look on Dudley's face if he could only see where I was. There was enough candy to keep even Dudley occupied for a long time, and he could eat candy like nobody else I'd ever met.

I found Ron and Hermione in a corner of the store labeled "UNUSUAL TASTES." Surely enough, they were looking at blood-flavored lollipops.

“Ugh, no, Harry won’t want one of those, they’re for vampires, I expect,” Hermione said, wrinkling her nose.

“How about these?” Ron asked, holding up a jar of Cockroach Clusters.

"Definitely not," I said with a grin.

Ron just about dropped the jar as he whirled around.

Hermione looked even more shocked. “Harry! What are you doing here? How... how did you...?”

“Wow, you’ve learned to Apparate!” Ron exclaimed.

“‘Course I haven’t,” I replied. I lowered my voice and briefly explained about the Marauder's Map.

Ron seemed offended. “How come Fred and George never gave it to me? I’m their brother!”

"There was... another condition," I said, thinking of what they had said about Lucy. "They want me to use it for something else."

“But you aren't going to keep it! He’s going to hand it in to Professor McGonagall, aren’t you, Harry?” Hermione asked.

I shook my head. "I can't!"

Ron looked at Hermione incredulously. “Are you mad? Hand in something that good?”

“Besides, Hermione, if I hand it in, I’ll have to say where I got it! Filch would know Fred and George had nicked it!”

Hermione could barely keep her anger restrained. “But what about Sirius Black? He could be using one of the passages on that map to get into the castle! The teachers have got to know!”

“He can’t be getting in through a passage. There are seven secret tunnels on the map, right? Fred and George reckon Filch already knows about four of them. And of the other three, one of them’s caved in, so no one can get through it. One of them’s got the Whomping Willow planted over the entrance, so you can’t get out of it. And the one I just came through, it’s really hard to see the entrance to it down in the cellar, so unless he knew it was there...” I hesitated. What if he did know? What if that was how he broke into the castle on Halloween? I shoved the thought away quickly. "We would see him, anyway. Everyone has a dot."

Ron pointed to the front door, where a sign read:

BY ORDER OF THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC

Customers are reminded that until further notice, dementors will be patrolling the streets of Hogsmeade every night after sundown. This measure has been put in place for the safety of Hogsmeade residents and will be lifted upon the recapture of Sirius Black. It is therefore advisable that you complete your shopping well before nightfall.

Merry Christmas!

“See? I’d like to see Black try and break into Honeyduke's with dementors swarming all over the village. Anyway, Hermione, the Honeyduke's owners would hear a break-in, wouldn’t they? They live over the shop!”

“Yes, but... but... look, Harry still shouldn’t be coming into Hogsmeade. He hasn’t got a signed form! If anyone finds out, he’ll be in so much trouble! And it’s not nightfall yet. What if Sirius Black turns up today? Now?”

“He’d have a job spotting Harry in this snow. Come on, Hermione, it’s Christmas. Harry deserves a break.”

Hermione still looked at me as if I were a bomb about to explode, so I smiled.

“Are you going to report me?” I asked, knowing the answer.

“Oh, of course not, but honestly, Harry!”

Before she could scold me further, Ron grabbed me by the arm and dragged me to look at more candy. Once the two of them had made their purchases, we stepped out into the snow. The two of them shouted through their scarves what each of the buildings were as we passed them. As the snow fell harder and harder, we decided to head to the Three Broomsticks for butterbeers.

While Ron got the drinks, Hermione and I found a small table in the corner of the room that was partially hidden by one of the largest Christmas trees I'd seen in my entire life.

Ron returned quickly with massive tankards of butterbeer. We clunked them together with a hearty "Merry Christmas!" and took sips. It was even better than the bottles Fred and George got for Quidditch parties. It seemed to warm me from the inside out.

I found myself wishing Lucy were there with us, feeling the same warmth from head to toe despite the storm I knew was blowing outside. What Fred and George had said about her didn't surprise me; something had changed after the Quidditch match. There was a new fragility in her eyes, as if her blue irises were actually made of stained glass all this time and something had made them begin to crack. She spent less and less time in the common room, and while I had noticed her absence, I never really wondered where she was. It made sense that she was spending more time with her brother, because I knew Cedric was really her best friend regardless of what she said about Hermione, but the fact that she spent so much time alone at the Black Lake made me sad. I wondered for the millionth time what she had heard around the dementors, and what could have possibly happened in her past that was as traumatic as my parents being murdered by Voldemort. I believed her when she said she didn't know. But I still didn't understand any of it.

Not two minutes later, the doors of the inn opened to reveal Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Hagrid, and Cornelius Fudge. I choked on my butterbeer, all thoughts of Lucy forgotten.

Without saying a word, Ron and Hermione worked together to shove me under the table. Hermione whispered a spell I didn't recognize, and the Christmas tree moved ever so slightly to hide me from view. I cursed myself for not wearing the Invisibility Cloak --- I'd definitely wear it next time. I squinted through the branches to try to see what I could.

Everyone ordered their drinks, and the Minister asked Madam Rosmerta to join them.

“So, what brings you to this neck of the woods, Minister?” she asked as she took a seat.

“What else, m’dear, but Sirius Black? I daresay you heard what happened up at the school at Halloween?” he replied.

"I did hear a rumor," she said.

“Did you tell the whole pub, Hagrid?” Professor McGonagall hissed. Hermione stiffened next to me.

Hagrid didn't respond before Madam Rosmerta asked another question. “Do you think Black’s still in the area, Minister?”

“I’m sure of it."

“You know that the Dementors have searched the whole village twice? Scared all my customers away! It’s very bad for business, Minister.”

He sighed. “Rosmerta, dear, I don’t like them any more than you do. Necessary precaution. Unfortunate, but there you are… I’ve just met some of them. They’re in a fury against Dumbledore, because he won’t let them inside the castle grounds.”

Professor McGonagall exhaled sharply through her nose. “I should think not. How are we supposed to teach with those horrors floating around?”

"Hear, hear!" Professor Flitwick agreed.

“All the same, they are here to protect you all from something much worse," Fudge said. "We all know what Black’s capable of.”

“Do you know, I still have trouble believing it. Of all the people to go over to the Dark Side, Sirius Black was the last I’d have thought…" Madam Rosmerta's voice trailed off. "I mean, I remember him when he was a boy at Hogwarts. If you’d told me then what he was going to become, I’d have said you’d had too much mead.”

“You don’t know the half of it, Rosmerta. The worst he did isn’t widely known.”

“The worst? Worse than murdering all those poor people, you mean?”

“I certainly do."

“I can’t believe that. What could possibly be worse?”

Professor McGonagall shifted in her seat. Her voice was sad when she spoke. “You say you remember him at Hogwarts, Rosmerta. Do you remember who his best friend was?”

“Naturally! Never saw one without the other, did you? The number of times I had them in here... ooh, they used to make me laugh. Quite the double act, Sirius Black and James Potter!”

I dropped my empty tankard in shock, earning a sharp kick from Ron that I barely felt.

“Precisely. Black and Potter," Professor McGonagall replied. "Ringleaders of their little gang. Both very bright, of course, _exceptionally_ bright, in fact. But I don’t think we’ve ever had such a pair of troublemakers-”

Hagrid chuckled. “I dunno. Fred and George Weasley could give ‘em a run fer their money.”

“You’d have thought Black and Potter were brothers! Inseparable!” Professor Flitwick added.

Fudge agreed immediately. “Of course they were. Potter trusted Black beyond all his other friends. Nothing changed when they left school. Black was best man when James married Lily. Then they named him godfather to Harry. Harry has no idea, of course. You can imagine how the idea would torment him.”

“Because Black turned out to be in league with You-Know-Who?” Madam Rosmerta asked in a soft voice.

“Worse even than that, m’dear. Not many people are aware that the Potters knew You-Know-Who was after them. Dumbledore, who was of course working tirelessly against You-Know-Who, had a number of useful spies. One of them tipped him off, and he alerted James and Lily at once. He advised them to go into hiding. Well, of course, You-Know-Who wasn’t an easy person to hide from. Dumbledore told them that their best chance was the Fidelius Charm.”

“How does that work?”

Professor Flitwick cleared his throat and explained, “An immensely complex spell, involving the magical concealment of a secret inside a single, living soul. The information is hidden inside the chosen person, or Secret-Keeper, and is henceforth impossible to find... unless, of course, the Secret-Keeper chooses to divulge it. As long as the Secret-Keeper refused to speak, You-Know-Who could search the village where Lily and James were staying for years and never find them, not even if he had his nose pressed against their sitting room window!”

“So Black was the Potters’ Secret-Keeper?”

"Naturally," Professor McGonagall said. “James Potter told Dumbledore that Black would die rather than tell where they were, that Black was planning to go into hiding himself. And yet, Dumbledore remained worried. I remember him offering to be the Potters’ Secret-Keeper himself.”

“He suspected Black?”

“He was sure that somebody close to the Potters had been keeping You-Know-Who informed of their movements. Indeed, he had suspected for some time that someone on our side had turned traitor and was passing a lot of information to You-Know-Who.”

“But James Potter insisted on using Black?”

Fudge replied next. “He did. And then, barely a week after the Fidelius Charm had been performed-”

“Black betrayed them?”

“He did indeed. Black was tired of his double-agent role, he was ready to declare his support openly for You-Know-Who, and he seems to have planned this for the moment of the Potters’ death. But, as we all know, You-Know-Who met his downfall in little Harry Potter. Powers gone, horribly weakened, he fled. And this left Black in a very nasty position indeed. His master had fallen at the very moment when he, Black, had shown his true colors as a traitor. He had no choice but to run for it-”

“Filthy, stinkin’ turncoat!” Hagrid bellowed, making half the bar go silent. Professor McGonagall shushed him, but he only lowered his voice slightly before continuing. “I met him! I musta bin the last ter see him before he killed all them people! It was me what rescued Harry from Lily an’ James’s house after they was killed! Jus’ got him outta the ruins, poor little thing, with a great slash across his forehead, an’ his parents dead, an’ Sirius Black turns up, on that flyin’ motorbike he used ter ride. Never occurred ter me what he was doin’ there. I didn’ know he’d bin Lily an’ James’s Secret-Keeper. Thought he’d jus’ heard the news o’ You-Know-Who’s attack an’ come ter see what he could do. White an’ shakin’, he was. An’ yeh know what I did? I COMFORTED THE MURDERIN’ TRAITOR!”

Professor McGonagall's voice was pleading. "Hagrid, please! Keep your voice down!”

“How was I ter know he wasn’ upset abou’ Lily an’ James? It was You-Know-Who he cared abou’! An’ then he says, ‘Give Harry ter me, Hagrid, I’m his godfather, I’ll look after him.’ Ha! But I’d had me orders from Dumbledore, an’ I told Black no, Dumbledore said Harry was ter go ter his aunt an’ uncle’s. Black argued, but in the end he gave in. Told me ter take his motorbike ter get Harry there. ‘I won’t need it anymore,’ he says. I shoulda known there was somethin’ fishy goin’ on then. He loved that motorbike, what was he givin’ it ter me for? Why wouldn’ he need it anymore? Fact was, it was too easy ter trace. Dumbledore knew he’d bin the Potters’ Secret-Keeper. Black knew he was goin’ ter have ter run fer it that night, knew it was a matter o’ hours before the Ministry was after him. But what if I’d given Harry to him, eh? I bet he’d’ve pitched him off the bike halfway out ter sea. His bes’ friends’ son! But when a wizard goes over ter the Dark Side, there’s nothin’ and no one that matters to 'em anymore!”

Nobody said anything for several seconds. I felt so claustrophobic beneath the table I had to fight the urge to sprint out of the inn and never turn back.

“But he didn’t manage to disappear, did he?" Madam Rosmerta asked. "The Ministry of Magic caught up with him next day!”

Fudge sighed. “Alas, if only we had. It was not we who found him. It was little Peter Pettigrew, another of the Potters’ friends. Maddened by grief, no doubt, and knowing that Black had been the Potters’ Secret-Keeper, he went after Black himself.”

“Pettigrew… that fat little boy who was always tagging around after them at Hogwarts?” 

“He worshipped Black and Potter. Never quite in their league, talent-wise. I was often rather sharp with him. You can imagine how I... how I regret that now…” Professor McGonagall said in a choked voice.

“There, now, Minerva, Pettigrew died a hero’s death. Eyewitnesses --- Muggles, of course, we wiped their memories later --- told us how Pettigrew cornered Black. They say he was sobbing, ‘Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?’ And then he went for his wand. Well, of course, Black was quicker. Blew Pettigrew to smithereens.”

Professor McGonagall blew her nose. “Stupid boy… foolish boy… he was always hopeless at dueling… should have left it to the Ministry…”

“I tell yeh, if I’d got ter Black before little Pettigrew did, I wouldn’t’ve messed around with wands. I’d've ripped him limb from limb,” Hagrid said in the darkest voice I had ever heard him use.

Fudge shook his head. "You don’t know what you’re talking about, Hagrid! Nobody but trained Hit Wizards from the Magical Law Enforcement Squad would have stood a chance against Black once he was cornered. I was Junior Minister in the Department of Magical Catastrophes at the time, and I was one of the first on the scene after Black murdered all those people. I... I will never forget it. I still dream about it sometimes. A crater in the middle of the street, so deep it had cracked the sewer below. Bodies everywhere. Muggles screaming. And Black standing there laughing, with what was left of Pettigrew in front of him, a heap of bloodstained robes and a few... a few fragments...” He blew his nose before speaking again. “Well, there you have it, Rosmerta. Black was taken away by twenty members of the Magical Law Enforcement Squad and Pettigrew received the Order of Merlin, First Class, which I think was some comfort to his poor mother. Black’s been in Azkaban ever since.”

Madam Rosmerta sighed. “Is it true he’s mad, Minister?”

“I wish I could say that he was. I certainly believe his master’s defeat unhinged him for a while. The murder of Pettigrew and all those Muggles was the action of a cornered and desperate man. Cruel, pointless. Yet I met Black on my last inspection of Azkaban. You know, most of the prisoners in there sit muttering to themselves in the dark; there’s no sense in them. But I was shocked at how normal Black seemed. He spoke quite rationally to me. It was unnerving. You’d have thought he was merely bored. Asked if I’d finished with my newspaper, cool as you please, said he missed doing the crossword. Yes, I was astounded at how little effect the dementors seemed to be having on him, and he was one of the most heavily guarded in the place, you know. Dementors outside his door day and night.”

“But what do you think he’s broken out to do? Good gracious, Minister, he isn’t trying to rejoin You-Know-Who, is he?”

“I daresay that is his, er, eventual plan. But we hope to catch Black long before that. I must say, You-Know-Who alone and friendless is one thing, but give him back his most devoted servant, and I shudder to think how quickly he’ll rise again…”

Someone set down their glass.

“You know, Cornelius, if you’re dining with the headmaster, we’d better head back up to the castle,” Professor McGonagall said.

The adults all rose one by one and disappeared.

"Harry?"

Hermione and Ron looked down at me wordlessly.

I pushed myself back up and set my tankard on the table. 

"I should get back," I said, my voice sounding foreign to my own ears.

Hermione nodded. "You should," she agreed in a high voice. "We'll meet you there as soon as we can."

I shook my head. "No. Don't. It's fine. Just... just stay. Enjoy the rest of the day." I rose to my feet and rubbed the back of my neck. "I'll see you at dinner."

I turned quickly and hurried out of the inn into the snow. I made it back to Hogwarts in what seemed like no time at all. I stood by the statue for a couple of seconds, not sure what to do. I quickly ducked into the same empty classroom I had been in with Fred and George that morning, though the morning seemed like a week ago at that point, and drew out the map.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," I said, my voice cracking on the last word. Hogwarts came to life in front of me. Lucy's dot was in the Quidditch Pitch, in the commentary box. I wiped the map clean with a muttered "Mischief managed" and hurried back outside, wrapping my robes around me and bowing my head against the snow.

Surely enough, Lucy was sitting at the top of the commentary box, a book open in her lap, but she wasn't reading it. She was watching the snow falling slowly from the sky, a troubled expression on her face. I stared up the stairs to join her, and her eyes flickered over to me, widening in surprise. 

"Oh, hi, Harry." She closed her book quickly and smiled. "You're back sooner than I thought you'd be. How was Hogsmeade?"

I couldn't bring myself to answer. I sat next to her and stared straight ahead, looking for the words to say. "Sirius Black killed my parents," I said finally.

"What?"

The words poured from my mouth before I could stop them. "My parents knew Voldemort was after them, after us. They made him their Secret-Keeper. He betrayed them. He was their friend, and he betrayed them." I took a shaky breath. "Cornelius Fudge said himself that the dementors of Azkaban don't affect him. He... after everything he did..." My throat closed with frustration, so all I could make was a strangled choking sound. "He doesn't have to hear my mother being murdered by Voldemort every time they're near him. He was the best man at my parents' wedding. He was my dad's best friend. Professor McGonagall said they were inseparable. Lucy, I... it's not fair!"

I placed my head in my hands and shuddered. Lucy reached forward with a gentle hand and rubbed her hand up and down my arm. "I'm so sorry, Harry," she said, her voice laced with the same pain I felt. "How did you...?"

"We were in the Three Broomsticks," I replied after a moment. "Me and Ron and Hermione. Then Cornelius Fudge and Professor McGonagall and Hagrid and Professor Flitwick and Madam Rosmerta all started talking right next to us, not noticing anybody listening. But we heard everything." One last confession tumbled from my mouth. "Sirius Black is my godfather. He tried to take me from Hagrid the night... the night my parents..."

Lucy didn't say anything, just sitting next to me, slowly moving her hand up and down my tricep. "I'm sorry, Harry, I wish I had something to say..." she said after a couple minutes of silence.

"It's okay, Lu." I lifted my head and turned to look at her. "I wouldn't know what to say, either. I don't know what I need to hear. Just... just you being here helps."

"Well... I can do that," she replied, smiling.

My eyes strayed to the book in her lap. "Please don't tell me you're actually studying on the last day of term."

She laughed. "No, I'm not. Archie loaned it to me to read over Christmas."

"What is it? It's a massive book."

" _The Chronicles of Narnia_ by C.S. Lewis," she read off the cover. "Apparently it's seven books all in one. Archie said it was his favorite series for years, and he said that if I finish this, he'll give me other books to read over summer, since..." Her smile faltered, and she got a faraway look in her eyes again.

"Since what?" I prodded, my curiosity getting the better of me. I wanted to think about something else, anything else.

"Cedric got a summer internship at St. Mungo's," she explained, looking out on the Pitch. "He leaves as soon as he finishes his O.W.L.s, and he'll be gone until the last week of August. I'm ecstatic for him, of course, I know being a healer has been his dream forever. But-"

"But you'll miss him?"

"Yeah," she said softly. "I will." 

Everything clicked into place. Spending more time with Cedric. The fragility in her eyes. Her brother was her rock. To lose him, even just for a couple months, had to be a nightmare for her.

"I've been trying to spend as much time with him as I can," she continued, "but he does still have to study for his O.W.L.s, and I reckoned I need to try to get used to being on my own."

"You won't be on your own, Lu," I said. "Not entirely. I mean, the Weasleys will be home this summer, right?"

"Hopefully," she said with a nod. She turned to me and smiled. "And I'll have you too, right?"

"Definitely. I think _I'll_ need _you_ more than you'll need me, quite frankly. You just... understand me, you know?"

Lucy's cheeks reddened. "Maybe better than you know," she whispered, almost as if I wasn't supposed to hear it. She looked me up and down. "Bloody hell, Harry, where's your coat? You do realize there's a blizzard out here, right?"

"I forgot to grab one on the way to Hogsmeade, since I was so excited about the map," I admitted. "Then I came straight here once I got back." I laughed. "So you're more concerned about my lack of coat than Sirius Black being my godfather?"

She grew even more red in the face, her eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter. "To be fair, Harry, it's a lot easier to say 'Maybe we should go inside before you freeze to death' than 'Let's go hunt Sirius Black to the ends of the earth to avenge your parents.' Obviously I'm ready to do that too, but I generally try to stick to solving one problem at a time." Her eyes wandered to my hands. "Harry, you don't even have gloves."

I looked down. "I must have lost them. I took them off in the Three Broomsticks and stuck them in my robes, but they must have fallen out in the tunnel. But I'm fine," I protested as she started taking hers off, "really. I don't mind."

"At least take _one_ ," she said, passing me the right-hand glove. "Unless you want to head inside?"

I shook my head. "I'd rather stay here with you. Ron and Hermione were looking at me as if they thought I would disintegrate."

"Well, I know you're stronger than that." She paused, and in that moment, I believed her. I wouldn't let what I had learned that day break me. "You are, however, still human," she said with a grin, "and you look like a very cold one at that. Want to head back to the castle? I can help you look for a replacement broomstick; Oliver gave me his latest edition of _Which Broomstick?_ if you're interested."

I nodded. "Sounds good." I shivered. "Bloody hell, Lucy, I wasn't actually cold until you said something."

She grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. Want my scarf?"

"No, but I'll race you back to the castle to warm up."

"You're on."

I won by a slim margin. Lucy skidded to a stop behind me, her breath creating white clouds in front of her face. "I blame this stupid book!" she exclaimed. "It's heavy! It slowed me down! I demand a rematch after the next Quidditch practice!"

I laughed. "Yeah, sure, whatever. I'll beat you twice, if you really want."

"You're on," she said, swatting my arm with the book.

"Ow! Yeah, that really is heavy."

"Told you so," she chuckled.

We pored over possible broomsticks until dinner, during which Ron and Hermione continued to look at me as if I were about to keel over and die on the spot. Lucy tried to lighten the mood by telling the story of the first time the twins showed her the map, but she and I soon recognized that the other two had dark clouds of worry over their heads. She started to slip back into her shell, and at the end of the meal, she left to run to the Owlery one last time, even though she said she hadn't seen Malachi at all that day. 

Without her, I only had Ron and Hermione's anxious glances for company, so I retreated up to my dormitory. It was only once I was there that I realized I was still wearing Lucy's glove.

I tucked it into the drawer of my nightstand, promising myself I'd give it to her in the morning. A familiar leather cover caught my eye, and before I really knew what I was doing, I had drawn the photo album from Hagrid out of its special hiding place. I sank slowly onto my bed, flipping through the pictures until I found the section devoted to my parents' wedding.

My parents both smiled and waved at me, but I could only see the best man over my dad's shoulder. I never would have recognized him, if I hadn't known he was the same person whose face was now on every corner of the British wizarding world. His eyes were devoid of madness; rather, they were alight with laughter. His cheeks were round, not sunken, and his hair was neatly combed, not hanging bedraggled around his face. 

It wasn't fair. Why did Sirius Black get to ask for the crossword section of newspapers from his cell in Azkaban while I had to hear the screams of my mother every time I passed a dementor? It wasn't _fair_.

I shut the book and tossed it back into the drawer, slamming the drawer shut. I ripped off my robes and my glasses and yanked the hangings around me as I jumped into bed.

Ron's voice came a couple minutes later, when the dormitory door opened. "Harry?"

I remained motionless, pretending to be asleep. He left after a few seconds, and I rolled onto my back. 

White-hot fury coursed through my veins. Sirius Black's face flashed across my vision whether my eyes were open or closed, the same face I had seen over my father's shoulder. My imagination ran wild, playing scenes of Sirius Black blowing up the street, telling Voldemort my parents' hiding spot, laughing after killing Peter Pettigrew. I heard Voldemort laughing too, as he killed my mother. I tossed and turned violently all night, falling asleep around dawn.

When I stumbled down the stairs, the first thing Hermione said was, “Harry, you... you look terrible.”

She and Ron were the only ones in the common room.

"Where is everyone?" I asked.

Ron looked up from his Peppermint Toad. “Gone! It’s the first day of the holidays, remember? It’s nearly lunchtime; I was going to come and wake you up in a minute.”

"Where's Lucy?" I asked, realizing _that_ was the question I was _really_ asking the first time.

"Still asleep," Hermione said. "I reckon she slept just about as well as you did. Woke up screaming for the third time this week. She keeps casting silencing charms on the curtains around her bed so she doesn't wake any of us up when she has nightmares, but sometimes she wakes up so emotional the ring shocks me awake. I haven't told her, of course, because I know that she'd feel bad and stop wearing it altogether. But I like trying to help, even if she still refuses to tell me what her nightmares are about." She sighed and looked closer at my face. “You really don’t look well, you know.”

"I'm fine," I lied.

Hermione glanced at Ron before looking back at me. “Harry, listen, you must be really upset about what we heard yesterday. But the thing is, you mustn’t go doing anything stupid.”

“Like what?”

“Like trying to go after Black,” Ron answered.

I didn't respond. It was obvious they'd rehearsed this conversation several times, and I didn't want to knock them off-script and have to listen to it all over again.

“You won’t, will you, Harry?” Hermione asked.

“Because Black’s not worth dying for,” Ron added quickly.

I stared at them for a second. They didn't understand. Not the way Lucy did. I glanced at the door to the girls' dormitory, hoping that she'd somehow come down the stairs at that exact moment and spare me from this horrible conversation and tell Hermione and Ron to leave me alone. I remembered what she'd said the day before, about hunting Sirius Black to the ends of the earth, and I wondered for half a second if she was serious. But I knew Lucy chose her words carefully, always. She never said something unless she meant it.

When I turned back to Ron and Hermione, they were still waiting for my response. “D’you know what I see and hear every time a dementor gets too near me?” I asked, my voice already testy.

They shook their heads slowly.

“I can hear my mum screaming and pleading with Voldemort. And if you’d heard your mum screaming like that, just about to be killed, you wouldn’t forget it in a hurry. And if you found out someone who was supposed to be a friend of hers betrayed her and sent Voldemort after her-”

Hermione interrupted me, saying, “There’s nothing you can do! The dementors will catch Black and he’ll go back to Azkaban and... and serve him right!”

“You heard what Fudge said. Black isn’t affected by Azkaban like normal people are. It’s not a punishment for him like it is for the others," I said through clenched teeth.

Ron looked nervous at that. “So what are you saying? You want to kill Black or something?”

“Don’t be silly, Harry doesn’t want to kill anyone, do you, Harry?”

I couldn't answer. All I knew was that I couldn't just sit around while he was free. A sudden thought occurred to me.

“Malfoy knows. Remember what he said to me in Potions? ‘If it was me, I’d hunt him down myself… I’d want revenge.’”

Ron's eyes flashed angrily. “You’re going to take Malfoy’s advice instead of ours? Listen, you know what Pettigrew’s mother got back after Black had finished with him? Dad told me: the Order of Merlin, First Class, and Pettigrew’s finger in a box. That was the biggest bit of him they could find. Black’s a madman, Harry, and he’s dangerous-”

“Malfoy’s dad must have told him. He was right in Voldemort’s inner circle-”

“Say You-Know-Who, will you?”

"-so obviously, the Malfoys knew Black was working for Voldemort-”

“-and Malfoy’d love to see you blown into about a million pieces, like Pettigrew! Get a grip. Malfoy’s just hoping you’ll get yourself killed before he has to play you at Quidditch.”

Hermione's eyes filled with desperate tears. “Harry, please, please be sensible. Black did a terrible, terrible thing, but d-don’t put yourself in danger, it’s what Black wants! Oh, Harry, you’d be playing right into Black’s hands if you went looking for him. Your mum and dad wouldn’t want you to get hurt, would they? They’d never want you to go looking for Black!”

“I’ll never know what they’d have wanted, because thanks to Black, I’ve never spoken to them!” I shouted, unable to keep my emotions in check any further.

I heard a door open slowly.

"Is everything okay?" a soft voice asked. Lucy had arrived. "What's going on?"

"Everything's fine," Ron said quickly. "Nothing's going on. I was, er, just about to suggest we go down to Hagrid's, we haven't seen him in ages!"

Hermione protested immediately. “No! Harry isn’t supposed to leave the castle, Ron!”

“Yeah, let’s go see Hagrid, and I can ask him how come he never mentioned Black when he told me all about my parents!” I stood up and turned to look at Lucy.

The sight of her face made my anger diminish from a roaring fire to a single flickering candle. Despite what Hermione had said about how fitfully Lucy had slept, there was no difference on her face. I found myself wondering how many other horrible nights had gone by without anyone noticing a thing. 

Her eyes swept from me to Hermione to Ron. "We should probably go see Hagrid," she said slowly. "I went to see him Friday, and he was... well..." She sighed, sorrow crossing her face for the first time. "Buckbeak is going to trial on April 20th. Hagrid is worried sick. I helped him get Buckbeak situated in his hut yesterday, while you were all in Hogsmeade. I had really only just gotten to the Quidditch Pitch when Harry returned."

"I thought you and my sister made plans," Ron said. "It was all she could talk about the past couple weeks."

"Yesterday ended up being too snowy for Quidditch... and for owls, apparently," she added in a soft voice with a glance out the window. She blinked hard and straightened up. "She ended up spending the day in the Ravenclaw common room, and having a great time, from the sounds of it. But anyway, let's go see Hagrid."

Ron and Hermione had nothing to say to that, so we got our cloaks from our dormitories and started down toward Hagrid's hut. But before we got there, however, Lucy gasped.

"Malachi!" We all looked up to see the brown owl, dark against the cloudy sky, shooting over our heads toward the Owlery. "I'm going to go get the package," she said breathlessly, "I need to beat Cedric to it. I... I might not... well, I'll see you all later. Tell Hagrid I'll visit him tomorrow!"

With that, she turned on her heels and sprinted as fast as she could in the same direction the owl had flown.

"What was that all about?" Ron asked.

"I have no idea," Hermione murmured.

The three of us watched Lucy's braids fly behind her until she ran out of sight, then turned and continued on to Hagrid's.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm sorry! I know you're all dying for answers about Lucy's past, but it was Harry's turn for a chapter! I promise, the next one will be very revealing, so hang tight!
> 
> The song lyrics in the beginning are from Taylor Swift's "It's Nice to Have a Friend." It's honestly my favorite song off of Lover, and I simply couldn't pass up the chance to incorporate the lyrics into my story. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Don't worry, answers are coming in the next chapter! See you all then, and thank you for reading. :)


	41. Sky Eyes

LUCY:

I rushed to the Owlery as fast as my legs could carry me. Malachi, surely enough, clutched a package in his talons with a note attached.

_Dear Lucy,_   
_Here is everything I have to give you. I hope it reaches you alright. I am sure Professor Dumbledore will instruct you in how to safely use a Pensieve. As I said in my previous letter, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns, and perhaps one day we can meet in person._   
_Happy Christmas, Lucy, and I hope you can find peace now._   
_Sincerely, Paul Midgen_

I shoved the letter into a pocket of my robes. As soon as my trembling fingers managed to successfully untie the parcel, which was a jar with what looked like no more than ten vials inside, I clutched it to my chest as if my life depended on it. In a sense, it _was_ my life I was holding in my hands... or at least, what my life could have been, should have been, would have been if only I had never been bitten. 

I wrote my letter to Mr. Midgen the last week of term. He replied immediately, saying he'd send my memories the first day of the holidays so it had the slimmest chance of being intercepted by anybody else. I waited on pins and needles all day Saturday, not really expecting it to arrive so soon but hoping regardless. When I had seen Malachi on the way to Hagrid's, it was as if nothing else in the world mattered.

I carefully tucked my first life under my left arm, close to my heart, and slowly made my way toward the castle. My half of the ring throbbed purple with dread, and I hoped Hermione wasn't paying it any mind. 

Before I really knew where I was going, I found myself in front of the Room of Requirement. I entered silently and closed the door behind me.

The only contents of the room were a Pensieve and a table. The room was lit by bright torches on the walls that cast a warm glow. I set the jar on the table and held the various glass tubes in my hand.

Each was labelled with a small tag, and some of them were tied together with small pieces of string.

One group was tied with red string. _Happy memory #1. Happy memory #2. Happy memory #3._

One group was tied with blue string. _Sad memory #1. Sad memory #2._

One group was tied with black string. _Scary memory #1. Scary memory #2 (being bitten)._

The last group was tied with yellow string. _Mom. Dad. Sister._

I carefully drew out my memory of being bitten. It seemed like the most appropriate place to start.

My hand trembled violently as I twisted the cork out of the top. I poured the silvery-white contents into the Pensieve and tried to breathe, but my lungs felt as if someone had filled them with molten iron. I gripped the sides of the Pensieve, hesitating, but the gravity of curiosity ultimately pulled me into the memory.

The night was dark, which I thought was odd, considering I knew it was a full moon. When I squinted, I could see that I was standing in front of a small hotel, and a family had just exited a side door.

"Where are we going, Daddy?" a small American voice asked. I followed the family, knowing it was mine.

"The moon is going to play a game tonight!" a man replied. 

"A game?" a different voice asked. My throat tightened. It was _my_ voice. I just knew it. "How?"

"It's going to play hide-and-seek! See, sometimes the moon uses Earth to hide from the sun, and that's tonight! It should look really neat!"

"Wow," Little Lucy said. "I like games!"

"Will Nanna be able to see it, Mommy?" the first girl asked softly. "Nanna loves the moon."

"I'm sure she'll see it, Claire," a woman said, her voice tight with unshed tears. "She wouldn't miss it."

The small family had reached the woods. My eyes were beginning to adjust, but the darkness of the night made it difficult to see any details about the people. I could tell that my dad was holding me, and Claire was holding my --- our --- mom's hand. I reasoned quickly that Claire must have been my sister, but older or younger, I couldn't tell. I mentally chided myself for choosing this memory first, but it was too late. I had to see it through.

The family continued in silence until they reached a clearing. I watched as the silhouette of my dad lifted my small figure onto his shoulders. "Can you see it, Sky Eyes?"

"I can! Claire, Claire, look!"

"I see it, Lucy! It's so cool!"

I ventured a glance at the sky. Claire was right; it was cool. I stepped forward until I stood between the silhouettes of my parents. I knew I wasn't there, not really, but... but it felt close enough. It was too dark to see anybody's faces, but their voices were enough.

My parents stepped closer together, so I jumped out of the way. Their fingertips intertwined, and for a single moment, the world stood still.

A low growl in the trees made my dad's entire body stiffen. He instantly jumped in front of my mom, and I felt inexplicable warmth in my chest. That was exactly what I would have done.

"Abby, take Claire back to the hotel."

"What about Lucy?" she asked, her voice shaking.

"You'll go faster with just Claire. I'll be right behind you." He turned around and swiftly kissed her. "I'll stand between whatever it is and you until you're safely out of the woods, okay?"

"Danny-"

"I'll be right behind you."

"What's going on?" Claire inquired, clinging to my mom's leg. "Why can't we stay and look at the moon some more?"

"We'll look from the hotel room," he answered. "I promise. Abby... please. I'll be two minutes behind you."

My mom nodded, lifting Claire onto her hip and hurrying away. 

"Daddy, the moon is so cool," Little Lucy said. "Is Nanna watching? You said she was in the sky now."

"You know, Luce... I think Nanna has the best view of all of us."

"Good." I could hear the smile in Little Lucy's voice. My dad lowered me from his shoulders and just held me in his arms. I watched as Little Lucy buried her head in the nape of his neck. We stood in silence for about two minutes, as promised.

Then my dementor-fueled recollection began.

"We need to get back to the hotel, baby girl," my dad, my real dad, said.

I protested. "Daddy, I'm five now. I'm not a baby anymore!"

"You'll always be my baby girl, Lucy. Let's just go back-"

A massive grey werewolf snatched me, and my dad stumbled after me.

"Lucy! Lucy, no, not my Lucy! Get away from her!"

I heard the bite. I heard the scream of agonizing pain. 

"Lucy! Daddy's coming! Hang on, baby girl! Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!"

I watched, mesmerized, as my dad, my real dad, lunged at the werewolf, knocking him off of Little Lucy with such force that the werewolf actually whimpered in pain. The two of them disappeared into the trees with growling and panting. I wanted to follow, but before I could, I watched as my dad, my other dad, Cedric's dad, stepped into the clearing, his wand held in front of him, dimly illuminated. 

He bent over Little Lucy, watching with fascination as the blood spread over her white pajama shirt.

"Impossible," he whispered, reaching forward and grabbing Little Lucy around the waist.

They disapparated with a crack, and I was thrown out of the Pensieve onto the stone floor of the Room of Requirement in its present state. I knew that should have hurt, but I was in too much shock to really feel it. I struggled to catch my breath; it felt like all of the air had been stolen from the room.

I knew that was the last memory I had. I had no way of knowing if my dad, Danny Everlin, was alive or dead. Any other memories I watched would be from before that horrible, horrible night. 

But at the same time... I needed to know. I needed to know what my life had been before.

I pushed myself to my feet and gathered the silvery substance back into its tube with my wand and secured the cork back in place. I reached for the one labeled "Dad" and poured the contents into the Pensieve.

The memories flashed before my eyes so quickly I was afraid to blink. 

"I love you, Sky Eyes," he said, swinging my hand back and forth as we walked down a sidewalk.

"You're okay, Lucy, Daddy's got you," he murmured as he swept me up into his bare chest.

"Happy birthday, Sky Eyes!" he exclaimed as I reached for a brightly-wrapped box.

"Say cheese, girls!" my mom, my real mom, said as she lifted a camera, but I was only looking at my dad, standing behind her and making a goofy face so we would laugh.

Then I heard my own voice, my own five-year-old voice, as my dad's smiling face filled my vision. "Daddy's name is Danny. That's what Mommy calls him. I love him because he gives really big bear hugs, and he calls me Sky Eyes because he says my eyes are blue like the sky. Sometimes he swings me around so I can fly. I know I'm not _really_ flying, but I like to close my eyes and pretend I am. I... I miss my daddy. I think he misses me too, but I'll see him soon, right?"

When nothing else happened, I reluctantly pulled myself out of the Pensieve.

My biological dad's name was Danny Everlin, probably Daniel. I had no way of knowing if he was alive or dead, but I knew his name.

And Sky Eyes... I liked the sound of that.

I gathered the memories back into the glass tube and reached for my mom's.

I was greeted by the same blur of memories.

"Good night, baby," she whispered as she pulled a soft blanket up to my chin and kissed the top of my head.

"I'll see you after school!" she called with a bright smile and a wave as I passed through a chain-link gate to a brightly-colored playground.

"What do you think?" she asked as she gestured toward a mirror, where I could see my hair had been fashioned into two braids with sparkly hair ties at the ends.

"You look so much like your beautiful mother," a very ill-looking elderly woman whispered fondly as she reached forward to touch my face. 

My mom's smiling face filled my vision as my five-year-old voice narrated once again. "Mommy's name is Abby, but Nanna always calls her Abigail. I love her because she makes really yummy cinnamon rolls and braids my hair before school every day. She always waits under the oak tree for me and Claire after school, and she always tries to hug both of us at the same time even though we're too big now. I hope Mommy will be waiting for me at the hotel when I go back. I need to tell her about the magic that made the boo boo go away!"

I removed myself from the Pensieve again, only faintly aware of the tears clinging to my cheeks as I returned her memories to their tube and dumped my sister's in. I gasped when I saw Claire's face --- it was the same face from the Mirror of Erised.

Her memories flashed by the fastest. 

Infectious giggles permeated every snapshot. Platinum blonde curls flying behind her as we ran together across grassy fields. Swirling pink dresses as the two of us stumbled around a dance floor. Freckled arms reached to the sun as we jumped on a trampoline.

Splashing in a kiddie pool in matching blue swimsuits. Cuddling together in the same sleeping bag under the stars. Having a stuffed animal tea party. 

The final memory was of us being pushed on swings, Mom pushing her and Dad pushing me. We shrieked "Higher! Higher!" in unison, giggling and gasping, our hair whipping around our faces.

Soon, her face alone filled my vision, freckles splashed across her cheeks as she beamed at me. It was the same face I had seen in the Mirror of Erised, but it was so different at the same time. This face was happy, so happy. My heart ached at the sight of it. Her life was every bit as upside down as mine, if not even more so.

"Claire is my best friend. Mommy always tells people we're Irish twins, which she says means we were born less than a year apart. But she's in first grade, and I'm in kindergarten, and she's six and I'm five. But I like being her Irish twin. She makes me laugh, and she always shares her cookies with me when I eat all of mine too fast. We go on adventures together, where we're princesses that save ourselves from the scary dragons outside the castle. Daddy calls her Ocean Eyes, because her eyes are a little darker than mine, but still blue. I... I miss her the most. I miss my best friend. She misses me too, I just know it."

I yanked myself out of the Pensieve and fell to the ground, numb with shock. My poor family... my poor _me_.

I eventually pulled myself together and tucked all of the memories back into the jar, casting unbreaking charms as I went, and turned toward the door.

"Thank you," I said softly to the room. I slipped the jar into the deepest pocket of my robe and left for the Hufflepuff common room. It was time to tell --- and show --- Cedric.

I let myself into the common room, and despite everything, I couldn't help but smile at what I saw. Cedric had turned the radio up as loud as possible to his favorite song ("Magic Works" by The Weird Sisters, hopeless romantic that he was) and was humming along to himself as he tied a golden bow on a small box. He hadn't heard me come in because the music was so loud, and for half a second, I was tempted just to turn around and save the memories for another day. But I knew that the truth had waited long enough, and I knew I was too weak to go any further into the journey of my past without my best friend by my side.

"That's a cute bow, Ced!" I called.

My poor brother jumped three feet into the air. His hand flew to turn the music down, and I just laughed.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," I giggled. "Who's that for?"

"Cho," he said, turning a violent shade of red. Even the tips of his ears were burning. "I wanted to give it to her before she left, but I slept in this morning by accident so now I just have to send it and hope she gets it in time."

I nodded thoughtfully. "I'm sure it will. We have almost a week before Christmas."

"You know, Lu, I don't think I ever asked you why you wanted to stay. It's okay, of course," he added quickly, "I'm excited to be here with Henry for the first time, but I thought you'd want a break from the dementors."

I shrugged, my heart beginning to speed up as the truth came closer to tumbling out of my lips. "Well, Harry's staying, and Hermione and Ron and I all kind of agreed without talking about it to keep him company. And... and..." I reached down to fidget with the jar. "Well, there's... something else. Something I... I want to tell you. Something I think you'd want to know."

He furrowed his brow and patted the couch cushion next to him. "What is it, Lu? You can tell me."

I rubbed the back of my neck, not moving. "I... I think we should talk about it somewhere else."

"Don't worry, Henry won't come down. He's planning to sleep all day."

"Please trust me," I said in a small voice. "You're... going to need proof. I could have told you this a lot sooner but... I wanted you to have proof."

He looked even more confused, but he rose from the couch and walked over to where I was standing. "Are you okay, Lu? You're scaring me a bit."

My heart did a somersault in my chest. I managed a nod. "I'm okay. W-Will you follow me?"

"Of course. Where did you want to go?"

"The Room of Requirement," I replied. "I-I just came from there. It has what I need."

"Lu, have you been crying?"

I shook my head and ducked out of the common room.

He followed. "Are you sure? Lucy, what's wrong?"

I walked faster, gesturing for him to keep up.

"I can't explain," I said quickly, my voice quavering as I tried to keep my tears at bay. "Not here. I promise I will as soon as we get there."

I practically ran back to the Room of Requirement, Cedric matching my pace and not asking any more questions. I opened the door, and relaxed a little in relief when I saw that the room was the same as it had been when I left.

"Is that a Pensieve?" Cedric asked.

I nodded, approaching the table slowly and setting the jar down next to it. I turned to face my brother, who looked increasingly confused and concerned as he looked from the Pensieve to the jar to me and back again.

"Lucy, what... what's going on?"

I swallowed hard. "Cedric, I... I've waited a long time to explain this, but I still don't really know what to say about it all." I sighed shakily, looking down at my toes. "I guess I should start by saying it's about the dementors. I need you to see what I've seen, I... I need you to understand." I looked back up at him. "I'm sorry, Ced, but I can't do this without you."

"I'm not going to pretend I have the slightest clue what's happening, but I'm here, Lu. Whatever you need."

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course I do," he replied immediately, nodding. "So... the dementors, you said?"

I nodded. "That's when this all started. I... I guess... well, I think it'll be easier for me just to show you."

I reached into the jar and drew the memory, quickly dumping it into the Pensieve so Cedric didn't have time to ask questions about the other glass tubes. 

"Ready?" I asked, not looking back.

Cedric reached forward and grabbed my hand. "Of course."

We pitched forward and landed on our feet.

"Okay." I could tell Cedric was beyond baffled, but he was trying so hard to be supportive and brave for me. I clung tightly to his hand. It felt so much better having him there. "Where are we?"

"I'm still not completely sure," I said, trying to keep my voice level. "But in about five seconds, a family of four is going to leave out of that door... there they are. We have to follow them, because it's so dark we'll get lost."

I went silent as the voices began.

"Where are we going, Daddy?" 

"The moon is going to play a game tonight!" 

"A game? How?"

"It's going to play hide-and-seek! See, sometimes the moon uses Earth to hide from the sun, and that's tonight! It should look really neat!"

"Wow! I like games!"

"Will Nanna be able to see it, Mommy? Nanna loves the moon."

"I'm sure she'll see it, Claire. She wouldn't miss it."

"They're American?" Cedric asked softly.

"Yeah, they are. They're going to walk for a couple of minutes in silence, so I... I guess I should explain a little about what's going to happen." I swallowed hard. "Cedric, I'm the little girl who asked about the game."

Cedric stopped dead in his tracks. "What?"

"I'm sorry." I gently tugged on Cedric's hand, and he started walking again. "This is the night I was bitten. I know it's dark," I said quickly, sensing his question before he even asked it, "it's an eclipse. It's still a full moon. I still don't know why I'm here in the Forest of Dean, but I'm guessing the Nanna that Claire asked about is somehow involved. I know it's a lot to take in, but... but please trust me."

"I do," he said. "I don't understand, not yet, but I trust you."

I squeezed Cedric's hand, and he squeezed back. We walked in silence until the family stopped.

I watched as I was lifted onto my dad's shoulders. "Can you see it, Sky Eyes?"

"I can! Claire, Claire, look!"

"I see it, Lucy! It's so cool!"

An image of her smiling face popped into my mind. "Claire, I'm so sorry," I whispered. I understood this second time just how much we meant to each other, once upon a time. The thought made my chest ache.

I watched as my parents' silhouettes linked fingers. I tensed up. The growl came.

"Just a few minutes now," I said to Cedric, and he instinctively tightened his grip on my hand. "My parents will split up. Then the werewolf targets me."

"Abby, take Claire back to the hotel."

"What about Lucy?"

"You'll go faster with just Claire. I'll be right behind you. I'll stand between whatever it is and you until you're safely out of the woods, okay?"

"Danny-"

"I'll be right behind you."

"What's going on? Why can't we stay and look at the moon some more?"

"We'll look from the hotel room. I promise. Abby... please. I'll be two minutes behind you."

Cedric and I stepped out of the way as my mom and Claire left. 

"Daddy, the moon is so cool. Is Nanna watching? You said she was in the sky now."

"You know, Luce... I think Nanna has the best view of all of us."

"Good."

I shut my eyes tightly and buried my face against Cedric. "I can't watch this again," I whispered hoarsely. "The werewolf snatches me from him. Then... then... you'll see."

Cedric rested a hand on my shoulder as we waited. I could tell he was just as tense as I was. Surely enough, I heard it all over again.

"We need to get back to the hotel, baby girl."

"Daddy, I'm five now. I'm not a baby anymore!"

"You'll always be my baby girl, Lucy. Let's just go back- Lucy! Lucy, no, not my Lucy! Get away from her!"

Little Lucy screamed. I couldn't breathe.

"Lucy! Daddy's coming! Hang on, baby girl! Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!"

My dad's shouts faded away. Cedric's dad's footsteps grew closer.

"Impossible."

The crack of disapparation sent us back to reality. I turned to face Cedric, whose mouth was hanging slightly ajar with shock. I inched closer and rested my head against his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Cedric," I said, my voice cracking. "I shouldn't have shown-"

His arms immediately wrapped around me and pulled me into his chest. "No, Lucy, no. Don't be sorry. I'm _so_ glad I know."

"Y-You are?"

"Absolutely."

"But... but now you know I'm not..."

"Lucy." He somehow pulled me closer. "You'll always be my sister. I promise."

And for the first time that day, I broke down completely.

I was beyond glad we had decided to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. I had initially stayed to keep Harry company along with Ron and Hermione, like I told Cedric, but as I explored each new memory, I was increasingly glad I didn't have to go home and face my parents. Or, rather, Cedric's parents.

I had a hard time wrapping my mind around the whole idea of it. Cedric's constant reassurance that I'd always be his sister was welcome but not entirely needed; I knew he was as much my brother as Claire was my sister. He had been thrown into all of this just as much as I was. But my parents (or Cedric's parents, or whoever they were) was a different story. I still didn't know the full extent of Mum's role, but Dad... I tried not to think of it. I didn't want to have to think of it, not yet. I wasn't ready. I needed to get my own bearings before trying to figure out where I stood with anyone else.

Cedric and I spent the rest of that fateful Sunday in the Room of Requirement. Cedric insisted that I view each memory by myself first, promising he'd be right there when I came back, since it was my family and my life. But after I had seen all of the memories, I brought him with me. I wanted --- no, _needed_ \--- him to understand.

I wasn't terribly hungry after the emotional ordeal I'd just been through, so I gave Cedric one last bone-crushing hug and headed up to the common room, promising him I'd be down at breakfast the next morning and yes, I'd eat if I got hungry later.

I was relieved to see that the common room was empty. I hurried up to my dormitory and carefully tucked the jar into the bottom of the trunk at the foot of my bed, Dumbledore's warning from over a month ago ringing in my head.

_After Harry found the Mirror of Erised, I warned him that becoming too wrapped up in one's past can impair their ability to see clearly in the present. I fear that your case could prove far more dangerous if you're not careful, Lucy. You will need to be patient, with yourself and with others, as you navigate whatever your memories may show you. A time will come where you reach the place where your past and your present intersect, but there is no amount of remembering that can make that time come any faster. I cannot tell you how often to think of the memories, but I can warn you not to spend too much time watching them over and over. You have a family where you are right now that needs you, too. Remember them, even after you've remembered your first family._

I had promised him that I'd still treasure the people immediately around me, and I intended to do exactly that. But Merlin... it was hard placing a robe over the jar to keep it hidden from sight. It seemed painfully symbolic.

* * *

In the nights that followed, I had many dreams of the memories I had seen. The obliviation charm had thoroughly erased any memories aside from the ones I had already seen, so my brain analyzed every second of the eleven tubes that it could remember.

I dreamt of my fifth birthday party, of my first day of kindergarten, of playing with my family's puppy. I dreamt of seeing Nanna's lifeless body in a coffin, of watching Claire leave for her first day of kindergarten knowing I wouldn't follow for another whole year. I dreamt of the night I was bitten, and of the time a rogue wave swept me up and nearly killed me (which explained why I'd always been afraid of water, even if I could never recall why). But most often, I dreamt of my family. I heard my dad's voice calling me "Sky Eyes," I felt my mom's hands braiding my hair, I saw Claire's face beaming at me like I was her favorite person in the world. 

I woke every morning feeling as if my heart had been torn in two. Part of me wanted so desperately just to roll over and lose myself again in the world of dreams, in the world I once knew, in the world that had been stolen from me. But every day, I got out of bed anyway, remembering just how happy my life at Hogwarts was, even if it had never really been complete.

I spent my mornings in the common room, most often reading _The Chronicles of Narnia_ on the couch with Hermione beside me reading whatever she could get her hands on while Ron and Harry played wizard's chess or Exploding Snap (or a combination of the two they called Ron and Harry's Exploding Chess). Cedric and Henry joined the four of us for lunch, since they were the only other students who stayed, and sometimes after lunch, Cedric would pull me aside to ask how I was doing. I was honest, admitting how hard it was trying to balance everything, but I was also careful to remind him that I loved him and that no matter what, I would always be glad to have him in my life. I spent my afternoons helping Hagrid, either running around the magical creatures reserve or researching for Buckbeak's case. It was a brilliant distraction. Interacting with magical creatures had always made me feel better about my own magical-creature-ish-ness, and research required so much concentration I couldn't possibly think about anything (or anybody) else. I usually went to bed pretty early after dinner, eager to see my family again regardless of which memory my brain chose that night.

Christmas Eve and Christmas were a change of pace. I spent Christmas Eve with Cedric and Henry in the Hufflepuff common room. Cedric introduced Henry to cribbage for the first time, since they'd been too busy studying for O.W.L.s to fit in a single game beforehand, and I introduced them both to Ron and Harry's Exploding Chess. It was nice, too, that their common room was closer to the kitchens. We roasted marshmallows in the fireplace, and the house elves even helped us make cookies. I brought a full plate up to the Gryffindor common room a couple minutes before curfew, and they all disappeared within minutes. 

Crookshanks announced Christmas morning had dawned by sitting on my back and pawing at my hair.

"Good morning, you adorable fuzzball of a cat," I said through a yawn. "Where's your mother?"

"I'm the one who set him on you," Hermione laughed. "You were _really_ asleep! Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas! Alright, Crookshanks, get off, I can't breathe."

Crookshanks meowed and jumped into Hermione's arms. I rolled out of bed and reached for my pile of presents. I plucked a piece of tinsel from the one from my parents (or Cedric's parents, or whoever they were) and handed it to Hermione.

"Tie it around his neck!" I suggested.

She giggled and took the tinsel from my hand, tying it in a loose bow. "You look so handsome!" she gushed.

"Good boy, Crookshanks," I laughed. She set him on her bed and gathered her own presents.

We opened them in sweet silence. I shared a cookie from home with her, since her dentist parents had only sent sugar-free sweets. I wondered aloud how Muggles even _did_ that, but she just rolled her eyes and said it was better if I didn't know.

My favorite gift was my gift from Cedric. It was a small orb that looked like a crystal ball, but the note attached explained that whenever one of us touched it, it would glow for the other person. He hoped it would be an easy way to stay connected while he was gone over summer, but I planned to use it to communicate even just from dormitory to dormitory. The back of the note contained a small key.

I tapped it three times experimentally. I love you.

To my pleasant surprise, four taps came right back. I love you too.

Hermione and I decided to remain in our pajamas to head up to the boys' dormitory. The sound of laughter met our ears before we even opened the door.

“What’re you two laughing about?” Hermione asked.

Ron's eyes bulged when he saw Crookshanks, and he scooped Scabbers up to hide him away in his pajama pocket. “Don’t bring him in here!”

But Hermione and I had noticed the Firebolt at the same time, so she dropped Crookshanks onto someone's bed and stepped closer to examine the broom.

“Oh, _Harry_! Who sent you _that_?” she gushed.

He shrugged. “No idea. There wasn’t a card or anything with it.”

Hermione bit her lip.

“What’s the matter with you?” Ron asked.

“I don’t know, but it’s a bit odd, isn’t it? I mean, this is supposed to be quite a good broom, isn’t it?”

"The best broom there is," I agreed with a smile.

“So it must’ve been really expensive?” she continued.

“Probably cost more than all the Slytherins’ brooms put together!” Ron replied.

“Well... who’d send Harry something as expensive as that, and not even tell him they’d sent it?”

Ron rolled his eyes. “Who cares? Listen, Harry, can I have a go on it? Can I?”

"Wait!" Hermione exclaimed. “I don’t think anyone should ride that broom just yet!”

The other three of us in the room turned to her with dumbfounded expressions.

“What d’you think Harry’s going to do with it, sweep the floor?” Ron retorted.

She was about to reply, but Crookshanks launched himself at Ron. In a flurry of motion, Scabbers tried to escape but was caught by Ron, and Ron tried to kick Crookshanks but connected with Harry's trunk instead.

"Get him out of here!" Ron shouted, and I rushed forward to grab Crookshanks around the middle. Crookshanks raked his claws across my face in protest, but I gamely held on.

"I'll take him to the dormitory," I said, struggling with his weight. He really was a very large cat. Hermione followed, complaining about Ron's attempt to kick Crookshanks.

"He was just trying to protect Scabbers," I replied. "We should probably lock Crookshanks in here for the rest of the day. It's Christmas, after all. Scabbers deserves a break."

Hermione muttered a few choice words about Scabbers and Ron under her breath, but lapsed into silence as we changed into robes for the day. I was about to head down to the common room when Hermione gasped.

"Lucy, what happened to your face?"

I turned around to look in a mirror, having forgotten that Crookshanks had scratched me. "Oh, it's nothing."

"Did Crookshanks do that?"

I nodded, rifling through my trunk looking for my wand.

"I'm sorry," she said, her voice soft and genuine.

"Oh, it's okay, don't be sorry. It's what cats do. They chase rats, and they scratch at the people who try to get between them and rats."

"M-Maybe we should leave Crookshanks up here for today. Before you get hurt again."

"I don't mind, honestly," I said, drawing my wand out and tapping my face. "Episkey! But Ron would probably appreciate it if we did."

"I'm not doing it for him," she muttered. "I'm still plenty mad at him. I'm only sorry you got hurt."

I sighed. "I'll meet you downstairs. I'll go wash the blood off my face."

When I arrived in the common room, the air was tense --- too tense for Christmas day.

Harry and I had a silent exchange that went a little something like this:

I shrugged, trying to ask, "What's going on?"

He nodded toward Ron and Hermione and rolled his eyes, as if to say, "What do you think? The two of them are at it again."

I rolled my eyes right back at him and gestured toward the portrait hole, asking if he wanted to leave.

He gave one short, enthusiastic nod, and I nodded back in understanding.

"Want to go see if the conditions are good for flying, Harry?" I asked.

He jumped to his feet at once. "Yeah, let's go! We'll be back soon!"

As soon as we were out of the common room, we burst out laughing.

"You didn't even give them room to protest!" I exclaimed.

"You created the perfect opportunity for us to get away and them to figure it out, I wasn't about to waste that! I hope the snow's let up. I can't wait to try the Firebolt."

"It's a beauty," I agreed. "There was really no note?"

"Not a single scrap of explanation anywhere. Ron thought it was Dumbledore or Professor Lupin, but-"

I laughed. "Not a chance. But I get the feeling you wouldn't care even if it was from Voldemort himself?"

"A Firebolt is a Firebolt." He grinned. "I can finally beat you in a race again."

"More importantly, you can beat everyone else to the Snitch, easily," I replied.

"That too."

To our immense disappointment, the snow swirled so thickly outside it was nearly impossible to see anything other than white.

"I sure hope the plimpies are okay," I said, half to myself and half to Harry. 

"Plimpies?"

"Little fish with two legs that live on the shores of the Black Lake. They don't like the snow very much. Hagrid had me bring them warmed food the other day so they wouldn't freeze. Maybe I should go check on them-"

I took a step out into the blizzard, and was almost immediately knocked to the ground with a violent burst of wind.

Harry caught me by the elbow, laughing. "On second thought, maybe Hagrid should go check on them. He's a little more wind-resistant. Seriously, Lu, Fred and George told me that they thought you were going to be blown all the way back to King's Cross in our last Quidditch match."

"It's not my fault I'm small," I complained, blushing. 

"Cedric stole all of your family's height, I'm guessing?"

I recalled that both of my biological parents were tall and managed a smile. "I don't know, I'm still holding out hope that I'll grow... eventually."

"Until then, keep hoping," he teased.

"Oh, shut up, Harry," I laughed, swatting his arm as we made our way back up to the common room.

The tension had largely disappeared by Christmas dinner, or at least enough so that Ron and Hermione could sit next to each other without snapping. I sat between Cedric and Harry, and I felt happier than I had felt in quite a long time.

Everyone sat at a single table, since there were only us six kids, the four Heads of Houses, Professor Dumbledore, and Mr. Filch. We had only just begun when the doors opened to reveal a woman with very large eyes and a green sequined dress.

"That's Professor Trelawney," Harry muttered to me, a look of mingled horror and amusement on his face. I gave a small nod of acknowledgement and returned my attention to my potatoes.

“Sybill, this is a pleasant surprise!” Dumbledore exclaimed.

When she replied, her voice sounded as if it were coming from the end of a tunnel. I supposed it was the result of so many years of teaching Divination. “I have been crystal gazing, Headmaster, and to my astonishment, I saw myself abandoning my solitary luncheon and coming to join you. Who am I to refuse the promptings of fate? I at once hastened from my tower, and I do beg you to forgive my lateness.”

“Certainly, certainly. Let me draw you up a chair.” Surely enough, a chair landed between Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall.

I bit back a laugh. I couldn't tell who was less thrilled by this particular seating arrangement. Both looked significantly soured by the turn of events.

Professor Trelawney gasped dramatically. “I dare not, Headmaster! If I join the table, we shall be thirteen! Nothing could be more unlucky! Never forget that when thirteen dine together, the first to rise will be the first to die!”

“We’ll risk it, Sybill. Do sit down, the turkey’s getting stone cold," Professor McGonagall said, and I fought even harder not to laugh.

She reluctantly lowered herself into a chair, and Professor McGonagall offered her a dish.

She blinked hard and looked around the table. “But where is dear Professor Lupin?”

Professor Dumbledore shook his head sadly. “I’m afraid the poor fellow is ill again. Most unfortunate that it should happen on Christmas Day.”

Hermione turned to look at me, but I pointedly ignored her. Yes, I was feverish and uncomfortable and I felt a headache coming on, but I wasn't going to let that get in the way of Christmas.

“But surely you already knew that, Sybill?” Professor McGonagall asked innocently.

“Certainly I knew, Minerva, but one does not parade the fact that one is All-Knowing. I frequently act as though I am not possessed of the Inner Eye, so as not to make others nervous.”

“That explains a great deal.”

I glanced at Harry. He looked as if he were about to explode from suppressing his laughter.

“If you must know, Minerva, I have seen that poor Professor Lupin will not be with us for very long. He seems aware, himself, that his time is short. He positively fled when I offered to crystal gaze for him-”

"Imagine that."

Professor Dumbledore cut in authoritatively. “I doubt that Professor Lupin is in any immediate danger. Severus, you’ve made the potion for him again?”

“Yes, Headmaster,” Snape replied.

“Good! Then he should be up and about in no time," Dumbledore said. "Ron, have you had any of the chipolatas? They’re excellent.”

Ron hefted three of the sausages onto his plate and smiled. "Can't wait!"

Harry and I let our laughter finally escape. Dumbledore knew all too well that the way to Ron's heart was through his stomach. Everyone around the table relaxed, and the meal passed with no shortage of laughter or food. Professor Trelawney seemed normal enough, until Cedric and Henry rose from the table at the same time and she screamed.

“My dears! Which of you left his seat first? Which?” she cried hysterically.

"I think you did, mate," Henry responded, glancing at Cedric briefly before looking back at the woman.

“I doubt it will make much difference, unless a mad axeman is waiting outside the doors to slaughter the first into the Entrance Hall,” Professor McGonagall said, making everyone laugh as the rest of us rose from our seats.

"Coming, Hermione?" Ron asked as she hung behind.

“No, I want a quick word with Professor McGonagall," she said quickly.

The boys and I exchanged a glance and shrugged.

“Probably trying to see if she can take any more classes,” Ron reasoned.

"And what do you know, no crazed murderers," Harry remarked as we stepped into the Entrance Hall. 

I laughed. "Is she always like that? Professor Trelawney?"

"Oh yeah," Ron muttered. "Imagine how bad she is without Professor McGonagall around to poke holes in everything she says. Be glad you're in Ancient Runes."

I considered saying something about how I'd rather deal with her lunacy than Malfoy's bullying, but I refrained. No sense in letting thoughts of the blond prick ruin my Christmas.

Good old Sir Cadogan was having quite the party when we reached the portrait hole. He pushed his helmet up with his tankard.

“Merry --- hic --- Christmas! Password?”

"Scurvy cur," Ron said, trying to keep a straight face.

“And the same to you, sir!” he replied as the hole opened.

We all laughed as we stumbled through. Harry brought down his Firebolt and his Broomstick Servicing Kit Hermione had gotten him for his birthday, but there was nothing to touch up at all.

"It's already perfect," I said reverently.

The boys nodded their agreement.

"Reckon it's got good enough control I could fly it in here?" Harry wondered aloud, only half-joking.

"I'll try it if you try it," I chuckled, "but maybe we should save it for the Pitch."

"Hopefully the storm clears up enough by tomorrow." Ron gazed longingly at the broom. "I'd be willing to put up with the snow just to give it a try."

"You can go check on your plimpies while we ride it, Lucy," Harry teased.

I laughed. "Are you kidding me?"

He laughed too, and we were still laughing when Hermione returned with Professor McGonagall. Our laughter died immediately at the looks on their faces.

Professor McGonagall immediately made her way over to us while Hermione buried her face in a book.

“So that’s it, is it? Miss Granger has just informed me that you have been sent a broomstick, Potter,” Professor McGonagall said.

Hermione nodded, and I glanced down at the ring. Her half was pink and purple from embarrassment and fear. What had she done? 

Professor McGonagall reached down and picked the broom up, examining it carefully. “Hmm. And there was no note at all, Potter? No card? No message of any kind?”

"No," he replied.

“I see… well, I’m afraid I will have to take this, Potter.”

Harry clambered to his feet, clumsy in his panic. “W-What? Why?”

“It will need to be checked for jinxes. Of course, I’m no expert, but I daresay Madam Hooch and Professor Flitwick will strip it down-”

"Strip it down?" Ron repeated, horrified.

“It shouldn’t take more than a few weeks. You will have it back if we are sure it is jinx-free.”

Harry's hands shook as he spoke. “There’s nothing wrong with it, honestly, Professor-”

Professor McGonagall was kind but firm. “You can’t know that, Potter, not until you’ve flown it, at any rate, and I’m afraid that is out of the question until we are certain that it has not been tampered with. I shall keep you informed.”

With that, she turned on her heel and left the room. Harry and I stared after her numbly, but Ron wheeled around.

“What did you go running to McGonagall for?” he shouted at Hermione.

She tossed her book aside and yelled right back. “Because I thought --- and Professor McGonagall agrees with me --- that that broom was probably sent to Harry by Sirius Black!”

"So you're going to let the professors strip a Firebolt, a _brand new_ Firebolt, down?"

"Well, _I'm sorry_ for caring more about Harry than about a broom! For caring more about Harry than any of you! First it was Lucy, encouraging him to go to Hogsmeade and to Hagrid's, and now it's you, Ron, wanting him to fly a broom without any note or anything!"

I leaned my head back against the couch, staring up at the ceiling.

"You'd rather him just stay trapped in the castle, then? Never doing anything fun or slightly adventurous, ever?"

"If it would keep him safe, then yes!"

"It's Harry's life, you two," I said softly. "He's allowed to live it however he sees fit." I glanced over at him. "Want to walk with me? It's getting hot in here."

"Yeah, it is," he replied, his voice carefully guarded and devoid of any emotion. I rose to my feet, and followed him out of the common room. 

"Want to see if the Astronomy Tower's open?" I asked. "Should be a pretty view of the clouds up there."

He nodded, and thankfully, it was open. We talked about anything except for the broom or Ron or Hermione until darkness fell, and Ron and Hermione were gone when we arrived. 

"I'm guessing you won't want to talk to Hermione for a while?"

Harry nodded.

"You do know she really meant well, right?"

He nodded again. "Are you just being Lucy right now?"

I cocked my head. "Meaning?"

"Are you being too nice to tell me you're on Hermione's side in all this?"

"I'm not on anybody's side," I replied, shaking my head. "I just want what's best for you, Harry. Honest."

"I know Ron and Hermione do too, but..."

"But it's unfortunate that they disagree what that is?"

"Yeah. Exactly. But I do wish I had my Firebolt," he added in a grumble.

"That's more than fair." I sighed. "I guess we should head off to bed. Merry Christmas, Harry." 

"Merry Christmas, Lucy."

We went our separate ways, and I couldn't help but feel like he had the easier end of the deal. I didn't realize exactly how correct I'd be.

As soon as I entered the room, Hermione's eyes flashed. "You agree with me, right?"

"Agree with you on what?" 

"The fact that it was probably Sirius Black who got the broom," she clarified.

I nodded. "It's definitely possible."

"Definitely possible?"

"I-I mean, it makes more sense than Professor Lupin or Dumbledore. Harry said that's what Ron thought at first."

"Then why didn't you back me up?"

I staggered backward. "Hermione, I-"

"You just took Harry and left, like a coward!"

"I just want what's best for Harry," I fired back, "and having him standing there listening to you two yell at each other doesn't seem like a great way to spend a Christmas. You _did_ stay here for his sake, did you not?"

"Of course! Who knows what would have happened if I hadn't been here? He might have already gone after Sirius Black!"

"And he wouldn't have gone alone!"

Her jaw dropped. "You'd _go_ with him?"

"I couldn't let him go alone!"

"Well, of course, but why on _earth_ would you go with him? Why wouldn't you, I don't know, try to stop him? Like any _sensible_ person would do?"

"Because I understand and you don't!" My throat burned with tears. "You just don't know what it's like. You don't know what it's like to faint every time a dementor comes around, you don't know what it's like to have the weight of everyone else's expectations of you on your shoulders all the time just because of your last name, you don't know anything about what we go through every single day!" I took a deep, albeit shaky, breath. "Maybe if you understood, you wouldn't be biting my head off right now. I'm not on anybody's side in this mess except Harry's. I want what's best for him, the same way I want what's best for you."

"What's best for me?" she scoffed. "Yeah, what's best for me would be for you to just leave me alone if you're not going to be on my side. I don't have time for any of this. I should be doing homework, not arguing over a stupid broom!"

"Then do homework," I said calmly. "For what it's worth, Hermione, I agree with you. It might have been sent by Sirius Black."

"Would've been nice of you to say that an hour ago. Just leave me alone, Lucy, I have an essay to write."

"Mione, it's Christmas-"

"And?"

I sighed. "Y-You can write the essay. I'll leave you alone, if that's what's best for you."

"Trust me. It is."

The full moon three days later came and went without incident, for which I was extremely glad. The Room of Requirement continued to serve me well. There was no Hermione waiting to give me my ring back, so I went to fetch it from the drawer of my nightstand for myself. I looked over at her hand, and noticed she wasn't wearing it, either, so I left it where it was. As I descended the stairs to the common room, I didn't need the ring to tell me I was sad.

True to my word, I did leave her alone. Researching Buckbeak's case took every spare moment I had; I practically lived in Hagrid's hut for the rest of the holiday. Hagrid had plenty of entertaining stories about his years as Gamekeeper, and I was grateful for the break of the monotony of reading depressing case after depressing case. It wasn't looking good for Buckbeak, but I fought valiantly nonetheless. 

All in all, helping Hagrid was the best distraction I could imagine. He didn't remind me of the jar tucked away in the bottom of my trunk, or of the argument with Hermione. Hagrid was just Hagrid, and I loved him for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Well, now you know a large part of what I've planned since the beginning for Lucy's story. What do you think?
> 
> Thank you all for reading!


	42. Close to Something Real

_I want to heal, I want to feel,_   
_What I thought was never real_   
_I want to let go of the pain I felt so long_   
_I want to heal, I want to feel  
Like I'm close to something real  
I want to find something I've wanted all along_   
_Somewhere I belong_   
  


_"Somewhere I Belong"_   
_Linkin Park_

* * *

LUCY:

The first Care of Magical Creatures lesson of the new year was incredibly fun, though I found myself doubting Cedric would agree. Hagrid built a bonfire of salamanders, and our task was to collect enough brush to keep the fire alive. I expected to be by myself, given the way I'd been too busy to talk much to anyone over the holiday, but to my pleasant surprise, Archie tagged along with me.

"Hey, Diggory, d'you finish the Narnia books yet?"

"I did!" I exclaimed. "I'll give it back to you in Potions tomorrow."

"What did you think? Favorite characters, favorite books?"

"Well, I think Lucy has a pretty cool name."

Archie laughed. "Was it weird reading about a character with the exact same name?"

"A little," I admitted. "Digory Kirke, too. But honestly, I think my favorite character would have to be Peter."

"The whole fight with Miraz in _Prince Caspian_ is epic," he agreed. "That was probably your favorite book, if Peter was your favorite character."

I nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

"You reckon you're ready for Tolkien over the summer?"

"Are his stories like Narnia?"

"Uh..." He chuckled. "Well, you'll see. I don't think you'll be disappointed."

"I'll keep that in mind," I replied. We tossed our kindling into the roaring fire and left to find more. "Where's Cam today? I thought you two were inseparable."

"She tripped leaving Defense Against the Dark Arts today and fell face-first onto a desk. She's fine, of course, but she'll probably be in the Hospital Wing until after classes end."

"Poor thing," I remarked.

" _Clumsy_ thing," Archie corrected.

"How's that going?" I asked as casually as I could. "You and Cam, I mean. I know you've been smitten with her since day one."

He grinned and looked away. "Still working on it. I think I'll ask her to go to Hogsmeade with me, next time we go. Any advice for me?"

I laughed. "Archie, really. Me? Relationship advice?"

Archie cocked his head. "Well, obviously you've got _some_ idea of what girls like. If a guy asked you to Hogsmeade, what would you want him to say? What would you want to do once you actually get to Hogsmeade?"

I felt my cheeks glow bright red despite the cold. "I don't know," I stammered. "I've never really thought about it."

"Think about it, then. If someone were to ask you right now, what would you want him to say?"

I exhaled sharply, thoroughly flustered. I busied myself with grabbing a handful of dry leaves, trying to honestly think of something that would help. Obviously nobody would ever ask me to Hogsmeade; the notion was ridiculous. But if someone did...

"Well, to be honest." I cleared my throat. "Archie, no one's ever going to ask me. But if someone did, he'd have to be very clear. Really straightforward. He'd literally have to say, 'Lucy, would you like to go with me to Hogsmeade? I promise nobody put me up to it, this is just me honestly wanting to spend the day with you in Hogsmeade, just the two of us.'"

Archie nodded thoughtfully. "Clear. Straightforward. I think Cam would like that, too, she's very practical. What about once you actually get there? Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop?"

I laughed so hard I frightened away a salamander. "Good Godric, no way! I wouldn't be caught dead in there, unless I was making ten galleons off it on a dare or something. No, I'd rather start at Honeyduke's and get a bag of candy we could eat whenever we got hungry later in the day. I'd want to visit Zonko's, but probably not buy anything, and end the day with a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks. But other than that, I'd love to just spend the day with whoever it was walking around and eating candy and talking about whatever. And..." I let my mind wander, knowing this fantasy would never come to fruition but wanting to see it through anyway. "I'd want to get into the Shrieking Shack. I'd never do it alone, if I had the chance, but I'd do it with him... whoever he was."

I entertained the notion just a bit more. Whoever the boy was, I would obviously have to tell him I was a werewolf. If by some miracle that didn't scare him away, I'd want to go to the Shrieking Shack in broad daylight. Partially to redeem it for myself. Partially to face my fears with someone I loved by my side. I would want him to know. I would want him to see. I would want him to try to understand all of the pain I'd been through, hoping maybe he could somehow make it better. And if he couldn't... well, maybe feeling understood would be enough.

"I could see Cam enjoying Honeyduke's and Zonko's," Archie said, snapping me from my daze. "You're sure about the tea shop? Cedric told me it's _the_ date spot. Like, a classic. Totally traditional."

"It is," I agreed, "but to be frank, Archie, I don't think either of us are very traditional."

"Ah, yeah, you're right. I shouldn't pretend to be something I'm not just to impress a girl. Even if that girl is Cam."

I nodded. "Very wise of you. You want her to like you for you. You shouldn't have to pretend to be someone you're not just because you feel like that's the only way you'll feel loved."

He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "Something tells me you need to listen to yourself, Diggory."

I dismissed him with a wave of my hand. "Yeah, yeah, maybe."

I was sad to have to trade Archie (my favorite Slytherin) for Draco (my least favorite Slytherin) in Ancient Runes. The whole period was spent reviewing the holiday homework, meaning we essentially had a free period since our homework was perfect. I got a book out to research Buckbeak's case, but it was nearly impossible to focus.

"Heard you and Cedric stayed behind for Christmas. What happened, Diggory, your parents didn't want to see your face and your poor brother stayed behind to keep your sorry arse company?"

"Yeah, that's exactly what happened," I retorted sarcastically. "How perceptive, Draco, I'm really impressed."

"Didn't realize we were on a first-name basis."

I sighed. I tried to call him Draco whenever possible, because I knew he thought the last name Malfoy made him better than anyone else, but I didn't feel like explaining that to him at the moment.

"What're you reading?"

I held up the cover silently, and he barked out a harsh laugh.

"Trying to save the bloody hippogriff, are you?"

"And what if I am?" I asked, feeling my face flame. 

"It's pointless, you know. It attacked me. It'll have to pay the consequences."

"His name is Buckbeak," I hissed. "He attacked you because you provoked him. Hagrid warned us to never insult a hippogriff, then you turned around and did exactly that. What would you expect to happen?"

"I doubt that'll much matter to the executioner," he replied in a maddeningly cool voice. "Father says he's rather axe-happy. It's a lost cause, so don't lose any sleep over that monster."

Monster. My favorite word. I felt tears prick the back of my eyes, but I refused to let a single one show.

"No living creature is ever a lost cause," I managed to say. 

"Not even you?"

I bit my lip, knowing I was about to cry. I shot my hand into the air. "Professor Babbling, may I use the restroom?"

She didn't even glance up from the essay she was grading. "Of course, Miss Diggory."

I turned around to head to do exactly that, but before I left, I spied an all-too-familiar bushy head of hair in the back corner of the room. Hermione's eyes met mine, and I felt my jaw drop ever so slightly. How long had she been in the class?

I tore my eyes away from her and made a beeline for Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, the only place I knew I wouldn't be bothered. I pulled my knees to my chest and began to cry quietly. I had only been crying for about a minute when a flash of cold made me lift my head in a panic.

"What's wrong?" Myrtle asked, floating in front of me and studying me through her glowing glasses. "Did something horrible happen?"

"Not really," I admitted. "Nothing new, anyway."

"What did he say?"

"What do you mean?"

"When girls cry, it's almost always because a boy said something mean... so what did he say?"

I took a shaky breath. "I said no living creature is a lost cause, and he asked, 'Not even you?'" No sooner had the words left my mouth than I saw Myrtle's eyes well up. "Oh, Merlin's beard, Myrtle, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking-"

"Am I a lost cause? Since I- I'm-"

"No, not at all! Of course not!"

"But I'm not a living-"

"You are, in your own way. You still matter, Myrtle, and I'm glad you're still here. We never would have saved Ginny without you."

"Really?" she asked with a sniffle.

"Really." I sighed. "I'm sorry for bothering you. I just needed a place to cry after the past couple weeks. Being told I was a lost cause really just..."

"That's horrible!" Myrtle exclaimed, suddenly reminded of what I had first said. "You're not a lost cause! What happened the past couple weeks?"

"My best friend and I had an argument on Christmas, and she doesn't talk to me anymore," I mumbled. "And I've been so busy trying to save a hippogriff from being executed that I haven't had time for any of my other friends, either, and my brother has been studying for his O.W.L.s which I know is stressful but I can't help him, and..." I sobbed again, and Myrtle floated closer. "I feel like I don't belong anywhere. My best friend ignores me. My other friends don't seem to care that I've been busy. And my brother is going to leave in a couple of years anyway, but it feels like he's starting to drift away and move on to the next stage of his life. I don't know where I'll go next..."

"Sounds like a bad couple of weeks."

I nodded, sniffling. "You could say that." I took a deep breath to steady myself and dragged the sleeve of my robe across my face. "I'm sorry, Myrtle, but I should probably head back to class. Thank you for listening to me."

"You're nice to me," she said with a shrug. "Most people just tell me to go away. I like talking to people like you, even if they only come when they're crying."

"I'll be back, then, sometime when I'm happier. I might be a little busy, but I'll come. We can talk about something happier."

"I'd like that. And if you want me to haunt the boy who told you that you're a lost cause, just let me know."

"I think I can handle him for now, but thank you for the offer," I chuckled. I wiped my eyes one last time and returned to Ancient Runes, glancing at Hermione again as I entered. She kept her head bowed, and I could see that she was at least two chapters ahead in the textbook, reading and taking notes feverishly. I slid back into my seat next to Draco, thankful that the class was almost over. He muttered something to be about being a crybaby, but I ignored him.

"Miss Diggory, mind if I have a word with you?" Professor Babbling called as the bell rang.

I groaned internally, since I wanted to confront Hermione and ask how long she'd been in my class without me knowing, but when I glanced over my shoulder, she was already gone, so I headed up to the front of the room. "Yes, Professor?"

"Is that Malfoy boy giving you trouble still?" she asked. "I'd be happy to talk to him if he is."

I shook my head quickly. "No, no need, Professor, but thank you. He's not giving me trouble."

"I'm glad to hear it. You're top of the class. I can't sit idly by if he's continuing to be rude to my best student like he was the first day."

"I'm... top of the class?"

"You get perfect marks on everything, Miss Diggory," she laughed. "Why do you look so surprised?"

"Because I just found out today that Hermione's in this class and I've never noticed her before," I blurted out, unable to help myself. "She's always the top of every class."

"Ah. Yes, well, her marks are still very, very good, but you're the top of this class. Feel free to remind Mr. Malfoy of that fact any time you'd like," she added with a twinkle in her eyes. "Go on to your next class now, I don't want you being late."

I smiled, remembering DADA was next. "Will do. Thanks, Professor!"

Harry already occupied the spot next to Ron that Hermione always took, so I occupied my typical seat and waited for Hermione. She slid into the other half of the desk silently and immediately reached for her books. I blinked and turned to her.

"What happened? You left Ancient Runes before I did."

"I guess you walk quickly," she muttered, not meeting my eyes.

"How long have you been in my Ancient Runes class?"

"I only missed the first day."

"Why don't you have a partner like the rest of us?"

"I work best alone," she snapped, finally looking at me. Her eyes flashed. "Any other questions?"

I winced ever so slightly. "No, I guess not."

She sighed. "You're impossible."

"I... what?"

"It's impossible to be cross with you for very long," she mumbled.

"You seemed to have an easy enough time with it," I replied in a small voice.

"Yeah, well... I'm good at being cross with people."

"Are you trying to say you want to be friends again?" I asked tentatively.

She nodded. "If _you're_ not cross with _me_ , that is."

"I stopped the second our argument ended," I admitted. I managed a smile. "I, on the other hand, am absolutely dreadful at being cross with people."

Hermione giggled. "We balance out well."

I nodded. "We do."

Professor Lupin began the lesson then, and I was glad Hermione and I had smoothed things over. Sitting next to her was far nicer than it would have been otherwise, and based on the dirty looks Ron continued to fire over his shoulder at her, it seemed our seating arrangement would last quite a while.

After class, Harry caught my eye and gestured for me to stay. I nodded to show I understood, and he walked to the front of the room as I put my books away. Hermione left the room quickly when she saw Ron was coming our way, leaving Harry and I alone with Professor Lupin.

“Ah yes, let me see," Professor Lupin was saying. "How about eight o’clock on Thursday evening? Does that work for you, Lucy?"

I nodded, realizing that Harry had asked about the dementor-handling lesson. 

Professor Lupin tapped his chin thoughtfully. "The History of Magic classroom should be large enough. I’ll have to think carefully about how we’re going to do this, since we can’t bring a real dementor into the castle to practice on. Ah, I'll think of something. See you two tomorrow!"

Harry and I exited the classroom and caught up with Ron.

“Still looks ill, doesn’t he? What d’you reckon’s the matter with him?” Ron asked.

A loud huff could be heard behind us, and we turned around to see that Hermione was trying to shove a book into her very-full bag, kneeling in front of a suit of armor.

“And what are you tutting at us for?” Ron's voice was like ice. 

“Nothing,” she replied, but her tone made very clear it was more than nothing.

Ron didn't miss it. “Yes, you were. I said I wonder what’s wrong with Lupin, and you-”

“Well, isn’t it _obvious_?”

"Hermione," I warned in a strangled voice. "Please don't... start something else."

Her eyes widened slightly as she realized what she was about to say.

“If you don’t want to tell us, don't,” Ron said.

"Fine," she snapped. "Let's go, Lucy, we have that Ancient Runes essay to write."

I cast an apologetic look at the boys and followed her to the library, immensely relieved Hermione hadn't blurted out both Professor Lupin's secret and mine in a single angry outburst.

* * *

Thursday evening, Harry and I left the Gryffindor Tower for the History of Magic classroom. It was dark and empty, so we lit the lamps and waited.

"So you and Hermione are talking again?" he asked.

I nodded. "She told me, and I quote, 'It's impossible to be cross with you for very long.'"

"Ron and I were surprised she was upset with you for as long as she was, since she had no good reason to be in the first place. We knew she'd break sooner than later."

"Didn't give her much of a chance to talk to me," I admitted with a shrug. "She told me to leave her alone, so I did." Eager to shift the attention off of myself, I rubbed the back of my neck and grinned. "The plimpies survived the blizzard, by the way. Hagrid got to them in time. I asked."

Harry laughed. "I'm happy to hear it. What'd he do, feed them some of Monday's salamanders?"

I shook my head. "No, he-"

At that moment, Professor Lupin entered the room, smiling and carrying a massive case. He set it down on Professor Binns's desk, and Harry and I walked over, curiosity thoroughly piqued.

"What's that?" Harry asked.

Professor Lupin shrugged out of his coat. “Another boggart. I’ve been combing the castle ever since Tuesday, and very luckily, I found this one lurking inside Mr. Filch’s filing cabinet. It’s the nearest we’ll get to a real dementor. The boggart will turn into a dementor when he sees you, so we’ll be able to practice on him. I can store him in my office when we’re not using him; there’s a cupboard under my desk he’ll like.”

Harry and I shuddered involuntarily, nodding nonetheless. 

Professor Lupin drew his own wand, and gestured for us to do the same. “So... the spell I am going to try and teach you two is highly advanced magic, well beyond Ordinary Wizarding Level. It is called the Patronus Charm.”

I raised my eyebrows in surprise, thinking of the conversation that had taken place on the shores of Lake Tahoe all those months ago. He was going to try to teach us how to cast _patronuses_?

“How does it work?” Harry asked uncertainly.

“Well, when it works correctly, it conjures up a patronus, which is a kind of anti-dementor, a guardian that acts as a shield between you and the dementor. The patronus is a kind of positive force, a projection of the very things that the dementor feeds upon --- hope, happiness, the desire to survive --- but it cannot feel despair, as real humans can, so the dementors can’t hurt it. But I must warn you both that the charm might be too advanced for you. Many qualified wizards have difficulty with it.”

"Anything that might help with the dementors," I said with a shake of my head. "Anything."

“What does a patronus look like?” Harry inquired.

“Each one is unique to the wizard who conjures it.”

“And how do you conjure it?”

“With an incantation, which will work only if you are concentrating, with all your might, on a single, very happy memory. The incantation is this: Expecto patronum!”

Harry and I repeated it under our breath a couple of times, trying to think of our happy memories.

"Who wants to go first?" Professor Lupin asked.

"I'll go, I have a memory ready," Harry said.

"Alright. Lucy, you might want to go as far back as you can. I'd rather not have both of you fainting at the same time, if it comes to that."

I nodded and retreated to the furthest corner of the room.

“Concentrating hard on your happy memory, Harry?"

Harry nodded. “Oh, yeah. Expecto patrono... no, patro _num_ , sorry. Expecto patronum, expecto patronum.”

A silver wisp shot out of his wand, and he jumped.

Harry looked at me. “Did you see that? Something happened!”

I shot him an excited thumbs-up before he turned back to Professor Lupin, who smiled and said, “Very good! Right, then, ready to try it on a dementor?”

"Yes." Harry moved to the middle of the classroom, and I watched his knuckles whiten as he gripped his wand.

When Professor Lupin opened the suitcase, a massive dementor emerged. I shivered, fighting to stay conscious myself. The classroom lights flickered and died. Harry must have been feeling much worse than I was, but he still held his wand out in front of him valiantly.

“Expecto patronum! Expecto patronum! Expecto... expecto pa...”

I rushed forward as he crumpled to the ground. Professor Lupin wrestled the dementor back into the case with a couple of spells of his own, and relit the lamps.

I knelt beside Harry and held my wand out toward him. "Rennervate!"

Professor Lupin knelt on his other side as Harry's green eyes fluttered open and found my face.

"Sorry," he mumbled, pushing himself to a sitting position. I quickly pressed my shoulder against his shoulder to keep him upright.

"Are you okay, Harry?" I asked as Professor Lupin handed him a Chocolate Frog.

"Yeah," he replied unconvincingly, taking the chocolate.

“Eat that before we try again with Lucy. I didn’t expect you to do it your first time; in fact, I would have been astounded if you had.”

“It’s getting worse... I could hear her louder that time... and him... Voldemort...”

Professor Lupin and I exchanged a worried look.

“Harry, if you don’t want to continue, I will more than understand-”

Harry sat up straighter, inadvertently shaking my hand off his shoulder in the process. “I do! I’ve got to! What if the dementors turn up at our match against Ravenclaw? I can’t afford to fall off again. If we lose this game we’ve lost the Quidditch Cup!”

"I'll try now," I said. "Three Chasers _is_ the ideal number, after all."

"Very well," Professor Lupin said with a nod. Harry pushed himself to his feet and retreated to the corner. "Focus on your boggart becoming a dementor first, Lucy."

I nodded, taking a deep breath.

"You have your happy memory?"

I closed my eyes, remembering how I felt on the Jet Ski. The cold breeze in my hair, the warm sun on my arms as they clung tightly to my brother. I opened my eyes and smiled. "I do. I'm ready."

I held my wand in front of me as the dementor emerged. "Expecto patronum!" I shouted, already feeling the cold sapping my strength. "Expecto patronum!"

But the cold ultimately overwhelmed me. Harry was right; the sounds were louder. Everything fell into its place in the memory.

"We need to get back to the hotel, baby girl." 

"Daddy, I'm five now. I'm not a baby anymore!"

"You'll always be my baby girl, Lucy. Let's just go back-"

The first snarl.

"Lucy! Lucy, no, not my Lucy! Get away from her!"

The bite. The scream.

"Lucy! Daddy's coming! Hang on, baby girl! Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!"

The second snarl. The whine. The sounds of fighting.

The single whisper. "Impossible."

The crack.

"Lucy, come on, please-"

I opened my eyes slowly. Like Harry, I was flat on my back, my face covered in cold sweat. I shielded my eyes from the bright, bright lamps with the sleeve of my robe. 

"I'm okay," I said, wiping my face and rising to a sitting position. Harry grabbed my shoulder when I swayed, and I opened my eyes wide enough to take the chocolate Professor Lupin offered. 

"Are you sure you're alright, Lucy?" he asked.

I nodded, opening my eyes wider. "You were right, Harry, it was louder."

"Do you know what it is, yet?"

I glanced at Professor Lupin meaningfully, but I shook my head. "Lots of... shouting. Someone shouting my name. The sounds of a fight." I shook my head again. "It's chaotic."

"Would you each like to try one more time?" Professor Lupin asked. "If not, I completely understand-"

"I'll go again," Harry and I said at the same time, making all three of us grin a bit.

"Alright, then. You two are resilient."

I retreated to the corner again and finished the Chocolate Frog as Harry got into position again. I shut my eyes tightly as the dementor emerged, but I jumped into action when Harry's shouting stopped abruptly.

"We're stopping here for the night," Professor Lupin said, relighting the lamps.

"Harry couldn't take another round, even if it was just me," I agreed, rushing to Harry's side.

This time, it took three reviving spells to bring him around. He tried to sit up, but I laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Not yet."

He sank back down and closed his eyes. Professor Lupin and I waited in tense silence for him to say something, anything.

After about a minute, he opened his eyes again, a couple of tears slipping down his cheeks. “I heard my dad... that’s the first time I’ve ever heard him. He tried to take on Voldemort himself, to give my mum time to run for it...”

I helped Harry to a sitting position, this time needing to sit back-to-back with him to keep him up. 

“You heard James?” Professor Lupin asked.

“Yeah... why? You didn’t know my dad, did you?”

“I... I did, as a matter of fact. We were friends at Hogwarts. Listen, Harry, Lucy and I thought perhaps we should leave it here for tonight. This charm is ridiculously advanced, I shouldn’t have suggested putting you through this.”

Harry jumped to his feet so quickly I nearly landed flat on my back. “No! I’ll have one more go! I’m not thinking of happy enough things, that’s what it is! Hang on...”

"I'll try one more time while you think, Harry," I offered, rising to my feet. "I want another go, too."

"Lucy-"

"I'll do whatever you do," I replied. I twirled my wand while keeping him locked in my gaze, daring him to argue with me. "Currently, you've had two tries and I've had one."

He studied me a moment longer before nodding. "Alright. Go for it."

I nodded back and gripped my wand. I closed my eyes and pulled up another memory. Last Christmas. Cedric and I dancing around the kitchen making fudge and singing Christmas carols. Tuck running between my legs and knocking me off balance. A massive cloud of flour snowing down around us as we laughed. I opened my eyes again. "I'm ready."

The dementor floated toward me, and I started shouting the incantation over and over again. I watched as a cloud of silver separated me from the dementor for half of a second, but the dementor pressed on closer to me, and I was lapsed again into darkness. But rather than being further back in time like Harry's, the memory started in the same place.

"We need to get back to the hotel, baby girl." 

"Daddy, I'm five now. I'm not a baby anymore!"

"You'll always be my baby girl, Lucy. Let's just go back-"

The first snarl.

"Lucy! Lucy, no, not my Lucy! Get away from her!"

The bite. The scream.

"Lucy! Daddy's coming! Hang on, baby girl! Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!"

The second snarl. The whine. The sounds of fighting.

The single whisper. "Impossible."

The crack.

But this time, after the crack, the memory continued. There was light, bright light, and more voices.

"Amos! What happened? Who's- oh, Merlin!"

I heard panicked voices murmuring back and forth among themselves, my screams drowning everything out. With another crack, I found myself back on the ground, but I couldn't bring myself to open my eyes for several seconds.

When I did, Harry's face swam above me.

"Lu! Are you okay?"

I nodded, throat too clogged with unshed tears to reply out loud. I swallowed hard and tried to sit up, but Harry pushed me down.

"No way," he said, his voice shaking. "Not after you've been unconscious for five minutes."

"Here," Professor Lupin said, handing me some chocolate. "I was so excited, seeing the cloud, but it wasn't quite as strong as I first thought."

"Neither am I," I added in a low voice, taking a bite. "I... I thought I'd seen everything. I thought... I thought the crack of someone disapparating was the end of the memory, but... but there was more this time."

"So I went further back in time, and you went further ahead?" Harry inquired.

I nodded. "I guess so." I pushed myself up and managed a smile at Harry. "If you try one more time, I will."

"If I replicate the cloud, will you be satisfied that we're even?"

I nodded. "For tonight. But it better be an impressive cloud."

I staggered to the corner one last time and watched as Harry readied his wand.

“Ready?” Professor Lupin asked resignedly. I could tell he really didn't want Harry going again. “Concentrating hard? Alright, go!”

The dementor extinguished all of the lights again, and drained all of the warmth from the room. 

Despite this, Harry's shouts were the strongest they'd been yet. “EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECTO PATRONUM!”

A cloud, even stronger than mine, emerged from Harry's wand. 

"Riddikulus!" Professor Lupin said, stepping between Harry and the dementor. 

Harry lowered himself into a chair, and I rushed over.

"Harry, you did it!" I exclaimed. "Did you see that? You kept the dementor at bay!"

He looked like he was still somewhat in shock, but he managed a smile. "Does that count as an impressive cloud?"

"Yes, of course," I laughed.

Professor Lupin came over, beaming. “Excellent! Excellent, Harry! That was definitely a start!”

“Can we have another go? Just one more go?”

“Not now. You’ve had enough for one night. Here, both of you.” Professor Lupin handed Harry a massive chocolate bar. “Split that. Eat the lot, or Madam Pomfrey will be after my blood. Same time next week?” 

"Sounds good," I agreed, accepting the half Harry handed me.

Harry sat up suddenly. “Professor Lupin? If you knew my dad, you must’ve known Sirius Black as well.”

I watched the professor's reaction carefully. I had wanted to ask for so long, but never found the way.

He turned around so quickly I would have missed it if I had blinked. “What gives you that idea?”

“Nothing. Well, I mean, I just knew they were friends at Hogwarts too-”

Professor Lupin nodded, his shoulders relaxing. “Yes, I knew him. Or I thought I did. You’d better be off, you two, it’s getting late.”

Harry and I rounded the corner and sank to the ground. The only sounds in the corridor was the crunch of the chocolate wrapper and our shaky breathing.

"I guess I shouldn't have mentioned Black," he said.

"I'm glad you did," I admitted. "I've been wondering the same thing for a while."

He nodded slowly. 

He sighed a couple minutes later, his whole body shaking. "My aunt and uncle told me my parents died in a car accident. That's how they explained my scar, too. Hearing how they really died... bravely, trying to protect me to the last moment..."

I leaned my head against his shoulder, wishing there was something I could say or do to make everything right. But he had told me that my presence alone helped, that day at the Quidditch Pitch after he learned that Sirius Black had betrayed his parents, so I figured reminding him of the fact that I was there would help at least a little bit.

"Did I ever tell you why I blew up my aunt?"

I shook my head. "No, and I didn't want to ask."

"She insulted my parents. She was telling me I had a mean, runty look about me, saying it came from my mum, claiming she was a bad egg. She asked what my dad did, and my uncle told her he was unemployed. I... I couldn't help but defend them. She kept going, and before I knew what was happening, she was floating away like a balloon. I didn't mean to do it, but I've never been so angry in my entire life. I couldn't help it. And now..." He managed a weak laugh. "Now, honestly, I don't regret it one bit. Hearing their last moments makes me all the angrier with my aunt and uncle for saying they died in a car crash, and for making them out to be good-for-nothings. My parents deserved so much better."

"They did," I agreed immediately.

"Life isn't fair."

"No, it's not. Not at all." I closed my eyes and saw the faces of my own parents flash before my eyes. They deserved better, too. I... well, I reckoned at least my mom was alive. My dad... maybe I would never know. I swallowed away the tears that were crawling up my throat. "What memory did it for you?"

"When I found out I was a wizard. When Hagrid told me I'd be leaving the Dursleys forever."

"Are all Muggles that awful, Harry?"

He shook his head. "No. They're not all saints, of course, but... but I think the Dursleys are among the worst."

"You'll have a proper family one day," I said. "I know it."

"I hope so." He paused. "What memory did you use the second time?"

"Last Christmas with Cedric," I said, laughing a bit. "You have a picture of part of the chaos. I specifically thought of the time my dog tried to run between my legs when I was carrying a bag of flour and knocked me off balance."

Harry laughed, too. "What happened?"

"Exactly what you'd expect, I reckon. I went down, the flour went up. It looked a lot like snow."

"I see why that memory worked," he chuckled. He rested his head against the top of mine. "Reckon we should head back now?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I sighed. "I've missed you. Try not to be mad at Hermione too much longer, will you?"

"Working on it. I think it'll take Ron longer to get over it than me, honestly, and it's not even his broom." He lifted his head from mine and rose to his feet, offering me a hand up. "I'm glad we had tonight."

I nodded. "I'm glad we could be together. I don't even want to imagine going through this all alone."

"It'd be lonely," he agreed, and we walked back to the common room. We went our separate ways, reluctantly, and I showered away the sweat still clinging to my skin before climbing into bed, exhausted.

I hoped my exhaustion would keep the nightmares away. It didn't.

At least it wasn't the night I was bitten again, I guess. That night, my brain decided to relive the moment that made me afraid of water.

It started as a good dream. Claire and I were playing down by the water, swim rings around our waists, hers bright pink and mine bright blue --- some may have called it sky blue. Our parents were close by, smiling at our antics as we splashed around.

Claire yelped suddenly. "Ow!"

"What's wrong, Claire?" I asked, rushing over to help her.

"Pointy rock," she complained. "You stay and play. I'll get Mommy to help me."

She limped off, and I returned to the ocean. I watched as she limped away up the sand to my parents, who immediately knelt down to examine her foot. I was too caught up in trying to make sure she was okay to notice that the ocean had disappeared.

"Lucy, look out!" my dad suddenly shouted, sprinting toward me, his face full of terror that made my stomach drop.

But before he could reach me, he disappeared in white bubbles, and I couldn't breathe. The blue ring popped off, leaving me spinning in the ocean with no idea which way was up and which way was down. I tumbled over and over and over again, salt water burning my nose and eyes and throat. Just when I thought I wouldn't last a second longer, strong hands grabbed my hips and pushed me above the water, just long enough for me to gulp a breath of air before the next wave pushed me under again. I started to tumble again, but the same strong hands held me steady, propelling me forward until I was above water again. I took another deep breath, beginning to cough and cry.

The rest of my body was soon lifted out of the water, and my dad pulled me to his chest, his hands being the ones that had saved me.

"You're okay, Lucy, Daddy's got you," he said softly, kissing the top of my head. I cried even harder and wrapped my arms around his neck.

I was jolted from my dream by a large mass of orange fur landing on my face.

I threw Crookshanks off in a panic, the suffocation of my dream still too real. He managed to land on his feet, but he fixed me with a glare before slinking away.

"I'm sorry!" I whispered after him, scrambling from bed. "Crookshanks, wait, I'm sorry! I just panicked!"

The cat paid me no mind and left the room. I followed him, whispering apologies and trying to get him to come back to the dormitory. But by the time I had reached the common room, Crookshanks was nowhere to be seen. I didn't feel like trying to fall back asleep quite yet, so I made my way over to the window seat and curled up in a ball, leaning my head against the cool glass.

An overwhelming sense of being lost settled like an icy blanket on my shoulders. I remembered too well the first time I'd sat in this place, over two years ago, when I felt I should have been a Hufflepuff rather than a Gryffindor. I remembered too well how I felt like I was being torn in two directions, my soul divided by the words of the Sorting Hat.

_My job is to sort you for who you are, not for your family is or who they would like you to be._

Who knew my family would be so complex?

I felt torn in two all over again, but not just between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor this time. I wanted so badly to be a part of my biological family again; I wanted to be as close with Claire as we once were, I wanted to hear my dad call me Sky Eyes again, I wanted to try one of my mom's famous cinnamon rolls. But as much as I wanted that, I was afraid, too. If they were anything like Harry's aunt and uncle and cousin, would they even want me? Harry wasn't even a werewolf. I was a monster by everyone's standard, both magical and Muggle. But... I was still Claire's sister. I was still my parents' daughter. And Mr. Midgen said they were still looking for me. That had to count for something.

I opened the window slightly so I could breathe the cold, clean air of the January night. It was so much better than the saltwater from my nightmare. I opened the window slightly further and leaned my head out ever so slightly.

"Wherever you are," I whispered to the night, "I'll find you. It might take me a long time. I might doubt myself along the way." I felt a single tear slide down my cheek. "Claire, Mom, Dad. I'll find you, somehow. I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for reading, and please leave feedback down below!


	43. The Temporary Truce

LUCY:

The rest of January and the entirety of February passed in a hazy blur of classes, Buckbeak research, patronus lessons, and Quidditch practices. Even the full moons passed without incident. It was easy to hide everything when Hermione and Hagrid were the only people I talked to outside of class (with the weekly exception of Professor Lupin and Harry, but even then, Professor Lupin had the same secret and Harry never felt too great after the lessons, either --- the dementors always affected him more than me).

March brought the first change to that. Because, after all, Ron's birthday was March 1.

He and Hermione still weren't talking, but I joined forces with his siblings and Harry to make the day as special as possible.

His birthday was a Tuesday, meaning we couldn't be as obnoxious all day as we would have been on a Saturday or Sunday, but we still did the best we could to make the day fun for everyone after the stressful year we'd had with the threat of Sirius Black hanging over our heads. 

As soon as classes were over, Ginny, Harry, and I challenged Ron to a wizard's chess tournament. Since he won every single game, we reckoned he had a good time. This distraction gave the twins enough time to rush down to Honeyduke's and return with the sweets we all contributed money toward, much like Cedric's birthday the year before. Unlike Cedric's birthday, however, we had a small common room party instead of a courtyard picnic. We all also brought down our Chocolate Frog cards to compare and trade.

Harry inched closer to me and smiled. "I think you're holding out on us, Lu. Where's your special edition card?" he asked in a voice only I could hear.

I swatted his arm and fought the blush trying to crawl into my cheeks. "Shut it, Potter," I hissed. "If you must know, it's on the back page, and I'm not flipping to that page for a very specific reason."

"Just thought you might want to share, since we're all in a birthday mood..." he said innocently. "And since yours is in only... hm... two months and-"

I swatted his arm harder, blushing furiously. "Harry!"

"Problem, you two?" Fred asked with a smirk.

"Not yet," I said, shooting Harry a playful glare. He tried to return the gesture, but we both broke down laughing after half a second. 

Once we stopped laughing, I noticed Ron looking at Hermione, who sat in the corner of the common room with her head bent low over a book. I moved closer to him and bumped his shoulder with mine. 

"Want me to see if she's in the mood for chocolate?" I asked softly.

Ron looked down at his hands, which each contained a Chocolate Frog. "I was just thinking about doing it myself, actually."

"Go for it," I said. "She misses you."

He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "You think so?"

I nodded. "Ron, I reckon I know her better than she does sometimes. She misses having you around. Look, right now. See how her hands are shaking?"

"Yeah?"

"Her hands don't shake when she's around you. You calm her down just by being there."

"But after what she did to Harry, after the year he's had-"

"I know," I interrupted. "Trust me, I know. But right now, she needs you more than he does. Harry's having a great time. I know you'll be happier celebrating your birthday if she's a part of it, even if it's only just for today."

We both glanced back. Harry was reaching for a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans and smirking at the group of us. His eyes landed on me, and he smiled.

"Lu, Ron, you up for a game? The twins and Ginny already agreed."

I glanced at Ron. "Are you in?"

He shook his head, turning to Harry. "You go ahead. I'm going to go see if Hermione's hungry."

With that, he jumped up and crossed the room in only a couple long strides. I scooted over to where Harry and the others were and reached a hand out for the box.

"I'll go first, I'm not scared," I said.

"Be my guest," Harry replied, tossing the box my way. I tore the top off and studied the colorful morsels within. It would have been easy to cheat and intentionally sniff out the good ones (being able to do that was one of the only perks of being a werewolf, I swear to Merlin), but I felt that'd be unfair. But at the same time, I wasn't about to eat the vomit-flavoured one I could smell. So instead, I settled for the broccoli bean, reckoning it wasn't the best and certainly wasn't the worst.

I popped it into my mouth and chewed a couple of times before pulling a face. "Broccoli, I think."

Ginny wrinkled her nose. "Ew! My turn!"

She reached into the box and pulled out a yellow one.

"Oh, Godric, that's a dangerous one," George chuckled. "Butter? Lemon? Egg yolk? Vomit? Lots of options, Gin."

The brave soul took a deep breath and popped it into her mouth. She pumped her fists in the air in triumph. "Banana!" she announced.

Harry reached for the box next. "Please be good, please be good, please be good," he muttered to himself. 

He drew a green bean from the box.

I laughed. "Oh, you poor thing."

"What? Yours wasn't that bad."

"Oh, mate, it gets so much worse than broccoli," Fred said, reaching over to pat him on the shoulder. "Good luck. You'll need it."

"How bad can it be?" he wondered aloud as he popped it into his mouth. His eyes instantly widened, and he gagged. 

The rest of us burst out laughing as he struggled to swallow the bean.

"What was it?" Ginny asked between bouts of laughter.

He swallowed bravely and wiped his brow with the sleeve of his robe. "I think it was troll bogies. That tasted the way my wand smelled for weeks after Halloween my first year."

As we all laughed anew, I glanced toward Ron and Hermione. She had actually closed her book and set it aside, and the two of them sat side-by-side, each with a Chocolate Frog that was missing a left hind leg. 

Hermione's hands didn't shake as she reached into the pocket of her robes and handed Ron the small package wrapped in bright Chudley Cannons tissue paper I had helped her wrap last night. I smiled and turned back to the others, content to let them have their moment without any prying eyes. They deserved it.

* * *

It was after a patronus lesson, two days before the Ravenclaw-Gryffindor Quidditch match, that something happened to finally and officially break up the tension between Ron and Hermione after the temporary truce on Ron's birthday. It was nice for the two minutes it lasted.

As Harry and I were heading back to the common room, Professor McGonagall rounded the corner, Firebolt in hand.

“I’ve just been looking for you in the Gryffindor common room, Potter," she said, holding it out to him. "Well, here it is, we’ve done everything we could think of, and there doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with it at all. You’ve got a very good friend somewhere.”

He took it from her hesitantly, slack-jawed. “I can have it back? Seriously?”

Professor McGonagall smiled and nodded. “Seriously. I daresay you’ll need to get the feel of it before Saturday’s match, won’t you? And both of you --- _do_ try and win, won’t you?”

Harry grinned. "We'll do our best, Professor."

I studied the broom as Professor McGonagall walked away. "You know, I think it's somehow gotten even more beautiful since Christmas. I guess you know what they say about not knowing how much something's worth until it's gone."

"I guess so. But I'm still glad to have it back."

I nodded emphatically. "Definitely. It'd be a shame to lose it forever. Are you going to start talking to Hermione again, now that you have it back?"

"I will," he said with a nod. "I think Ron will, too."

We had nearly reached the common room when Ron hurtled around the corner. “She gave it to you? Excellent! Listen, can I still have a go on it? Tomorrow?”

“Yeah, anything!" Harry glanced at me briefly before looking back at Ron. "You know what, we should make up with Hermione. She was only trying to help.”

Ron shrugged. “Yeah, alright. She’s in the common room now working... for a change,” he added sarcastically.

We turned the corner to see Neville nearly in tears begging Sir Cadogan to let him in. “I wrote them down, but I must’ve dropped them somewhere!”

“A likely tale!" The knight spotted the three of us approaching and dropped into a bow. "Good even, my fine young yeomen! Come clap this loon in irons. He is trying to force entry to the chambers within!”

"I don't think that's necessary, Sir Cadogan," I said, rubbing Neville's shoulder reassuringly. "He's one of us."

Neville sniffled and explained, “I’ve lost the passwords! I made him tell me what passwords he was going to use this week, because he keeps changing them, and now I don’t know what I’ve done with them!”

"It's okay, Neville, I've been having a hard time remembering them too," I assured him. My brain was too full of details surrounding magical creature cases and the growing list of homework assignments I had to complete to try to keep track of the ever-changing passwords too. "Sometimes I walk up with Harry because he remembers the passwords and I don't," I admitted with a sheepish grin Harry's direction.

He laughed. "Sounds like tonight is one of those times," he remarked. "Oddsbodkins!"

The portrait hole swung open, and Harry was immediately swamped by a bunch of broom-admirers. I disappeared up to my dormitory to get my homework for the night. I found a quiet corner of the common room near Hermione to start my homework, trying to convince my exhausted brain to focus on my essay on transfiguring owls to opera glasses (which seemed terribly useless to me, but it was a part of the curriculum nonetheless). Once the crowd surrounding Harry finally dispersed, he and Ron made their way over to Hermione, who was the only person that hadn't jumped up to ogle the Firebolt. 

“I got it back,” Harry said happily.

“See, Hermione? There wasn’t anything wrong with it!” Ron added.

Hermione snapped her book shut. “Well, there might have been! I mean, at least you know now that it’s safe!”

“Yeah, I suppose so.” I could tell Harry was trying really hard to be agreeable, which I appreciated. I missed having him and Ron around. “I’d better put it upstairs.”

“I’ll take it! I’ve got to give Scabbers his rat tonic.” Ron took off up the stairs with the broom in tow before anyone could say a word.

I heard Harry shift on his feet. “Can I sit down, then?”

Hermione moved a stack of parchment and books to make room. "I suppose so."

“How are you getting through all this stuff?”

“Oh, well --- you know --- working hard.”

“Why don’t you just drop a couple of subjects?”

“I couldn’t do that!”

“Arithmancy looks terrible.”

“Oh no, it’s wonderful! It’s my favorite subject! It’s-”

A loud shout from the boys' dormitories interrupted her. The entire common room fell silent. I looked up from my essay, exchanging a concerned look with Harry as running footsteps grew louder and louder. 

A furious Ron exploded from the doorway, flinging a bedsheet down on top of Hermione's table.

"LOOK! LOOK!" he bellowed. “SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!”

Hermione leaned away, baffled, but I inched closer to the sheet. I could smell the blood before I saw it, stark red against the white.

"Ron, what...?" she asked.

“BLOOD! HE’S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?”

"N-No," Hermione stuttered.

Ron slammed his hand down. When he lifted it again, several long reddish hairs were exposed. They could only belong to Crookshanks.

Hermione's brows knitted together. "You should check your dormitory more closely. Scabbers might be hiding under someone's bed."

"You never took this seriously!" Ron shouted, leaning forward so he was in her face. "You never kept a close enough watch on your devil of a cat, and now Scabbers is dead because of it!"

"You have no proof Crookshanks did anything," Hermione snapped, rising to her feet defiantly. "You've just hated Crookshanks since the beginning when he jumped on your head in the Magical Menagerie!"

"No proof?" Ron spluttered. "No PROOF? Tell me, Hermione, who else could those hairs belong to? Harry? Neville?"

"They could have been there since Christmas! You're just so eager to blame Crookshanks for anything that goes wrong! What's next, you're going to accuse him of conspiring with Sirius Black?"

"Maybe he is!"

"Oh, come off it, I was just trying to show you how ridiculous this is! You have no proof of anything! Crookshanks is innocent!"

"Hermione," Harry said gently, looking from the hairs to the bloodstains and back to her, "it _does_ seem rather likely that... well, given the evidence-"

“Okay, side with Ron, I knew you would! First the Firebolt, now Scabbers, everything’s my fault, isn’t it?" Hermione said, her voice high and squeaky. She dropped back onto the couch and reached for her rune dictionary again. "Just leave me alone, Harry, I’ve got a lot of work to do!”

"I'll go find Crookshanks," I mumbled, tucking my homework under my arm. "I can't take this fighting anymore. I thought we could finally... maybe the four of us were... you know what, never mind."

I walked quickly up to my dormitory and threw my books and parchment onto my bed, scanning the room for Crookshanks. When the cat was nowhere to be seen, I returned to the common room and jumped out of the portrait hole, wand alight.

The portrait opened again behind me. "Lucy, wait!"

"Oh, hi Neville," I said, turning around. 

"I'll help you look. For Crookshanks, I mean." Neville drew his wand and lit it too. "You seemed like you might want company."

I nodded. "That'd be nice," I said softly. "Thank you."

"He's the big orange one with the squashed-looking face, right?"

"That's the one," I replied. "He doesn't like me very much, but hopefully he likes me enough to let me bring him back to our dormitory. If Hermione won't keep him locked up, I will."

"Why doesn't he like you? I thought every animal in the world liked you."

I blushed, embarrassed. "I had a nightmare about drowning, and when I woke up, he was suffocating me by sitting on my face. I panicked and swatted him off, and he's been offended ever since, no matter how many times I try to apologize."

Neville nodded thoughtfully. "I'm sure he'll forgive you. It wasn't your fault."

A sudden movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. I whipped my wand to the side to try to see what it was, and I spied an orange tail disappearing around the corner.

"Ooh, there he is!" I rushed forward, trying to catch the massive cat, but he slipped out of my arms and darted away. "Dang it! Crookshanks, wait!"

Neville and I chased the cat all the way down to the first floor of the castle, but at the entrance to the courtyard, Neville came to a screeching halt. 

"We can get him, Neville, we're so close!" I panted, sprinting into the courtyard. But when I didn't hear his footsteps behind me, I turned around. "Neville? Are you alright?"

In the dim moonlight, Neville's face was ghostly. I cast one last glance over my shoulder, watching as Crookshanks disappeared behind a stone wall. Neville's well-being was more important than chasing a cat.

I returned to the steps, cocking my head to the side. "Neville? What's wrong?"

"S-Sorry, Lucy," he said. "I... I just... Sirius Black could be out there. I feel much safer in the castle."

"It's okay," I said, gently steering him away from the courtyard. "We can go back to the common room now. Crookshanks is far enough away to not hurt anyone else's pets tonight."

We walked in silence for a couple more minutes before Neville stopped again. 

I took Neville's hand and silently guided him to a bench. "You look like you're about to faint. We can sit for a while."

"I know Harry's not really afraid of Sirius Black." Neville had a faraway look in his eyes as he stared straight ahead at the wall. "So it doesn't make much sense for me to be. But I am."

"There's nothing wrong with being afraid of someone who murdered thirteen people."

"It's not... it's not just that."

I waited patiently as he tried to formulate his next words. 

"My parents were Aurors," he said slowly. "They... they were captured. Tricked. Gran has never told me the whole story, but... but it ends with them being tortured to insanity, by a Death Eater named Bellatrix Lestrange. There were others, too, but she... she was the one who started it, and ended it. She's in Azkaban now, but... but if Sirius Black could escape..."

"You're worried she could too?" I finished for him.

Neville nodded, blinking rapidly. "Gran says not to worry about it, not to let it distract me from my studies, but it... it does." He lifted his wand, spinning it on his fingers. "This was my dad's wand. And every day, I have to use it, knowing he should still be using it it. But he doesn't. He probably won't ever use it again." He took a shaky breath. "I want to be like my parents --- brave, and smart, and powerful --- but I never will be."

"Neville, you already are."

"Really?"

"Really. You're brave, and smart, and powerful, and above all that, kind and compassionate. You're the best in the class in Herbology, and you always try to do what's right, and I couldn't have asked for a better partner in Charms and Potions."

"Really? You mean it?"

"Of course I do." I rubbed Neville's arm up and down reassuringly. "I'm sorry to hear about your parents, but please don't ever feel inferior compared to them. You're _you_ , and I'm happy to know _you_. I'm glad to call you a friend."

"Thanks, Lucy," Neville said in a small voice. "I'm glad to call you a friend, too. I've never told anybody about my parents before., but I... I trust you, Lucy. A lot."

I smiled. "I trust you too. Thanks for walking with me. I'm glad we got to talk."

"Me too," he agreed. "I feel better."

"Good." I rose to my feet and offered Neville a hand. "I guess we should head back."

"Do you think Ron and Hermione will ever make up?"

"I hope Ron can forgive Hermione," I whispered, "but it doesn't look good."

"Ron sure loved his rat, didn't he?"

"He did," I agreed. "At least most of the time. Scabbers has been in his family for almost Ron's entire life. He's very protective of him."

"I reckon I'd be pretty upset if someone's pet killed Trevor," Neville said, "but I don't think I'd blow up like that."

"I wouldn't be surprised if all of Slytherin could hear Ron from the dungeons," I chuckled. 

Neville laughed, too, then grew quite serious. "Well, if they don't make up for a while and you get lonely, I've been spending time with Luna Lovegood and Ginny. You know Ginny, and I think you'd quite like Luna too. She loves magical creatures, just like you."

I stiffened slightly at the mention of Luna's name. The Lovegoods had a reputation for being... odd. They lived on the outskirts of Ottery St. Catchpole, too, but we never saw them. My dad often said Mr. Lovegood's claims about magical creatures were some of the most absurd abominations of magizoology he'd ever heard. But if Neville and Ginny liked Luna, I reasoned, she deserved a chance.

I smiled. "I'd quite like that. Thanks, Neville. I've been really busy lately, but after Buckbeak's trial, I'd love to spend more time with you and Ginny, and meet Luna."

"Buckbeak? The hippogriff that you rode in Hagrid's first lesson?"

A sudden wave of anxiety made my head spin. The date of the hearing was soon approaching. "Yeah. I'm impressed you remember. That feels like so long ago. It's... it's a long story. I've been helping Hagrid prepare for his hearing."

"Is that why you're never in the common room anymore?"

I nodded again. "I couldn't focus with Ron and Hermione at each other's throats all the time. Hagrid says he enjoys my company anyway."

We reached the portrait hole again, but Neville hung back a bit. "Lucy, you won't tell anyone about my parents, will you?"

"Of course not, Neville. I promise." I managed a smile. "I'm good at keeping secrets. Trust me."


	44. Long Live

_Long live all the mountains we moved  
I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you  
I was screaming, "Long live the look on your face"  
And bring on all the pretenders  
One day, we will be remembered_

_"Long Live"  
Taylor Swift_

* * *

LUCY:

Hermione and Ron still refused to speak to each other, but I was thankfully still on decent terms with both of them. Ron appreciated that I was trying to keep a closer eye on Crookshanks, and I had secretly confided to him that I believed Crookshanks was definitely responsible for the disappearance of Scabbers (the blood on the sheets didn't look like a fatal amount to me, but he remained unconvinced of that). Despite Hermione's continued hostility toward Ron, she admitted to me through tears after midnight that she really did feel awful that Scabbers had gone missing because of her cat, knowing how much he meant to Ron. But despite their friendliness toward me, their fury with each other made it impossible to be around them.

I woke up early the morning of the Quidditch match against Ravenclaw. I was nervous, but not really for the match itself.

Harry's Firebolt virtually guaranteed a victory. That is, as long as the dementors didn't return. If they did... we might have problems.

After about six weeks of patronus lessons, Harry and I were certainly far better than we had been in January. But to my surprise, I was progressing much faster than Harry. I still hadn't produced a fully corporeal patronus, but my non-corporeal patronus was strong enough to actively push the dementor away from me. Harry's, on the other hand, formed only a thin shield, and he had to fight hard to keep it in one place. I knew he was frustrated with himself, and I wanted so badly to help, but he had built himself an internal barrier that I knew only he could tear down. So I remained at his side, encouraging him as well as I could and hoping for the best if the time came to use a patronus.

Harry was planning to wear a t-shirt under his robes so he could keep his wand on him. When he asked what I was planning to do, I turned into a blushing mess and said I'd just tuck it in my bra. For what it was worth, he turned bright red too, and we both got a good laugh out of it. I offered to loan him one if he wanted to keep his wand in a bra like me, but he said he'd pass. Imagine that.

I gave up on the idea of sleep around 6:30 and got out of bed, carefully tucking my wand into my bra, as I had told Harry I planned to do. By some miracle, I only had three chapters of reading homework left that weekend, so I grabbed my ancient runes textbook and made my way to the common room, curling up in the window seat to try to finish as much as possible.

I was halfway through the final chapter of reading when I heard someone coming down the stairs. I glanced up just as Harry walked into the room in a t-shirt and jeans, broom tucked under his arm and his wand sticking out of his pocket.

"Did you come down early to escape the crowds of broom admirers?" I teased.

He smiled and half-nodded. "Yeah, essentially." He came and leaned his broom against the wall before sliding into the window seat next to me, his back against the wall opposite mine.

"Godric, that looks so uncomfortable. We can move to the couch or something, you know."

"No, no, this is fine," he insisted, shifting so his legs were as straight as possible. "You get a better view of the grounds from here anyway."

"Can't argue with that." I tucked my photograph bookmark into the textbook and was about to close it, but Harry reached forward and stopped me. His hand was warm against my cold one, but he didn't seem to notice. 

He grabbed the bookmark and smiled. "How old are you in this?" he chuckled.

"Seven," I replied, my face growing red. "My dad bought prank candles that year that never went out. Cedric's birthday gift to me when I turned twelve was a book from Zonko's with a bunch of random and useless spells that are really good for pranks, so he thought that picture would make a good bookmark."

"It certainly matches the theme," he agreed, smiling wider with each repetition of the picture. "This is hilarious. Watching Cedric's reaction is almost funnier."

I flipped in the window seat so we were shoulder-to-shoulder, our backs against the same wall. I watched as seven-year-old Lucy huffed and puffed, getting redder and redder in the face until the picture reset. In the background, Cedric's face morphed from confusion to sudden understanding to amusement. I found myself smiling, too. "I wish you could see my mum's face, too. She was the one holding the camera, trying incredibly hard not to laugh and give it all away."

"Did it work?"

"I tried for about a minute before realizing, so yeah, I'd say it worked. I can be quite stubborn when I'm convinced I'm doing the right thing."

"Yeah, you can be." He handed the picture back after watching it through one more time. I tucked it into my book, and thought about flipping around in the seat again, but I liked being shoulder-to-shoulder with Harry, even if my shoulder was actually quite a few inches below his. "Are you nervous for today?"

"A bit," I admitted. "I don't know how I'll balance two things at once. I want to play the best game I can and not worry about the dementors, but I'm scared that the dementors will sneak up on me and I won't be able to reach or use my wand in time."

"I guess that's one way I have it easier being Seeker. My only job is to look around."

"Sounds boring to me," I teased, "but to each his own, I suppose."

"The position kind of fell into my lap, if you've forgotten," he pointed out. "Not that I'm complaining, of course, but all I knew about Quidditch at the time was what Ron had told me on the train ride here."

"So you knew everything about Quidditch," I surmised.

"Yeah, I guess I did," he agreed. "But if I'd known I'd play it so soon, I might have taken some notes."

I laughed. "Fair enough."

"What form do you think your patronus will take?"

I considered this for a moment. "I'm not sure. I've thought about it a lot, but I don't know. Probably something small, like a mouse. What about you?"

"Well, if you think you'll get a mouse just because you're short, maybe I'll get a giraffe."

I bumped my shoulder against his playfully. "Shove off, Potter."

He laughed and bumped my shoulder back. "Not my fault you're small. If we're going off of personality, you'll probably get a bird of some sort."

I wrinkled my nose. "A bird?"

"I mean, you _do_ love to fly. And you're something of a free spirit. You don't blindly follow Hermione, or Cedric, or anybody, really. You just stick to what you think is right and roll with it."

I pursed my lips. "A bird would be cool. Or, by that logic, maybe something like a hippogriff. Unless I'm too short for that."

Harry laughed. "Possibly. I just hope mine is something cool. A lion would be pretty neat. Or a wolf."

"Yeah, the lion would make sense. Gryffindor and all."

I cringed ever so slightly at the wolf idea. Professor Lupin had told me his patronus was a wolf, and I prayed that whatever my patronus was, it would be anything other than a wolf. He had assured me that the patronus matched one's personality rather than one's condition, so it would be unusual for us to share wolf patronuses, but I was still somewhat worried.

I glanced out the window at the blue sky. I wondered for a moment if my eyes really were that beautiful, beautiful color. I turned back to Harry with a grin. "You know, Potter, as long as we stay on our brooms today, I reckon we have a good chance against Ravenclaw."

He rolled his eyes. "See, when you put it like that, it seems like the easiest thing in the world, but we don't exactly have the best track record of that."

Then we laughed together, as if we were two perfectly normal thirteen-year-olds sharing a moment before a sports game.

Soon, Harry and his Firebolt were ushered down to breakfast by the other four boys from his dormitory. The twins and I followed, laughing at the adoring looks the broom was receiving left and right.

Cedric was the first person to come by the Gryffindor table that morning, and far from the last.

"That's a nice replacement for your Nimbus, Harry," he said, the awe apparent in his voice. "Can't wait to play you on it next year."

"Sorry, Ced, I don't think you stand a chance," I laughed.

"Oh, I know," Cedric replied, laughing as well. "But I'd rather lose to a Firebolt than to a Nimbus. Reckon even Dad would understand _that_."

Penelope Clearwater was next, followed by a number of other Ravenclaws. Just when I thought the buzz had died down, Malfoy sauntered over, smirking.

“Sure you can manage that broom, Potter?” he asked, studying the broom closely. Even Draco was impressed; that much was obvious.

“Yeah, reckon so,” Harry replied

“Got plenty of special features, hasn’t it? Shame it doesn’t come with a parachute, in case you get too near a dementor. An extra parachute for Diggory would be nice, too, but I don't think her prototype is advanced enough for that.”

Harry straightened up next to me and narrowed his eyes. “Pity you can’t attach an extra arm to yours, Malfoy. Then it could catch the Snitch for you.”

The entire team busted up laughing, and the rest of breakfast passed in significantly higher spirits than before the last match. When the team made our way down to the changing tents, I made sure my wand was quick and easy to grab before taking a seat next to Harry on the benches.

"Ready?" I whispered in a voice only he could hear.

He nodded slightly. "I hope so. Are you?"

"I hope so."

Wood's speech was much shorter than usual. He even smiled as he said it. “You know what we’ve got to do. If we lose this match, we’re out of the running, just fly like you did in practice yesterday, and we’ll be okay!”

Harry and I walked out side-by-side, and I shot him one last "Good luck" glance before moving to stand between Angelina and Alicia. I smiled and waved at Cho, the only girl on the Ravenclaw team and the girl of Cedric's dreams, and she smiled and waved back. I didn't know her very well, at least not as well as Cedric, but she made him happy, and for that, I figured she must be pretty swell.

She glanced away, and I followed her gaze. Harry was looking at Cho as if he'd never seen a female before, and when she turned her smile to him, I watched the slightest hue of pink color his cheeks. 

I was instantly angry. Cho was trying to distract him before the match! Just by being a girl! And it was _working_!

But just as soon as anger coursed through me, it died down to almost nothingness. She was a Ravenclaw, after all. She was clever. She was just trying to get every conceivable advantage she could over Harry on his superior broom. She didn't mean anything by it. She wasn't actually trying to flirt with him... right? But still, whatever the reason, I had to put a stop to it. We had a match to win.

"Hey, Potter!" I called.

He turned to look at me, his eyes slightly clouded. _Stupid Cho and her brilliant mind games._ "What?"

"Bring the lion out," I said with a grin.

He grinned back, his eyes clearing. "You too."

The team captains shook hands then, and we all climbed onto our brooms. I placed my hand on my chest, feeling one last time for my wand. It was there, and my happy memory was lingering in the back of my mind. I was going to use the Lake Tahoe campfire. The first time I really talked about patronuses. Licking melted marshmallow off my fingers, breathing the deep mountain air, watching as the sunset painted the sky and water alike shades of pink and purple as the golden sun dipped beneath the mountains. Cuddled up against Cedric against the chill. Feeling as if everything were perfect, in that moment. Yeah, I had my happy memory ready.

"On my whistle… three... two... one...”

I shot up into the air as the whistle sounded, letting Angelina and Alicia fight for the Quaffle and waiting below for them to drop it to me. When Alicia tossed it into my waiting arms, I shot off toward the Ravenclaw goal. I crossed Harry going the other direction, and I pulled up until I was level with the goal hoops. I sent the Quaffle flying through the hoop, scoring the first points on the first play of the game. I beamed when the crowd cheered. Oh yeah, _this_ was what Quidditch was all about.

We pulled ahead early, soon up 80 to 0. We would have been up 90 to 0, but just as I was about to score, a Bludger slammed into my blind spot, and the Quaffle flew directly into a Ravenclaw Chaser's waiting arms, and the score became 80-10.

"Sorry, Cub!" Fred called. "Couldn't get to you in time! You good?"

"Yeah!" I shouted back. "At least my nose is still intact!"

Fred laughed and flew away just in time to save Angelina from the same Bludger.

Soon, the score was 80-30. The Snitch had been spotted a couple of times, but Cho was smart. No wonder Cedric loved her so much. From what little I could see, her goal was to fly in front of Harry every chance she got to force him to change direction. She would never actually catch the Snitch that way, but I realized she was planning to keep this up until Ravenclaw gained enough of a lead over us that Harry catching the Snitch meant we'd still lose. That realization lit a fire under my backside, and I scored another goal, making the score 90-30 for real. If Ravenclaw was trying to play the long game, I would show them the very best of me.

A sudden scream distracted me. I looked down at the field, and surely enough, three dementors had just stepped onto the grass.

I reached my hand into my robes. _Lake Tahoe with Cedric. Sunset. S'mores._ I drew my wand. _Sand in my toes. Sun-kissed skin. Not a care in the world._

"Expecto patronum!" I shouted.

A massive silvery-white animal erupted from my wand, charging down the dementors. At the same time, a noncorporeal patronus from Harry's wand joined my corporeal patronus, and together we plowed the dark figures over. My patronus turned back to look up at me for a second before disappearing, and I smiled.

My patronus was a bear. A HUGE bear.

Madam Hooch's whistle sounded, and I whirled around. Harry had caught the Snitch!

I reached him first out of everyone on the team, slamming into him and throwing my arms around his neck.

"We did it," I whispered, my grip around him so tight I could feel us both shaking.

"We did," he said, tightening his hold on me.

We were broken apart by our teammates, all shouting about the Snitch and the patronuses and the victory. I was pulled out of the huddle by someone in a bright yellow sweater, and I hugged Cedric as he spun me in a circle.

"Did you see that?" I asked excitedly.

" _Did I see that?_ " he repeated. "Of _course_ I saw that! Lucy, you just pulled off the most incredible Patronus Charm I've ever seen!"

"You probably haven't seen that many," I replied, blushing, "but thanks. You know, you need to use a really happy memory to make it work, and I used that last night in Tahoe."

Cedric smiled. "That would be my memory, too."

"Go be with Cho," I said, pushing him away. "She played a really good game, her strategy was brilliant. I'm sure she's disappointed."

"Will do," he said, ruffling my hair one last time. "But it's not every day I get to see my thirteen-year-old sister make a giant bear explode from her wand."

I laughed as he disappeared into the crowd.

"I've never seen a bear before," an amused voice said in my ear. "That was a brilliant patronus, Lucy."

I beamed as I turned around to face Professor Lupin.

Harry came over to us, also beaming. “The dementors didn’t affect me at all! I didn’t feel a thing!”

“That would be because they --- er --- weren’t dementors. Come and see.”

Harry and I exchanged a glance and followed Professor Lupin through the crowd.

“You gave Mr. Malfoy quite a fright,” he said, gesturing to the scene before us just outside the field.

Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, and Marcus Flint were all tangled in long black robes, trying desperately (and failing) to get out.

Professor McGonagall loomed over them, shouting more angrily than I'd ever heard her. “An unworthy trick! A low and cowardly attempt to sabotage the Gryffindor Seeker and a Chaser! Detention for all of you, and fifty points from Slytherin! I shall be speaking to Professor Dumbledore about this, make no mistake! Ah, here he comes now!”

Disbelief mingled with amusement for half a second before Harry and I both howled with laughter.

Ron joined us then, also laughing once he saw what had taken place, and promptly dragged us away, shouting, "Party in the common room!"

I tugged myself out of his grip. "I'll meet you up there!" I said, darting away before they could stop me. I made my way to Hagrid's hut and knocked on the door.

The second it opened, I found myself being swooped into a bone-crushing hug. "Yeh won! And that patronus! Wow! Who knew you had it in yeh? Well, I did, of course, bu' still! That was impressive!"

"Thanks, Hagrid," I grunted as he set me down. "Now that the match is over, I'm here to help with Buckbeak."

"Oh no yer not," he said, grabbing me by the shoulders and turning me until I faced the castle. "Yer goin' to the party in the common room everyone's bin shoutin' about. Yeh've earned it."

"But Hagrid, are you sure?" I asked, rubbing the back of my neck. "The trial's coming up really soon, and I-"

"Go enjoy the party," Hagrid said firmly. "Everythin' will still be here tomorrow."

"Alright," I relented. "See you tomorrow, Hagrid."

By the time I made my way back up to the common room, the music from Harry's mum's record player was already blaring, and I noticed Fred and George had already disappeared to go get Honeyduke's. A number of people stared as I walked across the room to Ron and Harry, whispering to each other about how Cedric Diggory's little sister had performed a real Patronus Charm, and the boys laughed when they saw how red my face was.

"That was bloody brilliant, Lucy!" Ron said, holding his hand up for a high five.

I somehow grew even more red in the face as I slapped my hand against his. "Thanks, I've been working on it."

"A bear," Harry said, grinning and shaking his head. "You thought it'd be a mouse, and then this massive bloody _bear_ erupts out of your wand. Good Godric, Malfoy and his goons will be terrified of bears for the rest of their lives, I reckon."

I smiled. "That'd be nice. Maybe now Malfoy will leave me alone in Ancient Runes."

Ginny rushed over, Neville right behind her. "Lucy!" she exclaimed, flinging herself into my arms. "You were great! Well, I guess your pajamas make sense now."

"Reckon you could teach me how to do that, Lucy?" Neville asked. "I'd love to try that next time Malfoy comes after _me_."

"It's not easy," I replied. "Harry and I have been working with Professor Lupin every week since term started, and that was the first time I've actually done it properly. But sure, I'll teach you someday!"

A couple more people came by to talk to me, and by the time I was finally alone with the boys again, I sighed, fanning my flaming face with my hand.

"Don't like being the center of attention?" Harry asked teasingly.

"Not at all!" I replied. "I don't know how you handle it, Harry. I almost wish I hadn't been able to do that."

"What do you mean? Lu, that was incredible!"

I grinned. "Hence the 'almost.' Say, Ron, did Hermione watch the match?"

"Who knows? She might have just stayed here and worked the whole time."

"I'll ask," Harry said, making his way over to where she sat in the corner, head bent low over a book.

As he walked away, the twins entered with arms full of Honeyduke's sweets, and I rushed over to help them spread the bounty out across the common room tables.

"Do we have to start calling you Bear instead of Cub now?" George asked, tossing me a bottle of butterbeer.

I took a long sip before answering. "Bears can have cubs, too. You teased me about that once, remember? The first time I slept over at your house and wore my bear pajamas?"

"Ah yes, good times," Fred said, taking a swig from his own bottle. "You'll have to spend a lot of time at our house this summer, since your brother will be off being Golden Boy at St. Mungo's."

"He hates that nickname, so don't let him hear you call him that," I chuckled. "But yeah, I'd love to hang out more often, since we lost all of last summer."

"We could show you what we've been working on," George said in a low voice. "We've been... busy."

"And all this time, I thought you were studying for O.W.L.s," I remarked with a roll of my eyes.

"Really?" they asked in unison.

"Pfft, no. Since when do you study?"

"We've got a few people fooled," George said, gesturing toward Percy in the corner of the room, "but it takes a lot to fool you."

"So what _have_ you been doing?"

"You'll see," Fred replied. "We don't want you helping us test everything until we've tested it ourselves, for safety purposes."

"Boys, I'm no stranger to danger."

"Hence why we want some for ourselves," George laughed. "You can't have all the fun! Trust us, you'll be the first to know once we're ready."

"Alright, alright," I relented. "But I'm holding you to that."

The slamming of a door behind me made me jump. I glanced over to where Harry had been talking to Hermione, but now Harry was standing alone with a look of confusion and concern on his face.

"I'll go see what's happened now," I sighed. "Catch you two later."

I made my way over to Harry and Ron.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Hermione got mad and stormed off," Ron muttered.

"I'll go make sure she's okay," I said. I started to walk away, but Harry grabbed my arm.

"Lucy, no, stay. She's busy working, she won't want to talk."

I sighed. "You're right. She'd just get mad at me for interrupting, most likely. I'll stay."

"Good," he said with a smile. "Because I think someone wants to talk to you."

Percy Weasley came over then and clapped a hand against my shoulder. "Lucy Diggory, you sure are full of surprises."

Harry laughed. "What have I always told you, Lu?"

Somehow, impossibly, my face got even hotter. "Trust me, I was just as surprised to see that bear as you were," I stammered. "I'd never actually been able to cast a corporeal patronus before."

"I've always wondered what my patronus will be, personally," he continued. "Professor Lupin is planning to begin teaching us the charm any day now. Do you have any advice that I could pass along to my peers?"

"Um, the best advice I could really give is to have your happy memory ready ahead of time. The sharper it is, the better, so maybe a more recent one would be best."

He smiled dreamily. "A more recent one, you say?"

I couldn't help but giggle. "I reckon snogging Penelope real well should do the trick."

Percy blinked, and scowled, then smiled sheepishly. "I reckon it would." He cleared his throat and straightened up. "Thanks for the advice, Lucy. I suppose I'll go, er, try to... well, you know."

He ducked away quickly, and Ron, Harry, and I burst into laughter. As we laughed, I spied a familiar head of red hair in the corner. I nudged Ron and Harry and gestured toward the corner. "The way Fred's snogging Angelina, you think they'd be able to cast patronuses the first try?"

That got us all laughing again, and we found it hard to stop laughing the rest of the night. Since I hadn't slept terribly well, I left the party around 11. Hermione was still up, looking rather sleepy but still studying. I perched myself on the foot of her bed and waved my hand in front of her face.

"Hi," she said distractedly, finally looking up from her book. "What's on your face?"

"Oh, Ginny and Dean teamed up to paint people's faces. Please tell me this actually looks like a bear, I didn't actually look in a mirror."

"It definitely does. Here." She passed me a mirror, and I could see for myself that my left cheek did in fact sport a bear in Gryffindor colors. "Why a bear? Why not a lion?"

I pursed my lips. "You weren't at the match, were you?"

"I'm sorry I missed it," she said softly. "I just had too much work. I still do, but I try to make time for you and I just couldn't this morning and-"

"Hey, Mione, it's okay," I assured her. I smiled. "Really, I'm not offended. But you missed quite a game, if I do say so myself."

"I heard we won. Was it by a lot?"

"It was by a decent amount," I said casually. "But you missed the best part."

"What? What did I miss?"

"I cast a patronus!" I squealed. "A real, corporeal, _huge_ patronus! And it's a bear, which is why Dean painted this. Harry's face has a real Gryffindor lion. His patronus is still non-corporeal, but his was really impressive today too." I stopped to breathe, because I had said all of this in one go. "It wasn't even real dementors, which is simultaneously disappointing and hilarious. Disappointing because it wasn't real, but hilarious because it was Malfoy and three of his goons under the black robes. I fired off my patronus without even realizing!"

Hermione was smiling, really smiling, for the first time in a long time. "Now I'm _really_ sorry I missed it!"

"I understand, it's okay. I know you've been working really hard lately."

She let out a frustrated sigh and rested her head in her hands. "Lucy, I'm so stressed."

I reached forward to rub her back reassuringly. "You're doing great, Hermione. Really, you are. I don't know how you're doing so well, to be quite honest, I know I'd be dying with your workload. Why don't you take the rest of tonight off? I know I for one am exhausted, and I reckon you are too."

She nodded. "Yeah," she admitted in a small voice. "I think I will."

"That's what I like to hear," I said with an affirming nod. I jumped off her bed and glanced down at the Quidditch robes I was still wearing. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a long-overdue shower, and proudly wear these-" I reached into my trunk and fished out my bear pajamas. "-pajamas tonight."

Hermione managed a grin as she stacked all of her books and began shuffling pieces of parchment. "Perfect. Lucy Diggory, a bear patronus. Who'd've thought?"

"Not me!" I declared, laughing.

It seemed like I had merely blinked before Hermione was shaking me awake. "Lucy, get up, something's wrong in the common room!"

The terror in her voice jarred me to action. I jumped out of bed and rushed down the stairs without even grabbing a dressing gown. I had a horrible feeling it had something to do with Sirius Black.

I pushed my way through the gathering crowd in the common until I found Harry, in the middle of the room with a very distraught-looking Ron and a very confused-looking Seamus, Dean, and Neville. "What's wrong? What happened?"

Before anyone could reply, Percy came down the stairs, looking rather tired and grumpy as he pinned his Head Boy badge to his pajamas. “Everyone back upstairs!”

Ron swallowed hard. “Perce... Sirius Black! In our dormitory! With a knife! Woke me up!”

The entire common room went silent. Nobody moved except Hermione, who pushed through the crowd until she was standing right behind me.

“Nonsense! You had too much to eat, Ron, had a nightmare.” Despite what he said, Percy looked frightened.

“I’m telling you-”

Professor McGonagall burst into the room angrily. “Now, really, enough’s enough! I am delighted that Gryffindor won the match, but this is getting ridiculous! Percy, I expected better of you!”

“I certainly didn’t authorize this, Professor! I was just telling them all to get back to bed! My brother Ron here had a nightmare-”

“IT WASN’T A NIGHTMARE! PROFESSOR, I WOKE UP, AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME, HOLDING A KNIFE!”

Professor McGonagall blinked. “Don’t be ridiculous, Weasley, how could he possibly have gotten through the portrait hole?”

“Ask him! Ask him if he saw... if he saw...” He pointed at Sir Cadogan, hand trembling violently. Hermione pushed gently past me and took Ron's hand. He seemed too frightened to notice or care, really, but he didn't pull away, either.

Professor McGonagall turned toward the portrait. “Sir Cadogan, did you just let a man enter Gryffindor Tower?”

“Certainly, good lady!” he replied cheerfully.

Everyone stiffened.

“You --- you _did_? But --- but the password!”

“He had ‘em! Had the whole week’s, my lady! Read ‘em off a little piece of paper!”

Professor McGonagall turned to face the room, and when she spoke, her voice shook with fury. “Which person... which _abysmally foolish_ person wrote down this week’s passwords and left them lying around?”

I felt my heart drop as Neville slowly raised his hand. Ginny automatically moved to his side as the common room held its collective breath, waiting for Professor McGonagall's response. 

"I will deal with you in the morning, Longbottom," she said after a pregnant pause, every word dripping with barely-restrained anger. "I must alert the Headmaster immediately."

With that, Professor McGonagall swooped from the room, and everyone began whispering and muttering at once.

"Take care of Neville, please, he needs someone and I need to help Harry and Ron," I whispered rapidly to Ginny.

She nodded and took Neville by the hand, leading him to a nearby couch. "It's okay, Neville," she was saying, "I understand how it feels, trust me... last year was horrible..."

I turned to face Harry and Ron, and it was hard to tell who was paler. Harry's eyes were glazed over --- not with tears, but with an emotion that was difficult to read. Ron seemed to become aware that Hermione was clinging to his hand and looking up at him with wide, worried eyes, but he didn't move away from her. Quite the opposite, he let her lead him to a chair in the corner of the common room, where he promptly collapsed and put his head in his hands. Hermione knelt in front of him and rubbed his knee, murmuring something unintelligible to him.

"She'll take care of him," I said, half to myself and half to Harry. He nodded, his eyes still glazed. "Come sit with me?"

It was more of a statement than a question, but Harry nodded and followed me to the window seat where we had been less than 24 hours prior anyway. We sat on opposite ends, our backs against opposite walls, and we held each other's gaze for a long moment before looking down, each lost in our own thoughts.

My thoughts wandered to Halloween night. I could have killed Sirius Black. But I didn't.

If I had... he never would have broken into Gryffindor tower again. Harry's parents would have been avenged. Neville wouldn't have to be so afraid anymore. Everyone would be safer.

But... could I kill someone? Even Sirius Black?

I didn't know. And that was what tore me up.

I shook myself out of my self-destructive stupor and tapped Harry's elbow with my stockinged foot. He snapped out of his daze too and met my eyes. For half a second, I thought I spied tears glittering in the green, but they disappeared as suddenly as they appeared.

"Hey," I said gently. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Got lucky, I s'pose," he mumbled. 

"And I'm glad for it," I said again.

"Everyone's in danger because of me."

"No, everyone's in danger because Sirius Black is a deranged murderer who managed to escape Azkaban."

"He escaped to come after me."

"That's not your fault."

"I could solve the problem, though, if I just-"

I frowned and flipped around in the seat so we were shoulder-to-shoulder. "Don't talk like that, Harry." I sighed. "If you wanted to go after him to get revenge, I'd go with you. But I would never let you just give yourself up. You're worth so much more than that."

"Sorry, Lu, I don't know why I got so dark all of a sudden."

"You're scared," I said simply. "And it's okay. We all are."

"You seem to be doing alright."

I lifted a hand to show how badly it was shaking. "I appreciate your optimism, but I'm scared too, Harry. I don't want to lose you."

"I'd rather not be lost," he agreed with a weak smile. He sighed. "I guess one good thing will come out of this whole mess... for you, anyway."

"What good thing could possibly-"

Harry's half-grin gave way to a full one. "At least you don't have to worry about being the center of attention in the morning."

I swatted Harry's arm, then rested my head against his shoulder. "Shut up, Potter."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everyone! I really hoped you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. I hope you like the lyrics at the beginning, too --- I was planning on saving that song for Chapter 48, but I thought it worked here for multiple reasons. First of all, this chapter is a lot more Harry-Lucy-centric than 48 will probably be, and I thought the lines about fighting dragons and "pretenders" was particularly appropriate since Draco (which means dragon) was pretending to be a dementor. (I have a stupid sense of humor, I can't help myself sometimes. 😂)
> 
> I did so much research for Lucy's patronus. I literally read every word I could find describing every single patronus. Here's the explanation for the bear patronus, and I hope you all see why I went with the bear in the end: "The bear is indicative of someone with a great reserve of patience and inner strength. Bears do often well in leadership roles, though are more than content alone, happily spending their time in reflection and contemplation. They are confident, stable people that others may gravitate to in trying times for stability and healing. Though their quiet nature and tendency to spend time away from the crowd can lead to others thinking they are stern or anti-social, bears are often friendly and curious, and can surprise even those that know them best with something they didn’t think of. Brown bears are known to be the 'warriors' of the bear archetype, standing their ground and facing danger to protect others or do what they believe is right, not backing down no matter the danger."
> 
> Anyway, sorry for such a long note! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	45. Sound Like a Plan?

CEDRIC:

"When's your meeting, Ced?" Henry asked as he dramatically draped himself across the foot of my bed after a particularly challenging Quidditch practice. I followed suit and laid on my back next to him, running my fingers through my sweaty hair.

"Tomorrow morning, fairly early. I'm guessing you'll be right after me, with the last name Furls."

"Yeah, should be." He sighed heavily.

I waited a minute for him to explain the sigh, but I reckoned I knew well enough why he was upset. "Any idea what you'll say, or are you still planning to wing it?"

"Well, I reckon Professor Sprout would be happy to hear that I want to intern at the Ministry of Magic after I graduate. Nowhere near as impressive as your internship at St. Mungo's this summer, of course, but at least it's something."

"Hey, no need to compare yourself to me. It's not your fault I've wanted to be a healer since-"

"Since the second you knew what it was," Henry finished for me, laughing. "Don't worry, I know better than to compare myself to you at this point. I'm still allowed to think it's bloody awesome that my best friend landed an internship even before he's taken a single O.W.L."

"You know it was my dad's idea." I lowered my voice to impersonate my dad as best as possible. "'Think of me and your mother. You want to make us proud, do you not? Bring a new level of prestige to the Diggory name? Think of your sister! Don't you want to set a good example for her to try to follow? Yes, yes, I know, you tell me she's done quite well for herself, but son, think of all there's still left for you to accomplish!'"

"You know your sister thinks the world of you no matter what, right?"

I sighed. "I know. Honestly, sometimes I worry I've set _too_ good of an example. Not that I don't think she's capable," I amended quickly, "I do, 100%. I just... I don't want her ever feeling like she _has_ to do _exactly_ what I do, if that makes sense?"

"It makes perfect sense, mate. I have a sister, too, even if she is a lot younger than me."

I sighed and sat up. "Speaking of my dad and my sister and my intership, I guess I should go study."

"Oh no you don't," Henry said, grabbing my arm and pulling me back down next to him. 

I tried to squirm free, but Henry had always been stronger than me. Keepers needed to be bigger than Seekers. He wrapped his arms around my chest and held me in place.

"Henry, let me go!" I grunted, wriggling uselessly.

"No."

"No?"

"You studied every waking hour of this entire Easter holiday. I was surprised you even scheduled a practice for today, the way you've been revising. You're working too hard."

"Hufflepuffs are unafraid of toil," I argued in a monotone voice, quoting the Sorting Hat.

"Well, maybe we should be afraid of toiling too much. I'm not letting you go until you promise to take the rest of today off."

"But-"

He tightened his arms around me and laughed. "Alright, guess we're staying just like this, all day long."

"Alright, alright, I won't study today," I relented. He released me, and I rolled off him back onto my bed. "I'll go find Cho. After a shower, of course."

"I don't know, mate, maybe she wouldn't mind your natural-" 

I stripped off my outermost layer of robes and tossed it onto his face in one fluid motion. 

He coughed and threw it right back at me. "Never mind! Go shower, you smell like a badger that just rolled in dragon dung."

"Oh, come on, I don't smell that awful," I protested, grinning nonetheless. I grabbed my newest and cleanest set of robes out from my trunk and showered quickly. I stopped in front of the mirror, combing my wet hair more carefully than usual and triple-checking to make sure I smelled like a pine tree rather than a dirty badger. Once I was satisfied, both with my appearance and my scent, I set out in search of Cho.

I didn't have to look for long. She was walking --- alone, oddly enough, and heavily laden with books --- in the opposite direction of the library, and the second her eyes met mine, my heart fluttered, and I couldn't help but smile.

"I was wondering if you'd emerge from your Hufflepuff hole before the end of holiday," she teased.

"Henry told me I wasn't allowed to study for the rest of the day. Something about working too hard."

"Henry's right. It's nice to see your whole face again, instead of just your forehead over the top of a book."

"It's nice to see your whole face again, too," I replied. "Where are you headed?"

"Wherever you're going," she said with a smile that made me weak in the knees. She was beautiful, no doubt about it.

I swiftly recovered from my swoon and held my arms out. "If you let me carry your books, I'll go anywhere you want to go."

"Or," she said, giving me a couple of the books off the top of her pile, "you carry half, I carry half, we drop these off in my dormitory, and we find a quiet place where we can sit and have a real conversation, just the two of us, without books or anything else that might tempt you to study."

I grinned. "I like the way you think."

She disappeared into her common room and emerged a couple minutes later with something that looked suspiciously like a Golden Snitch clenched tightly in her fist. She smiled again, and I smiled back, and we made our way outside, settling under a tree wide enough around to hide us from view of the castle.

"I figured this could keep us both amply occupied," she said, releasing the Snitch from her grip and letting it zip around our heads.

I lunged forward and snapped it up. "A little extra practice never hurt a Seeker."

"Stupid Harry Potter and his Firebolt," she muttered, shaking her head. "I was so excited to finally play again, after Bole gave me a bloody concussion in the last match, then all of a sudden, Harry Potter has the best broom ever made!"

I laughed. "I'm glad he finally had something good happen to him this year, but it's rather unfortunate for you that it happened two days before you had to play him."

She joined in on the laughter. "Exactly. I promise I'm not a sore loser, but..."

"Don't worry, I know," I said, letting the Snitch loose again. She shot forward and snatched it with lightning-fast reflexes. "You're not a loser, sore or otherwise."

"Why, Cedric, I'm flattered. I don't think you're a loser either."

"That's a relief. I was beginning to worry."

Cho laughed again, shaking her head. "Why are we this way?"

"What way?"

She let the Snitch go and leaned her back against the tree. "Practically dating in every way except officially? Flirting and teasing and sitting under trees just the two of us but still not dating?"

"You know how badly I want to, darling," I said, leaning up against the tree as well. "But I don't want to call you my girlfriend until I'm able to give you all the love and time and attention you deserve, and until O.W.L.s and my intership are over, I just can't, as much as I wish I could."

"I know," she said softly. "And I appreciate the thought, really I do, I just..."

"I know," I echoed. "Trust me, as soon as my internship is over, I'm all yours. No more studying and preparation every hour of the day, just you and me. I promise."

"And _my_ O.W.L.s," Cho pointed out. 

I grinned. "I'm sure you wouldn't mind a certain O.W.L. veteran helping you study?"

"Only if you kiss me every time I get a question right," she said, resting her head against my shoulder. "I hope you realize how difficult it is to try to revise with you around. Maybe it's a good thing you hide in your dormitory to study --- nobody in the library would get anything done otherwise."

My face grew hot, and I didn't know how to respond for a bit. You'd think after so many years of so much attention for no real reason, I'd be used to it, but I wasn't. I doubted I ever would be. I cleared my throat awkwardly. "Well, for what it's worth, I wouldn't get anything done with a bunch of people staring. I'm no good at blocking everything out, as much as I wish I was."

"You don't have to change, Ced. You're perfect just the way you are."

"So are you," I murmured, resting my hand against her knee. I took a deep breath of the March air and released it in a sigh. "You make me feel so human. So normal. It's like... it's like you see me for who I am and not just who you think I should be. And you love me and want me anyway. No other girl makes me feel like that. They all just want... the 'Golden Boy.'"

Cho reached forward to interlock her fingers with mine. "Well, for what it's worth, you make me feel more than human. All of my worries go away with you around, like you're lifting me away from them."

"Sounds like we make quite the team."

"We could, if you'd just date me already."

I squeezed her hand gently. "Soon. I promise. Soon." I released her fingers and lunged forward to catch the Snitch. "In the meantime, I still like the Seeker rivalry we've got going. Should make our next match interesting."

"You're immune to my natural feminine charm," she complained with an adorable pout. "Harry didn't know what hit him. I think your sister figured out that I was trying to make him flustered and tried to distract him from me, but as soon as the match started and she was busy, it was so easy to hold his focus."

"Cho," I said, bringing her hand to my lips with my free hand and pressing a kiss to her knuckles, "I don't think I'll ever be immune to your charm."

She blushed then, smiling ever so slightly.

I chuckled. "Especially if you blush every time I compliment you like that."

"I'll never be immune to your charm either, I suppose," she said, adjusting her head on my shoulder so the top of her head, warm from the sun shining on her black hair, rested against my neck.

I released the Snitch with a smile, and we watched as it soared off into the sky.

* * *

Professor Sprout was beyond excited when I walked in for my appointment. The St. Mungo's internship was no secret by any means (though how so many people knew was baffling to me --- I had only told Henry, Cho, and Lucy... I guess they did all of the bragging for me), so she was only too eager to hand me a list of N.E.W.T. classes I would need and send me off with a smile. But there was one more person I needed to talk to about my future, one more person central to the plan.

Unfortunately, when I got to the Great Hall, Lucy was nowhere to be seen.

I made my way over to the table and flagged Harry down.

"Have you seen Lucy by any chance?" I asked. "I wanted to talk to her."

He glanced quickly at the twins before looking back at me. "She took off in the direction of the Black Lake after Charms. It looked like she wanted to be alone, though, so I didn't follow her."

"Okay, thanks, Harry! It's somewhat important, so I'll take my chances."

Harry nodded thoughtfully, and I left in the direction of the Black Lake. Surely enough, Lucy was standing on the shore, squinting at the horizon and arms wrapped around her middle. I positioned myself next to her and shoved my hands in my pockets.

"Hey."

She didn't look at me, but she didn't need to. I could hear the tears in her voice. "Hey."

"What's wrong, Lu?"

"Existential dread." She sniffled. "Nothing new."

"I take it you heard about the career advice meetings today?"

"Yeah. Herbology was canceled since Hufflepuffs were having their meetings today and Professor Sprout thought we were far enough along in the cirriculum to take a day off. I managed to get through Charms without giving in to said existential dread but..." She sniffled again. "Now everyone in my house is buzzing about what they want to do when they graduate, and..." She sniffled a third time and wiped her cheeks with the sleeve of her robe. "And I just have to sit there and listen to it all, knowing I'm very much hopeless."

"Well, that's why I wanted to talk to you," I said. "Because I don't think you are."

"You want to be a healer. You have an internship at St. Mungo's this summer. You have an incredible future ahead of you, Ced, and I don't-"

"I have to stop you right there, Lu," I interrupted gently. Her voice was shaking violently --- I only had a couple of seconds before she dissolved into an anxious breakdown. "You're right, I want to be a healer and I have the internship. But I don't want an 'incredible future' unless I know you'll be able to share it with me."

"What do you mean?"

"There's more to the plan than just becoming a healer," I explained. "Lucy, I would never leave you to navigate your future all by yourself. I was hoping you'd want to live with me, at the very least until you find a job that you adore that would help you support yourself."

"But Ced, I don't want to hurt you or your reputation," she said in a fragile voice. "Can you imagine what people would say if they found out you were being held back by trying to take care of your pathetic werewolf little sister?"

"Let them say it," I replied with a dismissive shrug. "You never hold me back. Taking care of you is the least I can do, until I find a more permanent solution to lycanthropy."

"You... you want to do that?"

"Of course I do. Lucy, if I become a healer, I'll have all of the resources to try to cure lycanthropy within arm's reach. Why wouldn't I want to take away the one thing that's caused you more pain than anything else in the world?"

Lucy sniffled and inched closer to me. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she turned to sob into my robes. I let her cry for a couple minutes before speaking again.

"What do you say, Lu? Sound like a plan? We live together, until I find a cure, or you find a path that welcomes you exactly as you are, or both. Do you think you can do that? For me?"

She managed a nod, swiping at her eyes. "I can do that."

She pulled away slightly, so I dropped my arm. "Do you want to head back to the Great Hall?"

Lucy shook her head. "I was going to head down to Hagrid's as soon as I finished crying. I should go now, really, I still have so much work to do-"

"What do you mean, Lu?"

"I'll explain while we walk, if you want," she said, briskly walking in the direction of Hagrid's hut. I followed, and she began to talk. "Well, Buckbeak the hippogriff was provoked by Draco Malfoy in our very first Care of Magical Creatures lesson, and since his dad is one of the school governors, Buckbeak has a trial coming up to decide if he's sentenced to death or not. I've been researching cases since before Christmas trying to find arguments we could use to ensure Buckbeak lives."

"All by yourself?" I asked incredulously.

"Yeah, everyone else is too busy."

"I can help, Lu-"

"No! Ced, you have O.W.L.s! I can handle it, I promise, you don't have to help. Buckbeak is one of my favorite hippogriffs of the dozen Hagrid has, anyway, he's really quite sweet once you get to know him."

"Alright," I said reluctantly. "Well, if you do need help, just ask, okay?"

"I can handle it, honestly, it's alright," she replied, but the anxious modulation of her voice told me she was far more stressed than she was willing to admit. I knew how she was with creatures; I knew she would fight for Buckbeak with everything she had.

I reached over and squeezed her shoulder. "Just promise me you're taking care of yourself, okay?"

"I'm doing my best," she muttered. "It's Harry I'm worried-"

She screeched to a sudden halt.

"What is it, Lu?" I asked, following her gaze. She was staring at the Forbidden Forest, but I couldn't see any disturbances among the trees. "Do you see something I can't?"

"No. But I know what I could do to protect Harry." She turned to face me, her eyes flashing with determination. "I need to talk to Professor Dumbledore. Right now, if possible. Will you come with me?"

I nodded without second thought. "Of course. Let's go."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey everyone! I really hope you liked this chapter. As a hopeless romantic, it's been SO HARD not having any romance in this story yet, so when I had the chance to write about Cho and Cedric, I was thrilled! I haven't written romance in several months, so I hope you all liked the little bit of fluff I included.
> 
> I also hope you liked the glimpse into Cedric's future plans! I love this boy so much. Like seriously, so much. I wish I had an older brother like Cedric. (Quite honestly, my younger brother is more like Hermione than anything, so it's really easy writing Lucy and Hermione's relationship a lot of the time. 😂)
> 
> Thank you all for reading!


	46. The Path Leads Right to Where They Won't Go

_So keep your head up, princess, before your crown falls  
Now these voices in your head will be your downfall  
I know it gets so hard but you don't got far to go  
Keep your head up, princess, it's a long road  
And the path leads right to where they won't go  
I know it hurts right now but I know you'll make it home_

_"Keep Your Head Up, Princess"  
Anson Seabra_

* * *

LUCY:

Because I spent every hour of daylight working on Buckbeak's case (which was rapidly approaching), I found myself staying up until one or two or even three in the morning doing homework. After Sirius Black's attack on Ron, I started doing my homework in the common room instead of my dormitory, keeping my wand right next to me at all times. I knew I didn't stand a chance against Sirius Black if he returned and wanted a fight, but I hoped that I could give everyone else enough time to protect themselves if I raised an alarm. But for all of my efforts, I knew there had to be something more that I could do to help.

I had the idea exactly seven days before the full moon --- it was perfect.

So, after classes on Monday, I found myself heading down to Hagrid's hut as I always did, but this time, there was a large silver goblet waiting for me on his kitchen table. 

It had been nearly impossible to convince Cedric to let me take wolfsbane so I could patrol the Forbidden Forest on full moons, but I refused to take no for an answer. Having Dumbledore agree to my idea almost immediately was helpful, too --- what prefect wanted to disagree with the Headmaster? Not my brother, that was for sure.

Besides, I argued, I wanted to do everything I could to protect Harry. While a werewolf would naturally try to bite any human in sight, it would be easier to target Sirius Black if I was fully aware of myself. If nothing else, the sight of a werewolf would hopefully frighten him away and deter him from trying to get into the castle.

Every night that week, I would drink wolfsbane potion before Hagrid walked me back up to the castle for the night. On Thursday, a notice appeared on the Gryffindor bulletin board announcing a Hogsmeade trip the following Saturday. I tried to slip up to my dormitory without being seen, feeling rather terrible after my fourth night of wolfsbane, but Ron caught my eye and motioned me over to where they were sitting.

“Hogsmeade, next weekend! What d’you reckon?” he asked in a low voice.

“Well, Filch hasn’t done anything about the passage into Honeydukes,” Harry replied, glancing at me.

“Harry!” Hermione said sharply, shifting a massive pile of books to glower at him. “Harry, if you go into Hogsmeade again, I’ll tell Professor McGonagall about that map!”

“Can you hear someone talking, Harry?” Ron inquired, refusing to turn around.

“Ron, how can you let him go with you? After what Sirius Black nearly did to you! I mean it, I’ll tell-”

“So now you’re trying to get Harry expelled, Hermione? Haven’t you done enough damage this year?”

Before she could reply, Crookshanks jumped into her lap, and she cast one scared look at Ron before darting away to the girls' dormitories, clutching her cat to her chest.

Ron carried on as if nothing had happened. “So how about it? Come on, last time we went you didn’t see anything. You haven’t even been inside Zonko’s yet!”

“Okay. But I’m taking the Invisibility Cloak this time.” Harry glanced at me. "What do you think, Lu? You want to come with me?"

 _Harry's not asking you to Hogsmeade in_ that _way,_ I told myself, _he's just asking if you want to go with him since you technically aren't allowed to go either._

But my face refused to listen to my mind's very sound reasoning and grew bright red anyway. "Sorry, Harry, I can't."

He grinned. "Scared of getting caught?"

I blushed even more fiercely and shook my head. "No, it's not that, I'd trust you with the Invisibility Cloak. I just promised Hagrid I'd look after the magical creatures since he and Buckbeak will be in London that Saturday."

"Saturday? Like, next Saturday?"

I nodded. "The trial is next Friday, but Hagrid is planning to stay the two nights afterward in London so Beaky isn't overwhelmed by too much travel at once. Speaking of, I should probably go work on homework, sorry. I'll see you in the morning."

I rose to my feet a little too quickly, stumbling a bit as dizziness threatened to overtake me. Harry's hand shot out for mine.

"You alright?" he asked. 

I met his concerned eyes and nodded. "Yeah, I am."

"Maybe you should get some sleep instead of doing homework," Ron said slowly. "You look-"

"I'm alright, really," I lied. "I have a lot of homework tonight. I can't afford to crash until it's done."

"If you're sure," Harry said, releasing my hand reluctantly. "Be sure you _do_ get some sleep, yeah? No more all-nighters like last year?"

I laughed. "No more all-nighters. Trust me, I'll sleep a lot better when Buckbeak's case is over. See you tomorrow!"

I grabbed Hermione's abandoned books on my way up to the dormitory. I was prepared to dump them all over her bed with a flourish, making a comment about how it was a miracle she hadn't broken her back yet from carrying so much stuff all the time, but when I opened the dormitory door, Hermione was sprawled across her bed sound asleep, Crookshanks sitting at the foot of her bed like a guard. I gently stacked her books on the trunk at the foot of her bed and pulled a blanket over her sleeping form, careful not to disturb her. 

I still had no idea how she was getting to all of her classes and balancing all her work, but she was, somehow. I didn't ask questions (mostly because I never got very far when I tried), but I did try to help in subtle ways, from organizing her parchment by subject when she wasn't looking or replacing her almost-empty inkwells with my own full ones. I knew it didn't make much of a difference, but I liked to think it made her life at least a little easier.

After a quick shower, I grabbed my own mountain of homework and made my way back down to the common room. The only other people in there were the twins, who lit up when they saw me.

"We have something to show you!" Fred said excitedly. "We think we got something to actually work!"

I eagerly dumped my books in a corner and rushed over to them. "What do you mean, you got something to work?"

"Well... we've been working on, erm, _products_ ," George explained.

"Seriously, Cub, some of the prank shops in Egypt were just incredible."

"So we were inspired. We've tried to copy some products, with limited success, but this idea right here is entirely our own." He held up two small pouches, one purple and one orange. "Truth or dare gummies."

"Truth or dare gummies," I repeated. "Okay. How do they work?"

"If you choose truth, you eat one of the gummies out of the purple pouch. It has a microscopic amount of veritaserum that guarantees a truthful answer. If you choose dare, you eat one of the gummies out of the orange pouch. It's charmed with... well, let's just say you _have_ to do the dare no matter what."

Fred held up a stack of what looked like playing cards. "Of course, we included some suggestions of our own, but it's up to the person playing if they want to use these or not. The purple side is truth questions, the orange side is dares. So, Cub, what'll it be?"

"I'll go after you two go," I said with a laugh. "I want to know what I'm getting myself into here."

"Fair enough!" George declared, popping one of the purple gummies into his mouth. "One truth card, Freddie."

Fred cleared his throat dramatically before reading the card aloud. "'When was the last time you sang in the shower, and what song was it?'"

"Three days ago. 'Do the Hippogriff' by the Weird Sisters." The words poured out of George's mouth so rapidly it seemed he was just as surprised as Fred and I were. He blinked as we laughed and smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I reckon these work."

"It's one of their better songs, at least," I said, chuckling. "You could have said 'This is the Night.' Godric, Lavender never stops listening to that song. It's the worst."

"Couldn't agree more. My turn," Fred said, reaching for an orange gummy and passing me the deck of cards. "Hit me."

"Oh, Merlin." I began giggling before I even finished reading the card. "You're going to hate me for this. 'Slap yourself as hard as you can across the face.'"

Fred did so without hesitation, then blinked and winced. "Bloody hell, I'm stronger than I realized."

"Or maybe your pain tolerance is lower than you realized," George pointed out. "I mean, if you slap yourself and it hurts, does it make you strong or weak?"

"It makes you _stupid_ ," I said, laughing. 

"Alright, Cub, your turn. Truth or dare?"

I buried my face in my hands. "I don't know!"

"You could always do both," Fred said.

I shook my head. "No way. Not tonight, at least. I still have homework. But... well, I guess I'll do truth. One round."

"Not what I was expecting you to pick, but a welcome surprise nonetheless!" George declared, holding out the purple pouch.

I chewed it slowly, wondering what I had just done.

_I hope I don't have to my werewolf secret, or my family secret, or... WHY DID I CHOOSE TRUTH?_

Before I could panic further, Fred had drawn a card. "Do you sleep with a stuffed animal?"

"I do at home," I said, the words leaving me in a rush. I blinked, snapping out of it. "Did I really just admit that?"

The twins laughed and nodded. I turned bright red.

"You'll love to hear that it's a stuffed bear," I continued, wanting to explain myself a little better. "My patronus makes a lot of sense, the more I think about it."

"That's actually really cool to know," George said with a shrug. "Why only at home, though?"

"Because I'm a bloody Gryffindor," I muttered. "If I were a Hufflepuff, I might actually sleep with it still, but big, brave Gryffindors shouldn't sleep with stuffed animals."

"Tell that to Percy," Fred snickered.

"You're kidding!" I exclaimed. " _Percy_?"

"We can't confirm it, but... we have reason to suspect he does."

I shook my head. "Well, that's the best thing I've heard all day. I should probably get to homework before I completely bare my soul to you buffoons, but bloody hell, boys, I'm so proud of you. You're brilliant. Reckon we could play again sometime?"

"Oh, definitely," George said with a nod. "There's a lot of soul-baring still to do."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm doing dare next time, trust me. See you at breakfast."

"Bye, Cub!" they chorused as they disappeared up the stairs to their dormitory.

I was up until 2:30 that night doing homework. Friday night, I couldn't sleep even after finishing my homework, so I was up until about 4. I barely survived Quidditch practice on Saturday and promptly crashed on Hagrid's couch for three hours afterwards. When I woke up, I researched until sunset, took my potion, and skipped dinner altogether because of how sick to my stomach I felt. Sunday followed the same pattern, but Sunday night, I abandoned the idea of sleep around midnight and went sleepwalking around the castle against my better judgement. Harry was right --- no security had been added to the witch statue. 

Monday morning was awful. As always, the sun was too bright and everything was too loud and I wanted nothing more than to shut myself in a dark room and pace back and forth until nightfall. But I managed to make it through the day without falling apart and found myself on the edge of the Forbidden Forest when sunset came for me.

I patrolled the perimeter of the forest all night long, looking for any sign of Sirius Black, or of the Grim I encountered on Halloween. I found no sign of either of them, but it felt good to be out and _doing_ something to help rather than just hoping for the best. I made my way to the entrance of the forest just before sunrise and curled up behind a tree, waiting to transform back.

My howls of pain soon gave way to screams, and I had two legs again within a minute. I pushed myself to my feet, leaning against the tree for support, and hurried toward the castle. Cedric met me halfway, and I let myself sink into his arms.

"I didn't see anything," I murmured, half-asleep as my adrenaline wore off more and more. "Everyone's safe, right? I didn't miss him?"

"Everyone's alright," he assured me. "Everyone except you, anyway. Let's get you inside."

"I'm alright," I lied, "just a little tired."

My claim of being "just a little tired" turned into falling asleep halfway through Defense Against the Dark Arts when my wideye potion wore off. Hermione kicked me under the table, and I jerked back awake, praying no one had noticed. For what it was worth, Professor Lupin looked a bit on the tired side, too, but wolfsbane didn't poison him the way it did me. And he hadn't spent the entire night patrolling the Forbidden Forest. 

"You took wolfsbane this month, didn't you?" Hermione asked in a nearly-inaudible whisper.

"How'd you know?" I whispered back.

She gave me a look that seemed to mean, _Oh please, I know my best friend_. "Just sleep tonight, won't you?"

I lied. "Of course I will."

* * *

I ended up sleeping very little that week. I did the bare minimum on my homework, instead spending every waking moment preparing Hagrid for the trial, writing out note cards he could keep with him and helping him put together the best outfit possible (which was surprisingly difficult --- I made a mental note to get him a real tie for Christmas).

I couldn't sleep on Friday night, even though I had snuck down to his hut at daybreak to wish him luck and pet Buckbeak for what I hoped wasn't the last time. I kept my typical vigil in the common room, sitting in the window seat and keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of an owl. I eventually fell asleep as the sun was rising, until I was shaken awake by the twins.

"If you're heading down to Hogsmeade, you might want to go while the sun is still up," Fred joked.

"I'm not going," I replied, sitting up and rubbing my eyes. "You two have fun, though."

"We still need to take you on a Zonko's trip," George said. "In the meantime, your bed is probably more comfortable than where you are now. You look awful, Cub."

"I know. But I'm helping Hagrid with the creatures while he's in London, so I ought to head down and take care of that." I tried and failed to stifle a massive yawn. "Thanks for waking me up, though."

"Sleep once you're back, yeah?"

I nodded. "Sounds wonderful, trust me. Have fun in Hogsmeade! And keep Harry out of trouble if you can, will you?"

They saluted in sync and disappeared from the common room. I headed up to my dormitory and splashed some cold water in my face before heading down to the magical creatures reserve. I moved like a zombie through each habitat at first, barely remembering to give the troll in the cave three steaks instead of two and barely managing to fight off the army of nifflers that tried to steal the mood ring off my finger.

Being out in the sunshine seemed to break me from my sleepy stupor, though, and the more I woke up, the more worried I became for Hagrid and Buckbeak. I hadn't heard back from them yet, and the anxiety was killing me. I didn't want to go to bed until I'd heard back, because I knew whenever I did fall asleep, I'd sleep for a long time and it would take a lot to wake me up. 

So, naturally, I wandered to Professor Lupin's office.

His door was slightly ajar already, so I shyly opened it a bit further. "Professor Lupin?"

"Ah, Lucy Diggory!" he said with a smile. "Come on in!"

I smiled back and closed the door behind me. "Hi, Professor. Mind if I drop in for a bit?"

"Of course not. Would you like some tea?"

"I'm alright, but thank you."

"To what do I owe the pleasure? Isn't today a Hogsmeade day?"

I nodded. "I'm technically not allowed to go. My parents signed my form, but they don't want me going until Sirius Black is caught."

"Rightfully so," he remarked, pouring himself a cup of tea. "How are you, Lucy?"

"Alright, I suppose," I replied, taking a seat at a desk and anxiously bouncing a leg up and down. "I'm waiting for news about Buckbeak's trial. I'm guessing you've heard about that whole ordeal?"

He nodded. "I did. Hagrid spoke very highly of you --- said you've been very helpful."

I blushed. "It's the least I could do. I love creatures, possibly to a fault."

"Is that a trait you've inherited that from your father?"

I glanced down at the desk, tracing a scratched-in Golden Snitch with my finger. I managed a chuckle. "Would you like the long answer, or the short answer?"

"Whichever you'd like to share," he said, leaning back in his chair.

"Would you believe me if I told you the circumstances of my transformation were... incredibly complicated?"

"I've gathered that sense," he said with a nod.

"Well... I've now seen the memory in its entirety. And as it turns out, I'm not who I think I am." I took a deep breath and began talking. I told Professor Lupin everything about the night I was transformed, and about being an American Muggle-born after all, and about my conversations with Dumbledore. He listened intently, asking questions and offering reassurance in all the right places. When I was through with my story, he sat forward in his desk and massaged his temples.

"Well, thank you for trusting me with all of that, Lucy. I can imagine it was difficult."

"Not really," I admitted in a small voice. "I thought... well, I thought you might understand more than most other people."

"Who else knows?"

"Just Cedric and Professor Dumbledore-"

Professor Snape's voice suddenly filled the room. “Lupin! I want a word!”

I jumped about a foot in the air. "What in Merlin's name-"

"It's alright, Lucy," he said, approaching the fire. He knelt down in front of it, calling, "All due respect, Severus, but I'm with a student right now,."

"All due respect, _Professor_ -" I could see Snape's sinister scowl even without seeing his face. "But a particular Mr. Potter has something here I'd like you to see, as an... expert on Dark Magic."

I felt my stomach drop. "Harry would never-"

"Just a moment, Severus." Professor Lupin turned his face away from the fire to meet my eyes. "I know. Don't worry. You're welcome to stay if you'd like, this should only take a moment. I reckon the grindylow could use a snack in the meantime." He turned back to the fire and promptly stepped into the fire and swirled out of sight.

I did as Professor Lupin recommended and reached for the bag of creature food beneath the grindylow's tank. I summoned a desk with my wand and stood on top of it to reach the opening at the top, and dropped three large pellets into the tank, watching as the water demon cut each pellet into five even pieces before eating them one after the other.

Professor Lupin entered the room a couple minutes later, looking grim and mildly angry. I jumped when I saw that he had the Marauder's Map clutched in his hand.

"Is that what Professor Snape thought had Dark Magic?" I asked.

Professor Lupin looked surprised for half a second, as if he'd forgotten I was there, but he recovered quickly and nodded. "I don't know how Harry came across such a thing, but he should have handed it in straight away."

"Why do you think so, Professor? Is it dangerous?"

"In the wrong hands, certainly."

"In Harry's?"

He sighed. "Possibly. With Sirius Black on the loose, I can take no chances." He studied the map for a moment then glanced up at me. "Given how close you are to Harry, I'm sure you know what this is?"

I nodded reluctantly. "I do. I know it's not dangerous, Professor."

"I know _you_ would use it responsibly. As for Harry... he is still just a thirteen-year-old boy. I was one once upon a time, and I know their --- er --- capacity for poor decisions, even with the most harmless of intentions." He managed a small chuckle. "The creators of this map made a lot of poor decisions, thirteen years old and otherwise."

"So you know it's a map? Did you know them, Professor, the creators?" 

"We've met, yes," he said casually, eyes wandering back to the piece of parchment in his hand.

My eyes widened. "Wait a minute... Moony! Are you Moony?"

Before he could reply, a tap at the window attracted our attention. Malachi was flapping his wings just outside the window, something clutched in his talons. I rushed over, taking the soggy parchment from him and letting him settle on my shoulder.

_Dear Lucy,_

_We lost. I’m allowed to bring him back to Hogwarts. Execution date to be fixed. Beaky has enjoyed London. I won’t forget all the help you gave us._

_Hagrid_

My hands shook violently. "It's from Hagrid," I explained, voice also shaking as I felt the blood drain from my face. "They lost. Buckbeak is going to be... killed." My voice cracked on the last word. I took a deep breath to steady myself and reached up to stroke the owl nuzzling his head against mine. "Thanks for delivering that, Malachi. You can go to the Owlery now. That's a long flight."

He nipped my finger affectionately and flew out the window. I slid it shut and turned to Professor Lupin, who had tucked the map into a drawer of his desk and was now holding out a chocolate bar.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Lucy. Would this help?"

I shook my head. "To tell you the truth, Professor, I don't feel very well, but thank you for offering. I should probably go find Harry and the others and tell them what happened."

He nodded understandingly. "That seems like a good idea. My apologies if Harry seems a bit off-color... I'm afraid I was harsh with him in my anger earlier. I will need to apologize later."

"You? Angry?" I repeated incredulously. 

"We all have our moments," he said. "Anger can both be a tool and a weapon, and you must be careful to use it accordingly."

"Anger can be... good?"

"Everything has the power to be good, Lucy. The world is too big and complex to be split into purely good and purely evil. We must choose who we want to be and find our place here accordingly." He offered a smile. "I'm sorry. That was very professor-like of me."

I smiled back, feeling slightly better. "No need to apologize. I think I understand." I sighed, hands still trembling. "I should go find everyone now. Thank you for talking to me this afternoon, Professor. I enjoyed it."

"As did I. Hopefully we can talk again in the future, without... unpleasant interruptions such as this."

I nodded. "I'd like that."

I slipped out of the classroom and hurried up the stairs to the common room, feeling anger beginning to bubble up deep in my gut. It wasn't fair. Draco Malfoy would pay for what he was about to do to such a beautiful creature. Beaky deserved better.

Harry spotted me first. "What's wrong?"

I held the parchment out with a shaking hand. He skimmed it quickly, and gestured for me to follow him.

Ron and Hermione were sitting together in the corner of the common room, Hermione laughing while Ron smiled at her.

"They made up?" I whispered incredulously. "How?"

"I wish I could take the credit for it, but... well, long story short, Ron told Hermione she was right about the whole Hogsmeade thing, then before I knew what was happening, she was crying saying she was sorry about Scabbers and Ron was reaching out to hug her and say it was okay. I was just about to go looking for you when you walked in."

Hermione seemed to notice us, and her laughter faded away. "You look like you want to talk to us." She cleared some of her books so Harry and I could join them on the ground. He passed the parchment to Hermione wordlessly, and Ron read over her shoulder. She gasped and looked up. "But... but they can't! Buckbeak was provoked!"

"I know," I said. "I... I did the best I could."

"You've been researching all by yourself?" Ron asked incredulously. "Why didn't you ask us for help?"

"Everyone was either busy, fighting, or both. I didn't want to be a bother."

"Well, you are never a bother, busy or fighting or otherwise," Harry said. "We can help you research for the appeal. Or at least, I can. I'm not too busy."

"I'll help too," Ron and Hermione said in unison.

We all laughed at that.

"We can start tomorrow," I offered. "I know where to start looking for materials in the library. In the meantime, I'm a little tired."

"I should get back to studying," Hermione said, reaching for a fresh piece of parchment. "You know, I missed this. Us."

"I missed us, too," I replied. I considered standing up, but the thought of moving at all made me realize exactly how tired I was. My eyes sank shut, and I shook my head to force myself to stay awake.

"When are you ever going to sleep like a normal person?" Harry asked, rising to his feet and holding a hand out. "C'mon, Lu, your bed will be more comfortable than the ground or someone's shoulder."  
  
I almost said I wouldn't mind sleeping on his shoulder, but I chased the thought away as soon as I had it. Where had THAT come from? I settled for accepting his hand and offering a crooked smile. "I'll have plenty of time to sleep when I'm dead."  
  
"Famous last words," he said, returning my crooked smile. "Go. Sleep. Now. Please. I catch Golden Snitches, not Lucy Diggorys. I don't want to drop you if you fall asleep walking away."  
  
I chuckled. "Alright, alright. See you later."  
  
"Later?" Hermione laughed from behind me. "I'd be shocked to see you before breakfast tomorrow."

"Time will tell," I replied, glancing at my friends one last time before heading up to my dorm room and collapsing on top of my sheets. My last conscious thought was that it was good to have "us" back to normal, even if it took a botched Hogsmeade trip and a threatened hippogriff to make it happen.

* * *

Hagrid didn't get back to Hogwarts until late Sunday, so we didn't have the chance to talk about the trial with him until after Care of Magical Creatures on Monday.

His shoulders shook as he tried to explain what happened. “S’all my fault. Got all tongue-tied. They was all sittin’ there in black robes an’ I kep’ droppin’ me notes and forgettin’ all them dates yeh looked up fer me, Lucy, an’ then Lucius Malfoy stood up an’ said his bit, and the Committee jus’ did exac’ly what he told ‘em.”

“There’s still the appeal! Don’t give up yet, we’re working on it!” Ron said. 

"We?" Hagrid repeated.

"They all offered to help me," I explained in a small voice. 

"Happy ter hear it," Hagrid said gruffly. "Yeh've been workin' altogether too hard by yerself."

I flushed bright red. "It still wasn't enough."

"Don't say that, Lu," Harry said, nudging my shoulder with his. "You did your best. It was too big of a job for one person alone, but we'll help now."

Even that little touch comforted me, and we stayed that close until we reached the castle steps, hands grazing every couple of seconds.

Hagrid reached into his coat for a handkerchief. “S’no good. That Committee’s in Lucius Malfoy’s pocket. I’m jus’ gonna make sure the rest o’ Beaky’s time is the happiest he’s ever had. I owe him that…”

With that, he turned around and hurried back to his hut, sobbing. I felt tears rise to my own eyes as my chest clenched with sorrow, but it quickly turned to anger when Malfoy opened his mouth.

“Look at him blubber!” he crowed. “Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic? And he’s supposed to be our teacher!”

I spun around on my heel, and Harry and Ron lunged at him, but Hermione beat them both to it.

The sound of her hand connecting with his cheek echoed throughout the hall. He staggered back, stunned.

Hermione lifted her hand for round two. “Don’t you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul- you evil-”

“Hermione!” Ron said, reaching forward and catching her hand.

“Get off, Ron!” she snapped, pulling her wand out of her pocket.

"Yeah, Ron, let her finish." I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. 

But Draco decided he didn't want to see Hermione's next move. "C'mon," he said to Crabbe and Goyle, practically running off down the hallway.

"Hermione!" Ron repeated, his face a mixture of awe and shock.

Hermione pocketed her wand and whirled around to face Harry and me. “You two had better beat him in the Quidditch final! You just better had, because I can’t _stand_ it if Slytherin wins!”

"I've been wanting to do that for so long, Hermione," I said, thinking back to every horrible Ancient Runes class I had endured next to him. "You have no idea."

Harry laughed. “As much as I enjoyed that, we’re due in Charms. We’d better go.”

We bounded up the stairs to the Charms classroom and I slid in right next to Neville as the class was starting.

"What happened?" he asked. "You were almost late."

I smiled from ear to ear. "A bit of justice happened."

Halfway through the lesson, a scrap of parchment landed in my lap. I recognized Harry's handwriting immediately. 

_Where's Hermione?_

I scanned the classroom quickly. Surely enough, she was nowhere to be seen.

 _I don't know, maybe she just needed time to cool down. She was pretty heated_ , I scribbled, sending the paper back to Harry.

He turned back and nodded at me once he read the note. I shrugged at him and returned my attention to Neville, who was smiling ear-to-ear from my successful Cheering Charm. I didn't feel any cheerier after the lesson (Neville's wand didn't want to cooperate), but frankly, seeing Hermione punch Draco was cheering enough.

Professor Flitwick released us early, so the boys and I headed up to the Gryffindor common room.

“You don’t think Malfoy did something to her?” Ron asked worriedly.

"If he did, I'll do something to him," I spat.

Fortunately, he hadn't touched her. She was sound asleep on top of an Arithmancy book.

I gently shook her shoulder. "Mione? Everything alright?"

She jerked awake. “Wh-What? Is it time to go? W-Which lesson have we got now?”

"Shh," I said, rubbing her back reassuringly. "You don't have Divination for another twenty minutes. It's okay."

“Hermione, why didn’t you come to Charms?” Harry asked.

“What? Oh no! I forgot to go to Charms!”

“But how could you forget? You were with us till we were right outside the classroom!”

She didn't seem to hear a word he was saying. “I don’t believe it! Was Professor Flitwick angry? Oh, it was Malfoy, I was thinking about him and I lost track of things!”

“You know what, Hermione? I reckon you’re cracking up," Ron said. "You’re trying to do too much.”

Hermione shook me loose and rose to her feet. “No, I’m not! I just made a mistake, that’s all! I’d better go and see Professor Flitwick and say sorry! I’ll see you in Divination!”

"What about Ancient Runes?" I called after her, but she ignored me by jumping through the portrait hole.

"Wait... Lucy, she's been in Ancient Runes with you?" Ron asked.

I nodded. "Every class except the first one, apparently. She sits in the back of the room, so I didn't see her for a while, but Professor Babbling said she's been there all year."

"But she's been in every Divination class too!"

"Really?"

Both boys nodded. "Definitely."

I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck. "She's been so stressed all year. Something's going on. I don't know what it is, but..." I sighed again. "I guess we just have to trust her."

"I guess," Ron replied. "I just wish we knew how to help."

"I've been trying," I said in a small voice. "Just in little ways, here and there, and I've tried asking questions about how and why she's taking so many classes, but I never get anywhere."

"Well, maybe now that we've made up, we can help, too," Ron said.

"I think that alone will help. She really did feel awful about Scabbers." I sighed. "I'm going to start walking to Ancient Runes, it's on the other end of the castle. See you in Defense Against the Dark Arts?"

"See you then," they said in unison. 

I smiled. "Now you sound like Fred and George."

I ducked through the portrait hole, the sound of their laughter echoing behind me.

Just as I was about to enter the classroom, Draco rounded the corner. To my disappointment, he had no redness or bruising on his cheek from Hermione's slap.

He grinned malevolently at me. "Oh, look, it's the failed hippogriff defender. I've just received the most amusing letter from Father telling me all about your disastrous efforts to keep the oaf afloat."

My face burned. "What did he say?"

"More than two dozen notecards? Really, Scars?"

"It was a precaution," I said, voice shaking. I laid my hand on the doorknob, wanting to enter the classroom to try to escape him (he always toned it down a bit when he knew Professor Babbling might overhear), but he smacked my hand away and forced me back against the wall.

"You really thought you could save the monster, didn't you?" he sneered.

"I wanted to try," I choked out.

"It was _your failure_ that made Hagrid blubber like an extremely overgrown baby. You realize that, right?"

I couldn't answer, as tears had clogged my throat.

He narrowed his eyes. "You really think you're something special, don't you? Trying to save the hippogriff was just the most recent spectacular failure proving that you're not. You try to be a hero on the Quidditch Pitch, you follow Potter around on all of his stupid missions like a lost puppy, you let the Mudblood Granger fight all of your battles for you. Just because your mother threw away her career for you doesn't mean you're worth it. You're not. Face it. If it weren't for your brother's golden reputation, you'd be _nothing_. You're close enough as it is. You're nothing more than Cedric Diggory's useless little sister."

"Don't... call Hermione... that word."

"You got a problem with the word Mudblood?" He barked a laugh. "You're _such_ a sorry excuse for a pure-blood. I won't forget this, Scars. You had better watch your back."

"Lucy?" came a voice at the end of the corridor.

Draco and I snapped our heads toward the sound at the same time. Hermione stood there, cheeks flushed and panting as if she's been running.

She glared at Draco and whipped her wand out. "Leave her alone, Malfoy."

To my satisfaction, he looked somewhat scared and opened the classroom door. Before he walked in, however, he gave me one last look. He didn't need to say anything, I knew what he was thinking --- another battle Hermione had to fight for me.

Hermione rushed forward and grabbed my arm. "What _was_ that?"

"Buckbeak," I managed, trembling from head to toe. "He was bragging about Buckbeak."

"He makes me sick," she spat. "Anyway, the bell's about to ring. Come on, let's go."

I finally entered the classroom and slid into my seat next to Draco, Hermione taking her typical spot in the back of the room. I tried to focus on the lesson, really I did, but my mind kept replaying all he had said to me. The same thing happened in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Now that Ron and Hermione were friends again, I was sitting next to Harry for the first time in several months, which should have made me feel better, but all I could think about was how I had failed him, too, in addition to Hagrid and Buckbeak. I could have killed Sirius Black on Halloween, but I didn't, and because I didn't, Harry was still in danger.

When the bell rang, I practically fled the room. I sprinted on shaking legs to the empty Quidditch pitch, racing up the stairs until I reached the commentary box. I threw my bag onto the closest bench and punched the closest wall.

"'You really thought you could save the monster, didn't you?'" I said in a squeaky voice. "'You're nothing more than Cedric Diggory's useless little sister.' 'You're such a sorry excuse for a pure-blood.'" I kicked the wall with all I was worth and switched to my regular voice. "Jokes on you! I'm not even a pure-blood after all!"

My temper tantrum over, I heaved for breath and sank down on the bench next to my bag. I refused to cry over Draco's words yet again, but to say I was fine would be a massive bloody lie. How did he know exactly which buttons to push to make me break down? How did he know exactly what to say to revive all of my deepest fears and insecurities? Why did he do this to me, anyway?

I tried to control my breathing, but my emotions were running too high. I _did_ feel guilty for the Buckbeak situation --- horribly guilty. I should have let my friends help. It was too much for one person to do... or at least, too much for _me_ to do.

I detected Harry's footsteps before I heard his voice, so I took a deep breath and fixed my gaze on the castle in the distance.

"Lu? What's wrong?"

"I'm alright," I lied, not turning to look at him. "Honest. Nothing's wrong."

"Don't tell me I'm supposed to believe that," he chuckled, sitting next to me on the bench. "You don't take off running to the Quidditch Pitch because 'nothing's wrong.'"

"Did Professor Lupin give you the map back?"

"No, he didn't. Why?"

I glanced at him for the first time. His green eyes, soft with concern, locked onto mine. I couldn't look away. I couldn't remember his question. For a moment, Harry was all I could see.

After what felt like eternity, I blinked. "You knew I'd be here even without the map, didn't you." I meant it to come out like a question, but it really sounded more like a statement.

He nodded. "It wasn't terribly hard to figure out. I know you, Lu. So... what's wrong?"

I sighed. "Malfoy confronted me before Ancient Runes today."

"He did? What did he say?"

"He..." I took a shaky breath and paused. I didn't want to tell Harry what he said, not really. I was terrified of Harry agreeing. I didn't want him to see me the way Draco did. But the sincerity in his eyes weakened my defenses, and I felt something deep inside of me release. It was as if a tiny dam were breaking, and a couple of the hurts I had tried to lock away were beginning to pour out. I glanced away toward the Pitch for half a second, but Harry's emerald eyes pulled me back in, like gravity. I knew in that moment that I could trust Harry --- he would never, ever hurt me the way Draco did. "He said it was my fault Hagrid wasn't successful in the trial. He mocked me for even trying to save Buckbeak. Then he-"

"It got worse?" he asked incredulously. He blinked, shaking his head. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you, I just can't believe there's more."

I nodded. "He then went on a bit of a tirade about how I wasn't special and how I'd never be more than Cedric Diggory the Golden Boy's useless little sister."

Harry clenched his fists and jumped to his feet. "That's it. I'm going to finish what Hermione started."

"Wait, what?" I asked, lunging forward and grabbing his wrist. "Harry, no! Please, don't, it's not worth it."

"I can't just let him get away with saying something like that to you!" Harry said, his eyes flashing.

I glanced down. "It's not like it's the first time," I mumbled.

"What?" Harry sat back down next to me, wrenching his wrist free so he could rest a hand on my shoulder. "Lucy," he said in a much gentler voice, "look at me."

I complied, once again struck by the vibrancy of his green eyes and the emotion that lay within.

"How long has this been going on?" he asked softly.

"All year," I admitted. "I sit next to him in Ancient Runes. It's basically a free-for-all as far as he's concerned."

Harry looked away, his hand tightening ever so slightly on my shoulder. "What do you _mean_ today wasn't the first time? What does he say to you?"

"It depends. He knew I was researching on Hagrid's behalf, so he'd taunt me saying it was pointless and that Buckbeak would never be free. He compares me to Cedric all the time, saying I'll never be good enough. Which I know is true, I mean..." I sighed shakily. "When I came to Hogwarts, I had a plan. I would be in Hufflepuff, just like Cedric. I would work toward being a healer, just like Cedric. After I graduated, Cedric and I would start our own little healing clinic in the countryside, helping wizards and Muggles alike however we could. But that didn't happen. I was sorted into Gryffindor. When I was attacked in the Forbidden Forest, I realized I can't take the sight of blood. My plan fell apart, and now all that's left of it is Cedric, but I'm losing him this summer and I'm scared that when he comes back, we won't be the same because he'll have started moving on to the next stage of his life that doesn't include me."

Harry was silent for a moment, and I worried for a second that I had unnerved him. I hadn't meant to share so much deeply personal information, but once I started, I couldn't stop. I knew I was safe with Harry. I knew I could trust him. He would never ridicule me like Draco did every day he saw me. He would never use my insecurity against me the way Hermione did when she was mad. Harry was safe. Harry cared about me, perhaps more than anyone save Cedric.

Harry dropped his hand from my shoulder and ran his fingers through his messy hair, gripping it in frustration. "I'm so sorry, Lucy. You don't deserve any of this. I mean, first you have to deal with all of _that_ internally, then on top of that you try to take care of everyone else too, then on top of that you're affected by dementors the same way that I am, not to mention the fact that you're sick almost all the time..." His voice trailed off, and he released his hair with a sigh. "You deserve so much better. It's so unfair."

I leaned my head against his shoulder. "At least I don't have to bear it all by myself, now that I've told you."

"And you never will have to bear it by yourself again," he said firmly. "I'll always be right here, however I can be. The same way you've always been there for me."

I closed my eyes and inhaled through my nose to calm myself. As I did, I breathed in the scent of Harry. He still smelled somewhat of chocolate and broomsticks, like he had our first year, but there was more to him than just that now. When I smelled Harry, I could smell the grass from all of the walks to and from the Quidditch Pitch together, rain and shine and anything in between. I could smell the faint sweetness of healing potions from our various times spent in the Hospital Wing together side by side. I could smell the smoke from the late nights spent together by the common room fire.

Being there in that moment with Harry felt like finally realizing I was home.

In that moment, I knew Harry would keep my secrets and dreams and insecurities alike safely tucked away in his heart, right next to his own. Well... all of them except one. The biggest one. I wasn't ready to tell him I was a werewolf yet. I didn't want to risk destroying everything we had been building together over the years.

In that moment, everything seemed right. Safe. Happy. And... oh no.

I opened my eyes again and hazarded a glance at the mood ring around my finger.

The red glow of my half confirmed what I had just realized. What I really should have known was a long time coming.

In that moment, I knew I was in love with Harry James Potter.


	47. The Bestest Birthday Ever

LUCY:

The night before the Slytherin-Gryffindor Quidditch match, the common room seemed fit to explode.

Everyone was coping with the stress differently. Fred and George were cracking Angelina and Alicia up with their antics while Oliver sat in the furthest corner of the room, hunched over a model Quidditch Pitch and moving the little players around and talking to himself. Harry and I chose to isolate ourselves, too, with only Ron and Hermione for company.

The past month had been intense, to say the least. We had thrown ourselves into researching for Buckbeak's appeal, but the full moon had brought my efforts to a screeching halt. I had never taken wolfsbane two months in a row before, and it was rough, to say the least. I once again saw no sign of Sirius Black or the Grim in the Forbidden Forest, but I was still glad I had done it in the end.

Cedric was feeling the strain, too. His big match against Ravenclaw took place the first weekend in May, and both teams fought to the bitter end. However, just before the match, Henry fell victim to a nasty case of dragon pox, meaning they had to play their game with their back-up Keeper. Although Cedric beat Cho to the Snitch, Hufflepuff still suffered a horrible defeat. I was terrified that Cedric would catch Henry's dragon pox, given how much time they spent together, but to my immense relief, he stayed perfectly healthy.

Once both Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were out of the running for the Quidditch Cup, the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin grew astronomically. Slytherin tried to sabotage us left and right, especially Harry. Legs stuck out from every direction in the hallway trying to trip him, and he received a number of threats saying he needed to keep a very close eye on his Firebolt. He stopped leaving it in his locker and instead left it in the trunk at the foot of his bed. I snuck up to their dormitory one night to place extra protective enchantments all around it, just in case. 

The night before the match, I could have cut the tension with a knife. Well, maybe not a knife... perhaps a _very_ strong severing charm. Point being, everyone was nervous. Perhaps no one was more nervous than Harry and I were.

Wood had been mercilessly repeating the same thing before, during, and after every practice.

He'd start with Harry. "So you must catch it only if we’re more than fifty points up, Harry. Only if we’re more than fifty points up, Harry, or we win the match but lose the Cup. You’ve got that, haven’t you? You must catch the Snitch only if we’re fifty points up."

Then he'd turn to me. "Lucy, it'll have to be up to you to get those fifty points and stay there. You're the fastest one on the team, and the smallest Chaser. They're going to try to play dirty, but you have to be smarter and faster to get away when they try to cheap-shot you. And they will, trust me."

Then he'd turn back to Harry. "You have to catch the Snitch only when we're fifty points up, but do it as quickly as possible."

Then he'd turn back to me. "Be sure to stay on your broom and uninjured until he does. One dirty shot might kill you."

The night before the match, Oliver didn't say any of these things to us, but we still heard his words looping in our heads. My stomach fluttered uncomfortably, like it was full of angry bees trying to escape, as Harry and I watched Ron and Hermione play chess.

Something had changed in the month since that day he followed me to the Quidditch Pitch and I told him about Malfoy. Now, every time I saw him, my heart beat a little faster. I blushed a little more every time we teased each other, and I laughed a little louder at all of his jokes. The thought of Sirius Black being after him made me more nervous every day, and every time a Slytherin tried to trip him in the halls or said something mean about him, I got more and more angry.

Merlin... I was hopeless.

“Team! Bed!” Oliver announced, rising from his seat and gesturing toward the dormitories with a wave of his arm.

Harry and I rose reluctantly, and Ron and Hermione offered us sympathetic glances before returning to their game.

My hand grazed Harry's ever so slightly, and my whole arm felt like it was on fire. I smiled up at him. "Sleep well."

He smiled back, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. "That's likely. But you too, Lu. See you in the morning."

I nodded. "See you then."

To my surprise, I did actually fall asleep almost immediately.

In my dreams, I found myself in a memory I had never seen in its entirety before.

Claire and I were by ourselves on a trampoline. I had seen a snapshot of us jumping on it, in my Claire memory vial, but in this memory, we were lying on our backs watching the clouds drift by overhead.

"I want to fly," I heard myself saying.

"Mommy says you can't, Lucy. She says it's impossible."

"I know," I said, sounding incredibly sad. "But... do _you_ think I can?"

"I think we can do anything," she replied. "If you want to fly, then fly."

I pushed myself to a standing position. "I will! Claire, watch!"

I bent down into a low crouch and propelled myself upward. I was suspended in air for a couple of seconds before hitting the trampoline's surface again. I bounced a couple more times, willing myself higher and higher, giggling all the while.

"Look, Claire, look! I'm flying!"

She smiled and stood up. "Let's fly together!"

And so we did. We locked hands and bounced as one, reaching for the sky every time.

My dream began to fade, but just before it did, we jumped one last time. This time, the air around us grew energized. We shot into the air higher than we'd ever been, and lingered longer than we ever had.

As we fell, we exchanged a stunned, excited look.

"That felt like magic," Claire whispered, ocean-blue eyes wide with wonder.

The memory faded to blackness, and I found myself back in my dormitory with a couple rays of sun streaming through the window. I smiled, happy tears burning the back of my eyes, and rolled over so my face was buried in my pillow.

"That's because it _was_ magic. I just didn't know it yet," I whispered, hoping against hope that Claire could somehow hear me, wherever she was.

I made my way down to the Great Hall in much higher spirits than I had been in mere hours prior. Harry seemed to be feeling the same way; when the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables erupted into cheers upon the team's entrance, he smiled so brightly it made my stomach flutter --- in a good way, not in an angry-bees way.

Oliver urged us all to eat, not touching anything himself. We ate what we could quickly, then he ushered us down to the Pitch to see what the conditions were like. Cedric rushed over to give me a good-luck hug before we left, and Cho called, "Good luck, Lucy! You too, Harry!"

I laughed and waved at her, and when I turned to look at Harry, he was blushing ever so slightly. Merlin, he was cute when he blushed. How had I never noticed that before?

We made our way down to the Pitch in silence, but the fear from the night before was gone. My dream had replaced all my fear with excitement. I was doing this for Claire today, who had believed all along that I could fly.

The team reached the Pitch then, and we stepped out onto the grass. Oliver surveyed the scene with his critical captain's eye. “Okay. No wind to speak of. Sun’s a bit bright, that could impair your vision, watch out for it. Ground’s fairly hard, good, that’ll give us a fast kickoff.”

After making a few more observations, Oliver led us to the locker rooms. I slipped into my locker to change, just as I always did, and we walked out onto the field without a pre-match speech. Everyone else looked terrified, but for the first time in a while, I dared to have hope. This would be a good match. I just knew it.

I took in the stadium. Massive maroon and gold banners were spread across sections of students, reading everything from "GO GRYFFINDOR" to "LIONS FOR THE CUP" to "LET US HEAR YOU ROAR." I nudged Harry and pointed to one sign hoisted up by Ginny, Neville, and Luna Lovegood. It was hard to make out because the letters were so small, so I read it out loud.

"'Make this match a memory worthy of a patronus,'" I shouted over the crowd. "Sounds like a good idea, eh?"

He nodded, exhaling slowly through pursed lips. "Yeah, it does. I hope it is."

I smiled and bumped his arm with my shoulder. "You got this. Good luck, Potter."

"Good luck, Diggory," he replied, grinning.

“And here are the Gryffindors!” Lee Jordan boomed. “Potter, Diggory, Johnson, Spinnet, Weasley, Weasley, and Wood. Widely acknowledged as the best team Hogwarts has seen in a good few years-”

The rest of his sentence was lost among a sea of Slytherin jeers, but I laughed regardless. I never really listened to his commentary, choosing instead to focus wholeheartedly on the game, but from what I heard, he was rather witty.

“And here come the Slytherin team, led by Captain Flint. He’s made some changes in the lineup and seems to be going for size rather than skill-”

The Slytherins booed again, but he wasn't wrong. Malfoy was the smallest on the team, by far --- everyone else looked rather troll-like as far as build was concerned. Maybe Oliver was right. A hit from one of those boys could very well send me falling to my death. I forced the thought away from my mind and mounted my broom as Marcus Flint shook Oliver's hand.

With the blow of a whistle, we were off. I was first to reach the Quaffle, but almost immediately, a Slytherin player wrenched it out of my hands. I swore under my breath and tore off after him, but Angelina was there first. When George pelted him in the back with a Bludger, she snatched the Quaffle and passed it to me.

"Thanks!" I shouted, flying as fast as I could to the Slytherin goal. I dodged one particularly burly player and swerved under a Bludger, sending the Quaffle flying cleanly through the center hoop.

I pumped my fist in the air as the crowd exploded, doubling back to give Angelina a quick high five, but before I could get there, Marcus Flint slammed into Angelina from behind.

“Sorry! Sorry, didn’t see her!” Marcus Flint called as the crowd booed, but evidently, Fred didn't believe him. He sent his Beater's bat flying into the back of the Slytherin Captain's head, and his nose connected with his broomstick.

I laughed to myself as I went to catch Fred's bat. 

Madam Hooch didn't find it quite as funny as I did. “That will do! Penalty shot to Gryffindor for an unprovoked attack on their Chaser! Penalty shot to Slytherin for deliberate damage to their Chaser!”

I tossed Fred his bat as Angelina flew over to take the penalty. "Nice shot, Weasley! Should have seen the look on his face."

"I'll admit that was some of my finer work," he said, blowing imaginary dust off his bat and flipping it around. "You had a nice shot, too."

We watched as Angelina scored, then Oliver prevented Flint from scoring.

"That's our boy!" I said delightedly. "Alright, back to the game. See you around, Freddie!"

"Don't die!" he called after me as I zoomed toward the Quaffle.

"I'll do my best," I shouted back, snatching the ball and rushing down back toward the Slytherin hoops. Before I could, however, a Slytherin Chaser appeared suddenly in front of me and grabbed me by the head.

My teeth clacked together as I found myself nearly thrown to the ground. The Quaffle fell from my hands, but I managed to lock my legs around my broom and pull myself up. I clung to my broom, my entire body shaking as my heart hammered in my chest. I realized all at once that he could have killed me.

"THAT WAS DELIBERATE!" Jordan bellowed into the microphone.

Madam Hooch seemed to agree, because she rushed forward and began hollering at Montague.

"You can take the penalty shot, Alicia," I called, rubbing my now-aching neck. I flew away from Montague, muttering under my breath, "ThatgoodfornothingbastardcouldhavekilledmeIsweartoMerlinthenexttimeIseehimIwillnothesitatetohexhimsohardhe-"

"You alright, Cub?" the twins asked in unison, flying up on either side of me.

I smiled. "Just peachy."

George egged me on. "What was that you were saying? Hex him so hard he...?"

My face flushed bright red. "Bloody hell. Just pretend you didn't hear any of that. I'm fine, really."

Apparently Alicia had scored, because Jordan yelled, “THIRTY-ZERO! TAKE THAT, YOU DIRTY, CHEATING-”

“Jordan," Professor McGonagall scolded, "if you can’t commentate in an unbiased way-”

“I’m telling it like it is, Professor!”

"Try harder not to die," Fred advised as he and George took off in opposite directions. I adjusted my helmet on my head and gritted my teeth. If the stinking Slytherins wanted to play dirty, I would be the slipperiest Chaser they'd ever seen. I had been dumb in letting Montague get so close --- none of them would have that chance again as long as I could help it. 

Angelina was the next to the Quaffle. I followed along underneath her, waiting to catch the Quaffle if she needed help. And not a moment too soon --- Flint snatched it from her, so I flew up underneath him and snatched it right back.

As soon as I had it secure, I turned a full 180 and soared straight up to get out of the Slytherin traffic. They tried to close in on me, but I kept my cool, whizzing between them with my eyes on the hoops at the other end of the field. The Quaffle soared clean through, and the stadium erupted again. This time, I kept my guard up and swerved out of the way just as both Slytherin Beaters sent Bludgers hurtling my direction. I didn't have time to revel in my victory, however, because Flint was flying at me from underneath. I got out of the way just in time and sent the Quaffle to Angelina.

One of the Chasers immediately undercut her and quickly scored on Wood, prompting a groan from the stands. 

Alicia and I shot forward together, surrounding the Slytherin Chaser that got the ball next. I knocked it out, and Alicia caught it firmly. I shot ahead and waited for her to throw the Quaffle to me, but before she could, I was struck in the head by something massive and heavy. The crowd screamed, and I was once again nearly launched off of my broom.

"I thought she was a Bludger, she's so small!" the Beater protested.

George appeared out of thin air and elbowed him swiftly in the face. "Are you okay?" he asked me.

I nodded. "I'm fine, I'm fine, I'll take the penalty shot. We can still win this."

Alicia tossed me the Quaffle, and I soared over to the Slytherin hoops.

"This is for Buckbeak," I muttered, sending the Quaffle through the left hoop as hard as I possibly could.

To my immense relief, Oliver pulled off another miraculous save, so Slytherin stayed at ten points.

I got the Quaffle next, and I was determined not to let anybody get in my way. If this game went on any longer, people would get seriously hurt. If I scored, Harry would be allowed to catch the Snitch.

Slytherin didn't make it easy. Every three seconds, it seemed, another person was either in my blind spot or sending a Bludger to my blind spot. A Bludger even clipped my shoulder, but I gamely hung on to the Quaffle until I was close enough to scoring range.

Well... to be fair, I'd never even attempted a goal from that far away. But I spied both Beaters winding up to send Bludgers my way, and I saw that Fred and George wouldn't be able to reach me in time. So I wound up, muttered "Please," and let the Quaffle fly. To my shock, it soared cleanly through the rightmost hoop, making the score 60-10. I dodged one of the Bludgers, but the other one slammed into my stomach. 

I doubled over, spitting profanities through my teeth as I drifted out of the field of play.

Harry flew over to me, brilliant green eyes wide with concern. "Lu! You okay?"

"I'm fine!" I insisted, though the way I clutched my stomach and the wheezing in my voice suggested otherwise. "Now you can get the Snitch! Go!"

I played a lot of reconnaissance while I tried to catch my breath, letting Angelina and Alicia have some of the fun. I screamed for them to watch out when a Bludger (or a Slytherin player) was headed their way, and I shouted directions at Fred and George so their Bludgers would be more successful than the Slytherins'. I watched with horror as Malfoy latched onto the back of Harry's broom, joining in on the crowd's boos as best I could with my lungs still feeling like deflated balloons. 

I rejoined the game when the score was 70-20, Gryffindor. Slytherin couldn't score again.

Without me helping from above, Angelina and Alicia took their share of the beatings, too. I took another Bludger to the small of my back, and a particularly fast one bashed my elbow. After about five minutes of fruitless back-and-forth without scoring, Angelina finally made the score 80-20.

“SHE SCORES! JOHNSON SCORES! Gryffindor leads by eighty Points to twenty!” Jordan screamed. "And down goes Malfoy! Go, Harry, go!"

We turned around to see that, surely enough, Draco and Harry were plummeting downward toward a flicker of gold. Draco was far ahead, but the gap got smaller... smaller... smaller...

“YES!” Harry pulled out of the dive, fist held high above his head, the wings of the Snitch protruding from either side of his hand.

We had won the Quidditch Cup --- actually _with_ Harry this time.

Wood reached Harry first, then the twins, then all three of us Chasers. As we all dogpiled on top of each other in a floating group hug, the people in the stands charged the field like a crimson sea. We slowly sank to the ground, and the crowd filled in around us. Before I had time to feel claustrophobic, I was once again in the air, lifted onto someone's shoulders. Harry was the next up, and we exchanged an amused look as the rest of the team joined us on top of the hordes of people. All seven of us were passed person to person until we reached the Quidditch Cup. Professor Dumbledore passed it to Oliver Wood, beaming, and the stadium erupted all over again. 

Shouts of a party in the common room could be heard after a while, and the crowd began to disperse. The second my feet hit the ground, I was scooped up again.

"Lu!" Cedric exclaimed, spinning me in an excited circle. "I'm so proud of you! That was your best game yet!"

I beamed. "It was a good fight, for sure."

Once he set me down, a smiling Cho reached forward for a hug too. "That was spectacular!" she gushed. "You make me wish I played Chaser, you know that? You looked like you were having so much fun."

"I definitely was," I giggled. "At least, when I wasn't dangling from my broom, anyway. What a dirty game."

She laughed. "I know the feeling. Bole gave me a concussion when we played them last fall."

I looked from her to Cedric, grinning. "Are you two...?"

"Not yet," Cedric said. Cho shot me a pained look before glancing up at my brother (their height difference was adorable) with puppy-dog eyes. "Not until after my internship. We just watched the match together, since we were supporting the same team."

"Oy, Cub, you coming or not?" came Fred's voice from behind me.

"Coming!" I shouted over my shoulder. I faced Cedric and Cho apologetically. "Sorry, sounds like I need to go."

"Have fun!" Cedric replied. 

"A party sure sounds a lot better than the Transfiguration essay I procrastinated," Cho said with a laugh. "Bye, Lucy."

"Bye!" 

I wove my way through the crowd until George caught me by the shoulder and steered me toward the side exit. "Bloody hell, you're easy to lose in a mass of people."

"It's not my fault I'm small!"

Fred grabbed my other shoulder. "I didn't even see you when I called for you; I just saw your tall brother looking down as he talked to someone and yelled in that general direction."

"Hey!" I protested, laughing nonetheless. "Just you wait, I'll be taller than both of you one day."

"If that's the case, we'll be waiting forever, Cub," George teased as we stepped off the Pitch.

"Where are we going, anyway?" I asked, shaking their hands off. "Is the party that urgent?"

"We figured now was as good a time as any to take you with us on a Honeyduke's run, since you haven't gone with Harry yet."

"Ooh, yes! Wait, don't we need to change? Won't they be suspicious seeing three Hogwarts students on a non-Hogsmeade day? How do you pull this all off, anyway?"

"Watch and learn, Cub, watch and learn," Fred chuckled. "We're going to have to move quickly. Let's go."

We took off running for the castle, and didn't stop until we reached the statue.

"Bloody hell, we forgot our wands," George panted.

"I have mine," I said, reaching down my robes and hissing, "Dissendium!"

Once we were safely in the tunnel, Fred turned to me. "Why'd you have your wand?"

"Just in case the dementors wanted another round. I'm mildly disappointed; another Patronus would have been the only thing that could have made that match any better. Well, that and not being beaten to a pulp by the Slytherin team. But we won, so I can't complain. I'm excited, are you two excited?"

George chuckled. "We can tell. We're excited, too."

"How long does it take to get to Hogsmeade this way?"

"A while," Fred replied with a shrug. 

"In that case, tell me about more of your products! You do have more, right?"

"You bet!" they exclaimed in unison.

While we walked, the twins explained some of their other successful products, along with their failures and the ones they had yet to try. I listened to all of this with wide eyes, trying (and failing) to wrap my mind around the scope of their plans --- they were geniuses.

"Alright, we're getting close, Freddie. Send 'er up!"

Fred knelt down and pulled something out of his sock.

"Is that the Snitch?" I asked, my hands flying up to cover my nose. With only four days to the full moon, my nose was too sensitive for Fred Weasley's foot stench.

"It's _a_ Snitch," George replied. "Has Cedric ever told you about Jae Kim? He was a Gryffindor in Adalyn Benson's year."

"He might have, honestly. I mainly remember Adalyn and Penny and Diego. The Hufflepuffs, now that I think about it," I added with a laugh. "Is he your dealer, for lack of a better word?"

"You guessed it," Fred said. "The Snitch will hit the trap door until Jae opens it. The Snitch has a bunch of money in it, and based on how much is in there, Jae will drop down candy and butterbeer."

"Where do you get the money?" I asked.

"You would not believe how much gets stuck in between cushions. We rifle through the cushions every night for a couple of weeks before a match, and we always have tons of it to spend on this."

"And when we lose?"

"The next party's even better! But we don't lose much. We're Gryffindor, for Merlin's sake."

"You got that right," I said with a laugh. After a couple minutes, we reached the trap door the twins had mentioned. Surely enough, a young Asian man dropped into the tunnel, arms full of bags of goodies.

"Wotcher, Weasleys!" he said good-naturedly. "I see you brought some extra help today. I'm Jae Kim, and you are?"

"Lucy Diggory," I said, extending a hand.

"Cedric's sister?" he asked, obviously surprised.

"The one and only," George said, taking his fair share of bags. "Though Fred and I would have to take credit for her mischievous streak. Cedric can have credit for the Quidditch skills and study habits."

"D'you win the Cup this year?"

"We did!" Fred exclaimed. "Brutal game against Slytherin, but Harry pulled it out."

"Ah, the famous Harry Potter. Can't wait to see him in Hogsmeade, at least as soon as Sirius Black is caught, I hear. Anyway," he said, distributing the rest of the bags between Fred and me, "enjoy the party! Sure wish I could head down with you. I miss the Quidditch parties more than just about anything else."

"We'll bring the party to you sometime, Kim," George promised. "But in the meantime, we've got a Cup to celebrate!"

The return journey seemed a bit slower, even with shrinking the bags to make them easier to carry, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Fred and George took turns telling stories about the mischief they got into with Jae, along with the detentions they served together in the kitchens as a result of that mischief. We quickly made our way back up to the common room once we reached the castle, and our arrival was announced with a fair amount of cheering.

Ginny was the first to reach me, flinging her arms around my neck and screaming about what a great game I'd played. Neville was only slightly more reserved, lifting me off my feet the way Cedric had but not spinning me in a circle. Ginny then dragged Luna over, who asked if Quidditch had always been such a violent game. I didn't have a good answer to that, but her question did make me realize exactly how badly my ribs were hurting and how badly my neck was aching, so I excused myself and went to sit in a (relatively) quiet corner of the room for a bit.

I pressed a cold bottle of butterbeer to the back of my neck and closed my eyes, letting the relief wash over me. I had given it everything I had. We had won. And I had done it for Claire.

"Is the party too much for you already, Lu?"

I opened my eyes, blushing of course, as Harry sat down next to me with his own bottle of butterbeer in his hand. "Just a headache," I admitted. "I promise, I'll actually participate as soon as I feel better. I'm planning to stay for the whole party this time."

Harry glanced over, and his eyes widened. "Bloody hell, wait." He gently touched my hand (which made my cheeks grow even hotter) and lowered the bottle. "You have massive bruises on your neck."

"Those would most likely be from one of the Slytherins grabbing me like this-" I demonstrated loosely on Harry. "-and trying to launch me off my broom."

He winced. "Yeah, that'd do it. Is there anything I can do? I'm sure someone could heal it up pretty quickly."

"I could," I said with a shrug. I immediately regretted shrugging, as it sent a spasm of pain through my body. "But if even shrugging hurts, I think I'll just wait a bit," I added, laughing.

"Do you have your wand on you?"

I blushed even more, somehow. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, I do. Same... same place as last time."

He blushed too. "Got it."

"You know what, I'm thirsty," I said, quickly reaching for my wand and holding it to my neck. "Episkey!"

Some of the pain vanished instantly, so I lowered my bottle of butterbeer and took a long sip.

"This is so damn good," Harry said, taking a sip of his own. "How did I go 13 years of my life without it?"

"I don't know, honestly. Dare I say it's one of the best parts of the wizarding world. Is there anything like it for Muggles?"

"Cream soda is about as close as it gets, I reckon, but I've only had that a couple of times."

I nodded thoughtfully. "So if I were to hypothetically live among Muggles one day, I should bring my own supply of butterbeer?"

Harry laughed. "Hypothetically, yes."

I twirled my wand in my fingers and took another sip of butterbeer. "I'm going to go run my wand up to my dormitory real quick, since I won't need it anymore. Then I'll come down and be here to stay."

"Sounds great," he said with a grin that made my stomach flutter for the second time that day. "Want me to hold your drink so no one puts belch powder in it or something?"

"Sure," I chuckled. "Thanks, Harry, I'll be right back."

But as soon as I rose to my feet, Hermione emerged from the crowd and grabbed my arm. "It's almost sunset," she whispered in my ear. "You need to head down to Hagrid's."

"Bloody hell, already?" I was painfully aware that Harry was watching curiously as we talked. I prayed the loud music was covering up what we were saying. "Alright, thanks for letting me know. Can you cover for me with Harry?"

She nodded, and I headed for the portrait hole instead of the dormitory stairs. I jogged down to Hagrid's, eager to get back to the party. He seemed nearly as excited about the victory as I was, and he offered a bit of firewhisky to help with the last part of my headache. I chugged my wolfsbane almost effortlessly --- after three months in a row now, I was getting better at it. I rushed back up to the common room and immediately found Harry, who passed my bottle back into my hand.

"Thanks," I said breathlessly. "Sorry I was gone so long."

"No worries," he said, but he looked somewhat worried. "Hermione said Hagrid wanted to talk to you, but she didn't know what about."

I forced a laugh and took a sip of butterbeer to settle my nerves. I hated lying to Harry, but I had to. Not that I thought I had a chance of ever being more than his friend anyway... but if he knew I was a werewolf, any tiny chance I might have had with him would be ruined forever. "Oh, yeah, he wanted me to tell Beaky about the match. Swears I'm his favorite human being."

Harry smiled, looking relieved. "You definitely are. You rode him first, after all." He studied my face closely. "I was worried at first that you were sick again. You are staying the whole time tonight, right?"

I smiled, genuinely. I _was_ sick again, but after winning the Quidditch Cup, it would take a lot more than an impending full moon to ruin my night. "I am," I assured him, holding my glass out. "Cheers to a game well played, and many more Quidditch Cups to come?"

"I can drink to that," he agreed, clinking his bottle against mine. We exchanged a grin and took long swigs of the sweet, sweet drink that screamed sweet, sweet victory.

* * *

I thought taking wolfsbane two months in a row had been hard --- three months in a row was even worse.

The Quidditch match had successfully distracted me from noticing exactly how sick I felt. Well, to be more accurate, it gave me an explanation for how sick I felt. On Friday, I blamed nerves for my shaky hands and sensitive stomach. On Saturday, I was too busy to even really notice a thing. On Sunday, I blamed excitement for my flushed cheeks and general jitters.

My birthday fell on Monday. An unfortunate day to try to have a birthday regardless, but an especially unfortunate day to try to have a birthday when wolfsbane is involved.

The second I opened my eyes that morning, I was gripped with the horrible feeling that something was wrong. I jumped out of bed and sprinted to the bathroom, barely reaching the toilet in time. Once my stomach was empty and the evidence I had been sick at all was flushed away, I sat on the cold floor trembling and trying to catch my breath.

"Lucy?" came a soft voice. Hermione. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I said weakly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you."

"Nonsense," she replied, nudging the stall door open and wedging herself in next to me. "I was already awake, and I wouldn't mind anyway."

Hermione reached forward and laid a hand on my forehead, yanking her fingers away as soon as she made contact.

Her eyes were wide. "Lucy, you're-"

"I know," I groaned, closing my eyes and leaning my head back. I felt like I was burning from the inside out.

"Maybe you shouldn't go to class today."

"I can't miss class this close to final exams," I said in a small, defeated voice, opening my eyes. "And it's not for two more days. I can't miss three entire days of class."

"If you're sure..." She offered her best sympathetic look. "I wish I could help."

"It's okay," I said, pushing myself to my feet with some effort. "I'm going to go get my shirt from Cedric, the one that adapts to my body temperature. I forgot to wear it yesterday."

"You know, if you want some more sleep, we still have an hour or so-"

"I wouldn't be able to sleep, but thanks for thinking of that. I'm just going to head down to the common room to study for a bit, open the window and get some morning air."

"That's a good idea. I need to shower, but I'll be down in a little bit."

I nodded and returned to the dormitory, changing into my robes for the day (with Cedric's special temperature-controlling shirt underneath for good measure) as silently as possible. With a quick braiding charm and a drink of water, I made my way down to the common room with my bag for the day. As I had told Hermione, I opened the window to let the cool dawn air in and fished out my transfiguration textbook.

I hadn't been there more than a minute before the door to the boys' dormitories opened and none other than Harry James Potter stepped out.

"Happy birthday!" he said brightly.

I blushed. "Thanks, Harry. You seem proud of yourself for knowing about it this year."

"Oh, I am," he said, coming to sit in his typical (squished) position in the window seat. "If you can spare a couple minutes of your precious study time..." He drew a small package from his pocket and held it out to me with the most adorable sincerity in his green eyes.

I closed my book and accepted it. "You didn't have to get me anything," I said softly.

"Of course I did," he replied. "What's the point of knowing your birthday if I don't acknowledge it?"

I shook my head resignedly, a smile toying with the corners of my mouth, and popped the lid off the box. Inside lay a thin silver bracelet with two charms so far: a Quaffle, and a little bear.

"This is incredible," I breathed, extracting it carefully to get a closer look. "Thank you, Harry."

"Of course," he said with a grin. "I was hoping you'd like that. After all the time we've spent together, this year especially, I was thinking you might want something that kind of... I don't know, encapsulated everything. All the good that happened, anyway. Like winning the Quidditch Cup, and your patronus. "

I nodded. "This is so perfect. I love it."

Even though my day had started miserably, it was still my birthday, after all. I was allowed to be happy in spite of everything else. And the fact that Harry was still the only Gryffindor who knew made it all the more special.

I laughed suddenly. "What if I added charms for every adventure we've shared? Like a troll, and a three-headed dog, and an acromantula?"

Harry laughed too. "You could add a toilet charm for Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. And a chocolate bar for all of the patronus lessons."

We were still laughing and making more suggestions for ridiculous charms when Hermione burst out of the girls' hallway. Her eyes flickered from me to Harry to the bracelet on my wrist to the box in my lap then back to me.

She smiled impishly. "Today's your birthday, isn't it?"

I dropped my hand and pretended to stuff the box behind Harry's legs. "Absolutely not, what gives you that idea, don't be ridiculous... okay, yes it is."

"Happy birthday!" she squealed, rushing over and leaning across Harry to hug me. "Finally!"

I blushed. "Now it's down to the Weasleys, really. Bloody hell, how will I ever keep this a secret from them?"

"You'll have to tell them," Hermione singsonged. "You'll just have to!"

I groaned. "Oh, the twins love birthdays. Personalized pranks and all. Bloody hell, I hope they don't find out until they graduate."

"Good luck with that," Harry chuckled.

Hermione bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. "I got you something in Hogsmeade when we went on Halloween because I was hoping I'd figure out your birthday this year and wanted to be ready! I'll go get it! Wait..." She studied my face with a critical eye. "You probably won't want it until you're feeling better."

"You're sick again?"

The disappointment and worry and sadness in Harry's voice cut me to the core. I turned away from Hermione and managed to meet his eyes. They reflected the same emotion I had already detected in his voice.

I shrugged. "Not really. It's not that bad yet."

Hermione placed a hand on my forehead. "Lucy..."

Harry reached forward too, and his eyes widened. "Lucy!"

"It's fine," I protested, pulling away and tightening my robes around me. "Honestly. I'm alright."

"Lu, you're burning up," Harry said, looking at Hermione with a look that screamed _Help me out here!_ "You're not 'alright.' Why didn't you tell me?"

I tried to force a smile. "Because I really am alright. I'm just warmer than usual because I'm embarrassed by all of the attention. Honestly. I'm sure I won't be quite so hot later."

Harry opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione sighed. "It's no use, Harry, I've already tried to talk her out of classes today. You know she's stubborn."

"Guilty as charged," I shrugged. "Really, I'm alright. I'm still Lucy. And hey, it's my birthday. How bad can it be?"

As it turned out, pretty swell. My morning classes were entirely review, so I didn't need to pay too much attention. At lunch, Cedric stole me away to give me his gift --- he had learned from Professor Lupin that chocolate could make anything better, so he gave me what he hoped was enough Honeyduke's chocolate bars to last me all summer and instructed me to eat one every time I missed him. Care of Magical Creatures was fun as always, and even Malfoy couldn't bother me in Ancient Runes. Harry examined me with a searching eye before DADA, making me blush.

"If you look at me for too long, I'm going to turn red, Harry. It's just a fact. You know I blush easily," I said with a laugh. He laughed too, relaxing slightly.

"Alright, sorry," he relented. "I'm just worried."

"I know, but you don't have to be. Honestly." _The worst is yet to come,_ I added internally. "I'm still me. You sort of said yourself a couple months ago that this is just part of the deal when it comes to being me."

"Well, it's still not fair," he muttered. "I mean, it's your-"

"Shh!" I interrupted, swatting his arm. "Harry, this is still one of the best, er, special days I've ever had. Don't feel bad."

Before he could reply, the lesson began. I disappeared between the end of class and dinner to take my wolfsbane, saying Hagrid wanted me to visit Buckbeak, and made my way through dinner without further incident. Ron, Hermione, Harry, and I found a quiet corner to study in for the rest of the evening, and as the common room slowly emptied, I found myself practically alone in the room with just Harry. My heart was racing, and I doubted it was just from my allergic reaction to dittany.

"Are you sure you're okay, Lu?" Harry asked after a couple minutes of silence.

I glanced up from my book and met his eyes. So caring. So concerned. For a second, I forgot how to breathe. He really did care about me.

I nodded. "As okay as can be expected."

He reached forward and felt my forehead for himself. "You don't feel any cooler."

I grinned stupidly. "Aw, really? I thought winning the Quidditch Cup actually made us all at least a _little_ bit cooler."

He smiled and shook his head, dropping his hand. "Shut up, Diggory."

I laughed. "See, Harry? Same me. This just happens sometimes."

"It's not fair that it happens even on your birthday."

"You can't control that," I said, shifting slightly where I sat. "And neither can I. No one can, at least not yet. But Harry, I mean it when I say this has still been one of the best birthdays of my life. I love the bracelet, and I can't wait to add to it. I'm actually kind of glad Hermione knows now, because keeping secrets from her is next to impossible. Cedric got me a ton of chocolate, which is never a bad thing. When I think back on this birthday in ten, twenty, thirty years, I don't think I'll remember being sick. I'll just remember Hermione, and Cedric, and you."

Harry sighed. "You have a point, I guess."

"I guess I do," I teased. "Well, we should probably sleep, eh?"

"Yeah, we should. You _will_ sleep, right?"

"I'm not going to revise anymore, that's for sure," I said, slamming my book shut with a flourish. "Honestly, studying on my birthday is my true curse, if anything."

That got him to laugh. "That's a curse alright. G'night, Lu. Happy birthday."

I smiled as I stood up, cheeks burning hotter than the fireplace at my back. "G'night, Harry."

True to my word, I didn't do any more studying that night. But sleeping was also impossible, so I decided to sleepwalk --- but not before fishing my special jar out of the bottom of my trunk.

Since it was my birthday and I had done as Dumbledore had recommended and not gone back to the memories after my first time looking, I figured I deserved the little extra joy the memories of my family brought me. The Room of Requirement was open, so I slipped inside and cautiously approached the Pensieve. I studied the memories in the jar, settling on the memory of my fifth birthday party. It seemed appropriate.

The memory began in what I had learned was the bedroom I shared with Claire. The walls were a pretty shade of pink, but it clashed with the Star Wars blanket on my bed. I was sitting on the edge of the bed while my mom tugged at my shoulder-length brown hair, trying to force it into two buns, one bun on either side of my head. I was wearing what looked like white bedsheets, and I was going on and on excitedly about who all was coming to the party.

"Is Uncle Scott coming?" Little Lucy asked. "I know he likes Star Wars almost as much as I do!"

"He's coming, Lulu," my mom replied patiently, tucking a loose strand of hair into the first bun. 

"Do you think he'll like my costume? Do I really look like Princess Leia?"

"You certainly do, my little princess," Dad said, coming in the door and crossing his arms. He glanced up at my mom. "Once you're done with her hair, Abby, Claire wants us all to open her gift for Lucy before the party starts."

Little Lucy bounced up and down. "Early presents! Yay! I like early presents!"

My dad winked before he left the room, and after about twenty more seconds of scrunchies and bobby pins, my hair was ready. I jumped off my bed and ran through the house until I found my dad and sister.

"Look, Claire! Mommy gave me Princess Leia hair!"

Claire stepped forward to take a closer look, reaching out and poking one of the buns for good measure. "You look like her, just a little smaller."

"Are you ready to open a present, Lucy?" my mom asked, entering the room with a knowing smile.

"Yeah! Let's do it!"

My dad chuckled as he handed me a gift bag. "This was Claire's idea."

I tore into it excitedly, pulling out what looked to Current Lucy like a fat, grey, plastic wand. But Little Lucy's face brightened, and she gasped. "A lightsaber!"

Claire nodded, grinning from ear to ear and quivering with enthusiasm. She hurried over to the armchair in the corner of the room and reached underneath it. She emerged with a matching lightsaber. "If you push this button," she said, demonstrating, "then the blade will come out!"

Little Lucy obeyed, and a blue tube began to grow from the grey part. "Whoa! Claire, do we match? Do we match?"

Claire activated hers, and surely enough, we did. "Now we can play lightsabers for real, and not just use our imagination! Do you like it, Lucy?"

"I love it!" Little Lucy squealed, rushing forward and hugging Claire tightly. "Thank you, Claire! This is already the bestest birthday ever!"

I stayed to watch the rest of the birthday party, trying to memorize the names and faces of all of the aunts and uncles and cousins and friends I had left behind. Uncle Scott was completely bald except for a bit of a beard on his chin, and he really did love Star Wars. His sons looked about five years older than Claire and me. My cousins were about 50% boys and 50% girls, and so were my friends. Christopher liked playing football. Jessica didn't like having her ice cream touching her cake. Uncle Lewis was really good at playing the piano, and his sister, Aunt Lisa, liked to sing along when he played. Grandma Dot and Grandpa Rob came all the way from Arizona (which I learned from Archie was one of the states) to come to my party and go to my cousin Jonathan's high school graduation. I absorbed every detail of every person as best I could, wanting to remember as much as I possibly could and carry it with me until I met all of these people again.

Cedric and I never got to spend time with our cousins, because both Mum and Dad were only children. Our grandparents had all either died in the war or didn't survive long afterward. Knowing I had such a large, loving family waiting for me somewhere, somewhere far away from where I was, was equal parts a blessing and a curse. Until I found them again, I really tried to focus on the family I'd been given, in Cedric, in the Weasleys, in Gryffindor, in Hogwarts in general. But it wasn't always easy; I found myself wondering on nights like that how long I'd feel torn in two.

Just the same, I was glad I had watched that memory again. It left my heart feeling light, and I drifted all the way back to my dormitory in a happy daze, blessedly uninterrupted by any patrolling prefects or professors. I fell asleep that night, impossibly, with a smile on my face. It had been quite a wonderful birthday after all.

I struggled to make it through Tuesday. Wednesday, I couldn't have gone to class even if I tried. My fever raged to the point where Hermione considered dragging me down to the Hospital Wing herself in case I literally self-combusted. I managed to convince her I was fine and stayed in the dormitory all day, getting out of bed only to douse myself in cold water and flop back on top of my blankets. I beat myself up for not even trying to study, but I knew deep down I wouldn't have been able to focus anyway. When the sun began to set, I slipped out of the castle and headed down to Hagrid's for the last dosage of wolfsbane.

Once again, I didn't see anything in the forest all night, to my immense relief. I hurried back up to the castle at sunrise, bumping into Cedric just in front of the Hospital Wing.

"How'd it go?" he asked, pulling me into a tight hug.

"Didn't see anything," I replied, letting myself relax against Cedric. "Merlin, I'm exhausted."

"Sounds like you could use some extra-strength wideye today."

"That exists?!"

"Not that I know of, but you could still use it."

I laughed. "Yeah, you bet."

I still very happily chugged my regular-strength wideye potion and showered quickly, making sure I put my new charm bracelet on my wrist before heading down to breakfast.

"Hey, she's alive!" Fred exclaimed as I slid between him and George.

"No need to sound so surprised," I teased, elbowing him gently in the ribs. "You've seen the way I get knocked around in Quidditch games, and I'm perfectly fine after those. It'll take something big to finally bring me down."

"Well, let's hope _that's_ no time soon," Harry said, sitting down across from us and smiling in a way that made me feel like I was the only person in the room. "Welcome back, Lu."

I quickly shot my hand with the mood ring under the table and yanked it off as I smiled back at him, blushing. I couldn't risk anyone figuring out how I felt about Harry, not even Hermione.

Merlin... I was hopeless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everyone! I really hope you liked this chapter! I wrote the Quidditch section right away after the last chapter, but the birthday and full moon section took me forever for some reason. I just had no ideas whatsoever. But hopefully you like what I came up with regardless!


	48. I'll Come Back When You Call Me

_It started out as a feeling  
Which then grew into a hope  
Which then turned into a quiet thought  
Which then turned into a quiet word_

_And then that word grew louder and louder  
'Til it was a battle cry  
I'll come back  
When you call me  
No need to say goodbye_

_"The Call"  
Regina Spektor_

* * *

LUCY:

I found myself wishing it were illegal to schedule final exams for the week of the full moon.

Four months of wolfsbane in, trying to take final exams was the closest I'd ever been to torture. I reckoned I'd scraped up good scores because of all of my studying for the months leading up to that dreadful week, but after each exam, I would flee to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom to throw up, splash cold water on my face, cry, or sometimes all three. It was torture, but it wouldn't be over until Saturday morning. Oh yeah, I nearly forgot to mention --- the last day of exams was the day of the full moon, _and_ Cedric was leaving immediately after his last exam.

Even before the day began, I knew it would be an exhausting day, physically, mentally, and emotionally --- but nothing could have prepared me for all that occurred. 

My Defense Against the Dark Arts exam took place that morning. I hadn't slept a wink the night prior, obviously, but Professor Lupin's exam was my absolute favorite. He had assembled a sort of obstacle course outdoors featuring a number of creatures; it was right up my alley. 

I jumped at the chance to go first, incredibly excited and intrigued by the challenge.

The first task involved wading across a pool full of grindylows. The water was likely to only go up to the waists of my classmates, but it went much higher on me. I kept my head, though, and as soon as a grindylow tried to wrap its fingers around my thigh, I shouted "Relashio!" and severed its grip. A couple more grindylows tried grabbing my ankles, my calves, even my waist, but they were each met with their own revulsion jinx.

From there, I had to dodge potholes filled with red caps, and cross a marsh inhabited by hinkypunks. I could have easily destroyed them with a wand-lighting charm and a couple of knockback jinxes, but I didn't think Professor Lupin had any more, so I just ignored them and relied on other methods to navigate my way across.

The last challenge was a boggart. Since I no longer had any reason to be afraid of dementors, my boggart manifested as myself in werewolf form.

"Riddikulus!" I cried, and I became nothing more than a werewolf pup. 

And just like that, it was over. I made my way over to the shade as quickly as I could, feeling sweat dripping down my neck. The shirt from Cedric helped keep my chest and arms and torso cool, but I still felt like I was on fire everywhere else.

Harry went next, and he made his way through as successfully as I did. I slipped my ring off when he came to sit next to me, as was my new habit. Hermione hadn't noticed a thing yet, and I planned to keep it that way for as long as possible, but I knew it was only a matter of time before she would connect the dots --- trying to keep a secret from that girl was no easy task.

"Nicely done, Potter," I said, moving over so he could sit next to me. 

"You too, Diggory. Have you ever had so much fun taking a final exam?"

"Nope! That was great," I laughed.

But even as I said it, a piercing scream could be heard. Hermione flew out of the trunk, pale as a ghost.

“Hermione! What’s the matter?” Professor Lupin asked.

Hermione pointed to the trunk with a trembling hand. “P-P-Professor McGonagall! Sh-She said I’d failed everything!”

I jumped up and hurried over to her, gripping her shoulders. "It was just a boggart. It's okay. Take a deep breath. Come sit with Harry and me, let's go."

I wrapped an arm around her and led her over to the tree. Harry and I worked together to calm her down, and when Ron was done with his exam, he helped too.

The four of us were heading up to the castle when we saw none other than Cornelius Fudge.

He jumped when he saw Harry. “Hello there, Harry! Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?”

I lingered awkwardly at Harry's side as he blushed. "Yes, sir."

The Minister of Magic nodded and looked toward the Black Lake. “Lovely day. Pity… pity…” He sighed and looked back at Harry. “I’m here on an unpleasant mission, Harry. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in.”

“Does that mean the appeal’s already happened?” Ron asked.

“No, no, it’s scheduled for this afternoon.”

“Then you might not have to witness an execution at all! The hippogriff might get off!”

Before he could reply, two men joined him. I recognized them immediately as some of the men my dad worked with on occasion. I noticed with a jolt that the one with the black mustache, whose name escaped me, was fingering an axe on his belt. I instinctively took a step closer to Harry, my stomach dropping to my toes. He gently nudged my shoulder, and the four of us hurried up to the castle.

Ron was angry that we left. “Why’d you stop me? Did you see them? They’ve even got the axe ready! This isn’t justice!”

“Ron, your dad works for the Ministry, you can’t go saying things like that to his boss!” Hermione explained. “As long as Hagrid keeps his head this time, and argues his case properly, they can’t possibly execute Buckbeak...”

"I don't feel good," I mumbled, feeling a lump forming in my throat. "Good luck in Divination, and I'll see you in Ancient Runes, Hermione."

I hurried in the opposite direction of the Great Hall, up to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom as was tradition now. We had grown somewhat close in the months following the Malfoy incident; I didn't tell her anything important or serious about myself, by any means, but we did talk a fair amount whenever I was in there. She was a very curious girl, and she always wanted to know why I was sick.

That day, however, she wasn't there. I wondered if someone had accidentally flushed her to the Black Lake. Whatever the reason, I was selfishly glad to have the room to myself. I locked myself in a stall and let a few silent tears fall.

One more exam, then Cedric would leave.

One more exam, then we'd know Buckbeak's fate.

One more exam, then it'd be the full moon.

One more exam. That was all.

As far as final exams were concerned, I was glad to have Professor Babbling's last. She was a human ray of sunshine, truly, and I loved her class --- I just hated my partner, unfortunately. I hoped she'd change the seating arrangement for fourth year.

"Good afternoon, class!" Professor Babbling said cheerfully as the bell rang. "Welcome to your last final exam for the year!"

Half the class gave a simultaneous sigh of relief. The laughter that followed help break up the tension. Professor Babbling began distributing the exam papers.

"You are free to leave as soon as you finish your exam," she explained. "Hopefully you won't find it terribly difficult. If you have any questions following the exam, I will be here for the rest of the day, and I will be available after results are posted. Best of luck!"

I felt a significant weight lifted from my shoulders when I skimmed the questions. It was exactly what I had studied. It would be a long exam, but an easy one.

Hermione and I finished at the same time (first, of course) and made our way to the common room. Ron was already there, so we headed over.

"Where's Harry?" I asked.

"He was the last Divination exam today," Ron explained. "Should be along any moment. How was Ancient Runes?"

"Easy," Hermione and I answered in unison. We exchanged a look and laughed. It was the sound of pure relief.

It didn't last. 

"Lucy, is that your owl at the window?" Ron asked suddenly.

"Yeah, it is. I wonder if it's news from Hagrid," I said as dread began to creep into my chest, heading over and taking the parchment from his talons.

 _Lost appeal. They’re going to execute at sunset. Nothing you can do. Don’t come down. I don’t want you to see it._ _Hagrid_

"No," I gasped, sitting down heavily on the window seat. 

Hermione was at my side in an instant, gripping my shoulder. "Bad news?"

I passed the parchment to Ron with a shaking hand.

"'Lost appeal,'" Ron read out loud. "'They're going to execute at sunset. Nothing you can do. Don’t come down. I don’t want you to see it.'"

"Oh Lucy," Hermione said, sitting beside me and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "We did our best. It'll be okay."

Harry chose just about the worst time to come in, and I noticed he looked nearly as distraught as we did as he hurried over. “Professor Trelawney just told me...” He trailed off, looking from me to Hermione to Ron, looking confused.

"Buckbeak lost, Hagrid just sent this with Lucy's owl," Ron explained, handing Harry the note.

My heart pounded as he scanned it silently. Sunset... I couldn't do anything to help Buckbeak if he'd be dead before my transformation... and Cedric... I had to say goodbye to Cedric, so I couldn't head down to comfort Hagrid beforehand either... and my potion... how was I supposed to get it from Hagrid's if there were so many people there at the exact time I always got my wolfsbane...

As soon as Harry read the note, he looked at us with fire in his eyes. “We’ve got to go! He can’t just sit there on his own, waiting for the executioner!”

Ron glanced out the window. “Sunset, though. We’d never be allowed, ’specially you, Harry.”

“If we only had the Invisibility Cloak…” Harry said wistfully.

“Where is it? What happened to it?” Hermione asked.

"I left it in the Honeyduke's passage, beneath the one-eyed witch statue," he explained sheepishly, "and if Snape sees me anywhere near there again, I’m in serious trouble."

“That’s true, if he sees _you."_ Hermione rose to her feet. "How do you open the witch’s hump again?”

“You tap it and say, ‘Dissendium,’ but-”

Hermione didn't even let him finish his sentence before disappearing through the portrait hole.

Ron stared after her. “She hasn’t gone to get it?”

"I reckon she has," Harry said, looking rather amused. He turned to me. "You've been awfully quiet. What's wrong?"

I wanted to tell him the truth. _Everything. Everything is wrong. Cedric's leaving, Buckbeak's being executed, it's the full moon. How will I take my wolfsbane? How will I be there for Hagrid tonight? Everything is falling apart, Harry, and I can't do anything to stop it._

But I didn't. I couldn't. I swallowed hard and offered a weak explanation. "Cedric's leaving, so I can't go with you to Hagrid's. I can't go say goodbye to Buckbeak." I glanced at the clock and rose to my feet. "Cedric's leaving now, actually. I need to go. I'm sorry, I wish I could go with you-"

Harry suddenly wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug, and for a moment, I was too stunned to hug him back. But I did, and I felt some of the pressure in my chest disappear. Even if Buckbeak wouldn't be alive tomorrow, even if Cedric would be far away by morning, Harry would still be there.

"I'm sorry, Lu," he said. "This must be harder for you than for any of us. But it'll be okay, somehow. I promise."

I reluctantly pulled away, nodding. "You're right. It'll be okay. Thanks, Harry."

"We'll give Buckbeak your best, mate," Ron said, pulling me into a quick side hug. "Should we save you a seat at dinner?"

I shook my head. "I think my parents have something planned," I lied. "A send-off of sorts. I'll probably go to bed as soon as I'm back, so I'll just see you at breakfast in the morning."

"See you then, Lu," Harry said, his eyes soft. I blinked away tears as I jumped through the portrait hole and headed down to the entrance hall. Sure enoigh, Cedric was there with his bags all packed, hugging Henry tightly with Cho standing nearby with tears glittering in her eyes. I hung back a bit, watching as he hugged her next. 

"Just a couple months," he told her softly. "Then I'm all yours. We're almost there."

Cho nodded, wiping a tear from her cheek. "Almost there. Write me, will you?"

Cedric grinned and wiped another tear from her cheek with his thumb. "Of course."

He spied me over Cho's shoulder and smiled. "You ready to walk with me to the Hogsmeade station, Lu?" 

I nodded, not trusting myself enough to speak without crying. Henry and Cho waved one last time and headed off together toward the courtyard while I approached my brother.

"I won't tell you not to be sad, Lu," he said as we walked down the castle steps, "because I'll be sad, too, but it'll be okay. Really."

"I-I know," I replied, feeling tears beginning to crawl up my throat and burn the back of my eyes. We climbed into a thestral-drawn carriage already waiting for us, and the thestrals automatically started heading toward the train station.

"How did final exams go? I know it must have been difficult for you, with the full moon being tonight and all."

"I managed, I think. How were yours?"

"I managed, too." He paused and glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. "What's wrong, Lu?"

"Buckbeak is going to be executed," I said before I could stop myself, "at sunset tonight. As soon as you leave, I'm going to have to go get my wolfsbane potion and go straight to the forest, because my friends are going to sneak down to Hagrid's hut to comfort him before Beaky is... is..."

"I'm so sorry, Lu," Cedric said, pulling me to his side in a hug. "I know how much you cared about him."

A couple of tears leaked out of my eyes, so I wiped them away and sniffled. I wanted to say something, but I just couldn't. We rode for about a minute in silence.

"Don't be afraid to tell your friends you need help," he said suddenly. "I know you try to keep it all bottled up inside, Lucy, but you'll need your friends without me around to help in quite the same way. After all, they haven't invented letters that can hug the recipients yet."

I managed a giggle. "That would be a little scary."

"It would be! Point being, Lu, it's okay to admit you need help. This will be a hard day for you, but your friends will understand. The Weasleys, Hermione, Harry..."

I blushed bright red at the mention of Harry. Something about my posture must have changed too, because Cedric glanced at me again and grinned. "What?"

"Well, since you're leaving, there's... something I need to tell you."

He raised his eyebrows, his grin widening. "Oh?"

"Cedric, I fancy Harry," I blurted out. 

"Oh, my baby sister is growing up so fast!" He dramatically pressed his hand to his chest. 

"Stop it," I mumbled, blushing even more intensely, grinning nonetheless. "He'll never fancy me back."

"Hey, never say never, Lu. Any boy who fancies you will be lucky to have you. Have you told Hermione yet?'

I shook my head. "No way! I want it to be a secret! But, well, I wanted you to know."

"Well then, in that case, I'm honored. And, if that's the case, perhaps Harry will be the best person to comfort you come tomorrow."

"Perhaps," I agreed, letting my mind run wild for half a second. An image of us sitting at the top of the Quidditch Pitch, hand in hand, flitted through my imagination. I cleared my throat, suddenly eager to change the topic. "Why haven't you started dating Cho yet? She's mad about you."

"I didn't want to call her my girlfriend until I could give her the time and attention she deserves. I was busy every waking hour studying for O.W.L.s, and now I'll be gone all summer. It wouldn't have been fair. But next year, we can go on proper Hogsmeade dates and spend weekends together, and..." His voice trailed off, and he smiled dreamily.

I smiled too. "You two will be adorable together."

In seemingly no time at all, we had reached the train station. The train was already there, and a small stream of people were getting on and off.

"Well..." Cedric took a deep breath and released it slowly. "Here goes nothing."

"You'll be great, Ced, really you will be." Tears rose to my eyes again, and I tried to force them away. _Be brave for Cedric, come on, Lucy, be brave for Cedric..._

"I hope so. Thank you, Lu." He set his bags down and held open his arms. I lunged forward and pressed myself to his chest, unable to stop the sobs from escaping me. He rubbed my back reassuringly. "I'll be back before you know it."

I squeezed him one last time and let him go, pathetically wiping my cheeks. "I love you."

"I love you too." He bent down to pick up his bags. "Be safe tonight. And remember what I said when tomorrow comes."

With that, he walked forward and climbed onto the train, turning around to give me one last smile and wave. I waved back, forcing a smile through my tears. He disappeared behind a curtain, and the train slowly started pulling away. I turned on my heel and ran back to the carriage, tears flowing freely down my face. I cried the whole ride back to the castle, and once the carriage stopped, I jumped out and reached up to pet the thestral.

"Thank you," I whispered. The animal bent down and nuzzled its bony nose against my chest as if it sensed my pain. "I understand why I can see you know. My grandma died when I was five, and it was because we were visiting England to attend her funeral that I was attacked. So even if I couldn't remember her death until recently, it's always affected me, meaning I could see you. I know, it doesn't make sense to me either. Oh, who am I kidding," I chuckled softly, "nothing in my life ever makes sense. Anyway... thank you for listening to me, and for the ride. I need to go now, but I'll see you in a couple weeks, heading home."

With that, I dried my cheeks and hurried to Hagrid's. I offered what words of comfort I could, but I knew my time was limited. Harry, Ron, and Hermione would be coming any minute. From Hagrid's, I went directly into the forest. I couldn't risk being seen by anybody, anybody at all. I settled with my back against a tree, goblet of wolfsbane clutched tightly in my hands, and waited.

But as I waited, I heard probably the strangest thing I had ever heard.

Harry's voice, in the forest, twenty feet away. “Hermione, what if we... we just run in there and grab Pettigrew-”

“No! Don’t you understand? We’re breaking one of the most important wizarding laws! Nobody’s supposed to change time, nobody! You heard Dumbledore, if we’re seen-”

“We’d only be seen by ourselves and Hagrid!”

“Harry, what do you think you’d do if you saw yourself bursting into Hagrid’s house?”

“I’d, well, I’d think I’d gone mad, or I’d think there was some Dark Magic going on-”

“Exactly! You wouldn’t understand, you might even attack yourself! Don’t you see? Professor McGonagall told me what awful things have happened when wizards have meddled with time. Loads of them ended up killing their past or future selves by mistake!”

Thoroughly baffled, I dared to poke my head around the tree I was hiding behind. Harry and Hermione were hiding behind trees too, looking at Hagrid's hut. But, somehow, impossibly, at that moment, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Hagrid walked out the back door. _What in Merlin's name..._

Hagrid stepped forward to assure the hippogriff before addressing the other three. “It’s okay, Beaky, it’s okay. Go on. Get goin’.”

“Hagrid, we can’t-”

“We’ll tell them what really happened-”

“They can’t kill him-”

Hagrid shook his head firmly. “Go! It’s bad enough without you lot in trouble an’ all!”

Hermione threw the Invisibility Cloak over the boys, and Hagrid hissed after them, “Go quick. Don’ listen.”

From our spots in the forest, though, we could hear everything. I was still thoroughly baffled, but I wanted to gather what I could. This was many, many levels of weird. I sighed silently and clutched my goblet even tighter. Something told me I'd need my wits about me that night.

The voice of the executioner sent chills down my spine. “Where is the beast?”

“Out-Outside,” Hagrid managed.

I hadn't heard Cornelius Fudge's voice since the dreadful night in Hagrid's the year prior, but I recgonized it immediately. “We, er, have to read you the official notice of execution, Hagrid. I’ll make it quick. And then you and Macnair need to sign it. Macnair, you’re supposed to listen too, that’s procedure.”

“Wait here," Harry whispered suddenly. "I’ll do it.”

Without further explanation, he hopped the fence and rushed toward Buckbeak. It was my one chance to find out what was going on.

"Hermione," I hissed.

She jumped about a foot in the air, whirling around to face me. A large cut stretched across her forehead, and she had a bruise blossoming on her cheek. "Lucy? What are you-"

"What are YOU doing?" I interrupted. "What the hell is going on? What happened to your face?"

Hermione glanced over her shoulder at Harry, who was bowing to Buckbeak. Harry had a scrape across his cheek, and his hair was even messier than usual. "I don't have much time to explain-"

"Do your best."

Harry began loosening the knot.

"Sirius Black is innocent, Lucy, it was Peter Pettigrew who betrayed Harry's parents. I know it makes zero sense, but you have to trust me."

"How are you here?"

She held a long gold chain out in front of her.

"A Time-Turner? That's how you've been getting to all of your classes?"

"Yes. I'm so sorry, I wanted to tell you-"

"It's fine." Harry was trying to lure Buckbeak away. "So you're from the future. How can I help?"

"Lucy, it would be so much easier if Harry knew that you're a-"

"No bloody way," I said firmly. "How can I help?"

"I don't know," she admitted in a soft voice. "We're going to save Sirius using Buckbeak. I just... don't know quite how we'll do that yet."

"I'll stay close. I promise. I won't let anything hurt you."

Harry was tugging uselessly on Buckbeak's rope, but the hippogriff wasn't budging.

I locked eyes with Hermione one last time. "Harry _will not_ find out. Promise me that."

"I promised that I would keep your secret safe as long as it was mine to keep."

I nodded. "Thank you. Good luck tonight." With that, I ducked behind the tree again and whistled the same whistle I always used when I needed to round up the hippogriffs. I listened intently for the sound of Buckbeak's steps --- surely enough, he was coming my direction.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I still had no real idea of what was happening, but my role was clear: If I kept Harry and Hermione safe, they could save both Buckbeak and Sirius.

“Quick! Quick!” Hermione whispered urgently. I could hear that they had almost reached the treeline.

“Stop! They might hear us.”

The footsteps stopped the second Hagrid's door opened with a loud bang. I held my breath.

“Where is it? Where is the beast?”

“It was tied here! I saw it! Just here!”

I couldn't help but smile. Buckbeak was safe... for now.

“How extraordinary,” Dumbledore commented, sounding amused.

Hagrid sobbed in relief. "Beaky! Gone! Gone! Bless his little beak, he’s gone! Musta pulled himself free! Beaky, yeh clever boy!”

I heard Buckbeak straining against Harry and Hermione trying to get back to Hagrid, but they gamely held on.

I heard the swish of an axe before it thudded into wood --- it sounded like the executioner was disappointed to be useless. “Someone untied him! We should search the grounds, the forest.”

“Macnair, if Buckbeak has indeed been stolen, do you really think the thief will have led him away on foot? Search the skies, if you will," Dumbledore suggested. "Hagrid, I could do with a cup of tea. Or a large brandy.”

“O’ course, Professor. Come in, come in.”

After a couple seconds, it seemed everyone had dispersed.

"What do we do now?" Harry asked.

“We’ll have to hide in here. We need to wait until they’ve gone back to the castle. Then we wait until it’s safe to fly Buckbeak up to Sirius’s window. He won’t be there for another couple of hours... oh, this is going to be difficult...”

“We’re going to have to move. We’ve got to be able to see the Whomping Willow, or we won’t know what’s going on.”

“Okay, but we’ve got to keep out of sight, Harry, remember.”

"Should we go deeper into the forest?"

"No," Hermione replied a little too quickly. "Merlin knows what's in there. We should stick to the edge."

"Alright. Let's go."

I let them get a couple yards' head start before following silently after them. My heart was poudning, and I had to keep my goblet of wolfsbane close to my chest so my shaking hands didn't spill a single drop of it.

By the time we reached the Whomping Willow, the sun had almost completely set. I was about to disappear deeper into the forest to drink the potion when Harry suddenly broke the silence.

“There’s Ron!”

“Get away from him!" Ron shouted, chasing something on the ground. "Get away! Scabbers, come here!”

My internal monologue struggled to keep up with the scene unfolding before me.

_Scabbers is alive?! Hermione didn't explain that. What the bloody hell is going on?_

Harry and Hermione --- well, the present version, not the future version --- were chasing Ron. He dove suddenly.

“Gotcha! Get off, you stinking cat-”

"There's Sirius!" Harry exclaimed, as the Grim from the forest grabbed Ron by the leg and began dragging him toward the secret tunnel in the Whomping Willow. “Looks even worse from here, doesn’t it?”

_Okay, so Sirius Black is an Animagus? His Animagus form is the Grim? Ironic, I suppose. Well, that would explain Halloween, and how he's gotten in and out of the castle undetected. It might explain the dementors, too, I reckon they don't affect non-humans the same way..._

“Ouch, look, I just got walloped by the tree! And so did you. This is weird.”

Harry and Hermione's figures were jumping and ducking and dodging the branches of the tree, trying to get to the roots.

The tree froze suddenly, and Hermione commented, “That was Crookshanks pressing the knot.”

“And there we go. We’re in.”

The tree came to life again, and four figures came into view, heading toward the castle.

“Right after we’d gone down into the passage! If only Dumbledore had come with us,” Hermione said bitterly.

“Macnair and Fudge would’ve come too, though, and I bet you anything Fudge would’ve told Macnair to murder Sirius on the spot.”

Silence fell again, and neither of them spoke for a minute.

"How d'you reckon we'll explain this to Lucy in the morning?" Harry wondered aloud. "I mean, she'll be happy to know Buckbeak's alright, but will she believe... well, everything else?"

"You know..." Hermione replied, sounding mildly amused, "I think she just might."

"I'm still trying to believe it all myself," Harry said. "All those years locked away in Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit, while Pettigrew was free."

"Not entirely free. He was Scabbers for twelve years, after all."

_What. In. Merlin's. Name. Is. Going. On._

Harry shuddered. "I've shared a dormitory for three years with the man who betrayed my parents and I didn't even know it."

"At least you didn't share a bed with him," Hermione pointed out. "Poor Ron."

“Oh, here comes Lupin!”

Surely enough, Professor Lupin was hurtling down the castle stairs in the direction of the Whomping Willow. I glanced worriedly at the sky. It was almost time to take the potion. Did he drink it in time?

Professor Lupin, knowing the secret of the Whomping Willow, prodded the knot with a long branch and disappeared into the tunnel.

“If he’d only grabbed the cloak... it’s just _lying_ there,” Harry moaned. “If I just dashed out now and grabbed it, Snape’d never be able to get it and-”

“Harry, we mustn’t be seen!”

“How can you stand this? Just standing here and watching it happen?” He paused briefly. “I’m going to grab the cloak!”

“Harry, no!” Hermione only barely managed to grab the back of his robes in time. Hagrid started heading toward the castle, singing and staggering, clearly a tad tipsy. “ _See_? See what would have happened? We’ve got to keep out of sight! No, Buckbeak!”

Buckbeak started straining toward Hagrid again. I whistled again desperately, and Buckbeak turned in my direction. I ducked quickly behind my tree again, holding my breath. What was I thinking?

"What d'you reckon that is?" Harry asked.

"Must just be a bird in the forest," Hermione replied in a high-pitched voice. 

"That only makes a sound when Buckbeak gets agitated and tries to follow Hagrid?"

"Shh! Here comes Snape!"

Surely enough, Professor Snape rushed toward the tree and grabbed the Invisibility Cloak.

“Get your filthy hands off it,” Harry growled. "That was Dad's."

“Shh!” Hermione hissed as Snape froze the Whomping Willow and threw the cloak over himself. 

“So that’s it. We’re all down there, and now we’ve just got to wait until we come back up again…” Hermione tied Buckbeak's rope to the nearest tree and sat down. 

Silence fell for a long time. I tried to wrap my head around the bits and pieces I'd gathered from their conversations, but nothing made any sense. Peter Pettigrew was supposed to be dead, but he was somehow Scabbers? Was he an Animagus, too, like Sirius Black? And how did Professor Lupin fit into all of this? I watched the sky, trying to process all of these things, but no epiphanies came to me. I'd need someone to explain everything in excruciating detail in the morning... if I made it to the morning. The back of my neck tingled with a sense of foreboding --- something told me this night was far from over.

“Harry, there’s something I don’t understand," Hermione said suddenly. "Why didn’t the dementors get Sirius? I remember them coming, and then I think I passed out. There were so many of them.”

Harry sat down beside her. "After you collapsed, I kept trying, but one dementor eventually got to me. Just before it kissed me, though, something massive and silver galloped across the lake and forced all of them to retreat."

“But what was it?”

“There’s only one thing it could have been, to make the dementors go. A real patronus. A powerful one.”

“But who conjured it? Didn’t you see what they looked like? Was it one of the teachers?”

Harry sounded somewhat uncomfortable, as if he didn't want to admit who he had seen. “No. He wasn’t a teacher.”

“But it must have been a really powerful wizard, to drive all those dementors away! If the patronus was shining so brightly, didn’t it light him up? Couldn’t you see who it was?”

“Yeah, I saw him, but… maybe I imagined it. I wasn’t thinking straight, I passed out right afterward-”

“Who did you think it was?”

“I think... I think it was my dad.”

"Oh Harry," I whispered, feeling my heart break for him. How terrible it must have been to have had that hope, knowing full well it couldn't possibly _really_ be his dad. 

“Harry, your dad’s --- well --- dead,” Hermione said.

“I know that.”

“You think you saw his ghost?”

“I don’t know... no, he looked solid...”

“But then-”

“Maybe I was seeing things, but from what I could see… it looked like him. I’ve got photos of him… I know it sounds crazy.”

Harry lapsed into silence. I wanted nothing more than to emerge from where I was hiding and wrap my arms around him and tell him it was okay and do my best to comfort him however I could, but I glanced up at the sky. It was time to take my potion.

I lifted the goblet to my lips nervously. The night was still and silent. Any noise I made would surely be heard. I couldn't afford to make a single sound, or else I'd give myself away.

But this was my fourth month of practice. I chugged the potion silently, not stopping once or making a single sound of protest. Once it was gone, I threw the goblet as far as I could to the left so I could make a speedy escape to the right, so I'd be far enough away from them that they wouldn't see me again at least until at least after I'd transformed fully. The werewolf Harry might not recognize, but if he saw me in human form... I was completely screwed.

Figures began to emerge from the Whomping Willow. I couldn't make them out from how far away I was, but before I could think about it any more, a million burning knives plunged into my skin. A scream escaped my lips, then another, and another. My screams morphed into howls and whines, and then it was over.

I saw Hermione and Harry sprinting away, so I bounded after them. I needed to keep them safe. I heard Professor Lupin howling in the distance --- there was no way he'd taken his wolfsbane potion. The thought of running into him, fully wild and unaware of himself, was a terrifying one, but I realized with a jolt I was the only one who could keep everyone else safe. 

Harry and Hermione rushed into Hagrid's with Buckbeak and latched the door behind them. I positioned myself just outside the pumpkin patch, careful to hide myself from view of any of the windows, and stared into the night. I heard distant yelps and cries, but I saw nothing. I knew that Harry and Hermione would need to leave Hagrid's eventually, to get Sirius... somehow.

I wasn't expecting it so soon. Within five minutes of entering Hagrid's, Harry was leaving again.

_How am I supposed to protect them both if Harry's on his own? Oh, bloody hell, I hope Hermione understands what I'm asking even without me being able to speak._

I rushed to Hagrid's door and scratched at it with a front paw, whimpering quietly.

"Lucy? Hit the door again if that's you."

I bumped it with my snout.

"Go with Harry. I'll be safe here."

I whimpered again, hoping she'd interpret it as "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Go protect him."

I bumped the door one more time and bounded after Harry, who was running toward the sounds of the struggle. He reached the shore of the lake, and I followed his gaze. He, Hermione, and Sirius (in human form, I realized) were swarmed with dementors. The Harry across the lake was valiantly trying to conjure a patronus, but his attempts were nothing more than silvery wisps. The Harry only a couple yards in front of me was watching, his hands anxiously fidgeting with his wand.

He bounced on the balls of his feet, looking from side to side. “Come on! Where are you? Dad, come on!”

The Harry across the lake was swooped up by a dementor that had dropped its hood. I lowered myself to the ground and whined softly. This was horrible to watch, but someone was coming to save Harry... right?

Suddenly, the Harry closest to me froze. He clutched his wand tightly, took a step forward, and shouted, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

From the tip of his wand burst a massive animal, so bright it hurt my eyes. It charged down the dementors, forcing every last one of them away. Once they had gone, the animal turned to face us.

It was a beautiful stag. Harry reached forward toward it hesitantly. "Prongs," he whispered, voice tight with emotion.

I jumped to my feet, suddenly aware of Hermione and Buckbeak rushing toward the scene.

“What did you do? You said you were only going to keep a lookout!” Hermione hissed.

“I just saved all our lives, get behind this bush, I’ll explain.”

I glanced across the lake at the limp forms of Sirius, Harry, and Hermione. I needed to help somehow, before the dementors came back.

I darted around the perimeter, running as fast as I could, and gently took the hood of Hermione's robes in my mouth, tugging her away from the water's edge. I then grabbed Sirius by the shoulder, careful not to disturb any of the claw marks already marring his emaciated frame. Even unconscious, I could see the years of pain etched on his face. He was innocent, after all this time.

I grabbed Harry last, gently dragging him until he was between Hermione and Sirius.

"Stupefy!" came a familiar drawl, and I found myself launched several feet into the air before landing on the floor. Professor Snape stood there, wand pointed directly at me.

I whimpered, cowering away from him.

 _It's me!_ I wanted to scream. _It's Lucy! I'm trying to help!_

"Oh, my bad," he sneered. "At least one werewolf took their potion."

I bobbed my head up and down in what I hoped was a nodding motion and stepped forward to nudge Harry's foot.

"I can take it from here."

I realized that a stretcher bearing Ron's unconscious form already floated behind him. With a flick of his wand, Harry, Hermione, and Sirius were lifted onto stretchers too.

"You might suggest to Potter that he keep his nose out of other people's business," he said suddenly. "It would certainly save him and his equally-nosy friends a lot of trouble. Run along now, and keep Lupin away from us."

He then headed up to the castle, the four stretchers floating eerily behind him. I darted back across the lake toward Harry and Hermione.

"Hermione," Harry was saying, "did that werewolf look like Lucy's boggart to you?"

"Ah... I don't know."

"I wonder if she saw that werewolf that night she was attacked here first year. Maybe that's why she's afraid of werewolves. But that one seemed so tame..."

"Yeah, maybe," Hermione agreed. She cleared her throat and checked her watch. “Right, it’s nearly time. We’ve got about forty-five minutes until Dumbledore locks the door to the hospital wing. We’ve got to rescue Sirius and get back into the ward before anybody realizes we’re missing.”

Harry nodded, watching as Buckbeak began looking around for worms to eat. I retreated into the bushes, deciding to make a brief perimeter run to make sure nothing harmful was nearby.

Fortunately, I saw nothing. Professor Lupin was far away, wherever he was. When I returned, Harry was standing and stroking Buckbeak's feathers, his back to Hermione.

I made a quiet noise in my throat to get her attention. She turned toward me, initially startled, but she relaxed when she saw me.

"Hi," she whispered almost-inaudibly. "How are you?"

I cocked my head and laid down beside her. 

"Right, sorry, yes or no questions. Are you okay?"

I bobbed my head in the same nodding gesture. I stepped forward and nudged her with my snout.

"I am, too. Are you confused?"

I nodded again, much more emphatically.

She managed a smile. "It'll all make sense in the morning." She reached forward shyly. "May I?"

I bowed my head, and she scratched behind my ears. 

"You know, you're small as far as werewolves go. You're no monster, Lucy." She sighed. "Thank you for keeping us safe tonight. I'm glad you're here." She stopped scratching my ears then and stood up. "You can go now, we're going to save Sirius."

She made her way over to Harry, then froze.

“Look! Who’s that? Someone’s coming back out of the castle!”

She pointed, and Harry followed her gaze.

Harry gasped. “Macnair! The executioner! He’s gone to get the dementors! This is it, Hermione!”

The two of them climbed onto Buckbeak's back, Hermione behind Harry. I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

Harry dug his heels into Buckbeak's sides, and the majestic creature soared into the sky. I watched them until they disappeared from sight, then headed back into the forest.

I studied the skies anxiously, waiting to see Buckbeak again, with one rider on his back. Finally, I saw them, silhouetted against the full moon. It was quite a surreal thing to behold.

I ran all the way until I reached the edge of the forest closest to Hagrid's hut again, then curled up into a ball, passing into sleep eventually.

Buckbeak was safe. And, even more importantly, so was Harry.

* * *

The next morning, it was Hermione I saw rushing down from the castle, not Cedric. I was confused for a second, then the events of the night came rushing back to me all at once. I raced toward her and flung my arms around her neck.

"Are you okay?" I asked. "What happened? Is everyone okay?"

"We're all okay," she murmured, burying her face in my neck. She was trembling horribly. "Are you? What did you do the rest of the night?"

"I waited until I saw Sirius and Buckbeak fly away, then slept for a couple hours. Hermione, I'm so tired," I cried softly. "Four months of wolfsbane, then Cedric leaving, then last night... I want to sleep forever."

"I think Harry wants to talk to you first," she said, finally breaking away from me. She reached forward and gently wiped a tear from my cheek. "I told him you'd be waiting for him in the common room when he woke up this morning. He wants to explain everything to you himself. Do you think you could do that? I can tell him you're still sleeping."

I shook my head. "I want to see him. Is he already awake?"

"No, but he should be soon enough. You probably have enough time to shower if you want."

"I definitely do," I chuckled.

We walked up to the castle side-by-side, Hermione asking a couple more questions about my night. I had many, many, _many_ questions about hers, but I knew it was more Harry's story than anyone else's.

I showered quickly and climbed into clean robes. I made my way down the stairs quietly, as it was still pretty early in the morning, especially for the Saturday after final exams, and spotted Harry immediately.

He was already sitting in the window seat, gazing out the window with a thoughtful expression on his face. His dark hair was tousled, and his green eyes were tired, and his face was still scratched, but I doubted I had ever been happier to see him than I was in that moment. He was so lost in thought he hadn't heard me come down, so I made my way over to him and said a quiet "Hi, Harry" before sliding into the seat across from him.

"Hi, Lu. So..."

"So," I repeated, smiling. "So I hear from Hermione you had quite the night."

"Buckbeak is alive and well," he reported with a grin. "I figured you'd be quite happy to hear that."

I nodded excitedly. "That's amazing! How'd you manage?"

He raised his eyebrows, adjusting the way he was sitting on the seat. "Well... how long do you have?"

"For you? As long as you need. Tell me everything."

And he did.

He told me about going down to Hagrid's and finding Scabbers. He told me about Scabbers biting Ron and trying to escape, only for Ron to be grabbed by a massive black dog. He told me about he and Hermione chasing Ron, Scabbers, and the dog into a tunnel under the Whomping Willow that led to the Shrieking Shack. He told me about finding out that Sirius Black _was_ the dog. He told me about Professor Lupin coming to the Shrieking Shack. He told me about Professor Lupin being a werewolf, and about the creators of the Marauder's Map and their Animagus abilities. He told me about Snape's sudden appearance, and the explanation of his bitterness toward Harry and Professor Lupin, and the way they all attacked him. (I laughed out loud at that part and told him I wished I'd been a part of that. "I was thinking you'd say that," Harry told me with a knowing grin.) He told me about Scabbers being Peter Pettigrew all along. He told me about his parents' Secret-Keeper, who was actually Pettigrew and not Sirius Black, and how they came to reach that decision. He told me about Sirius's offer to have Harry live with him, and how quickly that dream crashed to the ground. He told me about Professor Lupin's transformation, and the dementors, and passing out.

"This is where it gets a little weird," Harry said, sighing and dragging his hand down his face.

"Harry," I said laughing, " _this_ is where it gets _a little_ weird?"

He grinned.

I smiled back. "I'd like to preface this by saying that I believe you, no matter how much weirder it gets. So go for it."

He told me about what happened in the Hospital Wing. He told me about the Time-Turner. He told me about everything lining up perfectly, about rescuing Buckbeak. He told me with pride about the patronus, and I got excited right along with him. He told me about successfully saving Sirius and Buckbeak, and arriving back in the Hospital Wing just in time.

And when it was all over, I found I really had nothing to say. Other than, "So your patronus is a stag?"

He nodded, and we exchanged a long, meaningful look.

"I think I'm going to go visit Hagrid," Harry said after a moment. "Pretend to check up on him after Buckbeak was 'executed.' Do you want to go with me?"

"I'm going to go visit Professor Lupin, actually." I sighed. "I reckon he feels... well, I can't even imagine how he feels. I'll meet you down there, though, in a little while."

"I'll get Ron and Hermione to go with me, I reckon Ron's leg is healed by now. See you there in a bit."

I headed down to Professor Lupin's office and knocked hesitantly on the door. 

"It's just me, Professor," I called when there was no answer. "Lucy. Are you alright?"

The door opened suddenly, and I spotted Professor Lupin in the corner of the room bent over a suitcase. "Good morning, Lucy. So sorry, I must have missed your knock."

My heart stopped. "P-Professor Lupin, what... what are you doing?"

He still didn't look up from his packing. "I resigned first thing this morning. I'm assuming you know all that happened last night?"

"I-I do, but... but why?"

"Surely you understand I can't risk letting anything like that happen again. I might have bitten someone."

"I wouldn't have let you," I said, voice shaking uncontrollably. "I had my wolfsbane. I've been patrolling the Forbidden Forest every month since March. I was protecting Harry and Hermione the entire time."

"Be that as it may, Lucy," he said gently, "we were all extremely lucky."

"So is there no hope, then, Professor? For us? Can one bad night really... ruin everything?"

For the first time, he straightened up to look at me. He studied my face with an expression somewhere between sorrow and understanding and regret. He leaned back against his desk and drummed his fingers against the tabletop.

"You know as well as I do that the life we lead is... difficult," he began. "We have to be so extremely careful. And last night, I wasn't. I was caught up in the emotion of the moment, and I was careless. And carelessness on the part of werewolves is not easily forgiven, nor should it be." He drew his wand and pointed it at the floor of the classroom. "Expecto patronum!"

A beautiful silvery wolf erupted from his wand and raced around the room before vanishing in a flash of white. 

"But this struggle to survive in a world that fears us makes the happiness we find all the more valuable. We can still choose to cling to happiness when it comes. I can still cast a patronus, against the odds, and you can too."

He sighed, tucking his wand away. "I am far from a role model, Lucy. I hope you can learn from my mistakes last night as well as you've learned from my lessons in the classroom. There is still hope for us. There is always hope. I'm sorry that I have to leave, but if I have managed to leave you with nothing else but hope, I will feel that I have done my best."

"C-Can I see your wand, Professor?" I asked, stepping forward. 

"Of course," he said curiously as he passed it to me. I drew my own and compared the two.

"Cypress? With a unicorn hair core?"

Professor Lupin's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Yes. Why?"

I laughed. "Mine, too. See, this is what I'll miss the most. You've understood me in a way no one else ever has. Cedric tries, he really does, and he's quite successful, but there are some things he will never be able to understand no matter how hard he tries." I passed his wand back to him, my smile fading. "I'm really going to miss you, Professor. Hogwarts won't be the same without you."

"That's very kind of you to say, Lucy. I must admit, I never expected to meet someone quite like you this year, but I'm tremendously glad I did."

I blushed. "I could say the same about you. Now, how can I help?"

We had been working together for about ten minutes when Professor Lupin said, "Harry's on his way, and quickly. I suspect he's just found out, and he's not thrilled, either."

"So... you are Moony, huh?"

"Guilty as charged," he said with a smile. "I take it Harry explained that, too?"

I nodded. "He explained everything. Little did he know that I was right there in the forest all along."

Surely enough, Harry arrived a couple minutes later.

“I just saw Hagrid,” he panted, “and he said you’d resigned. It’s not true, is it?”

“I’m afraid it is,” Professor Lupin said.

“Why? The Ministry of Magic don’t think you were helping Sirius, do they?”

I closed the door behind Harry as Professor Lupin explained. “No. Professor Dumbledore managed to convince Fudge that I was trying to save your lives. That was the final straw for Severus. I think the loss of the Order of Merlin hit him hard. So he, er, _accidentally_ let slip that I am a werewolf this morning at breakfast.”

My anger surged anew. He hadn't mentioned that _Snape_ was the one responsible.

Harry seemed equally angry. “You’re not leaving just because of that!”

Professor Lupin smiled. “This time tomorrow, the owls will start arriving from parents. They will not want a werewolf teaching their children, Harry. And after last night, I see their point. I could have bitten any of you, and that must never happen again.”

Harry looked at me desperately. 

"I tried," I said softly. "I want him to stay as badly as you do." _Even more than you do, I reckon,_ I added to myself.

He turned back to Professor Lupin. “You’re the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we’ve ever had! Don’t go!”

“From what the headmaster told me this morning, you saved a lot of lives last night, Harry," Professor Lupin said after a moment. "If I’m proud of anything I’ve done this year, it’s how much you two have learned. Tell me about your patronus.”

“How d’you know about that?”

“What else could have driven the dementors back?”

Harry launched into the story, distracted. 

Professor Lupin smiled when his story was through. “Yes, your father was always a stag when he transformed. You guessed right, that’s why we called him Prongs. Come here, you two.”

Harry and I approached his desk, and he passed Harry the Invisibility Cloak. “Here, I brought this from the Shrieking Shack last night. And...” He reluctantly passed the map back to Harry, too. “I am no longer your teacher, so I don’t feel guilty about giving you back this as well. It’s no use to me, and I daresay you two, Ron, and Hermione will find uses for it.”

Harry smiled. “You told me Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs would’ve wanted to lure me out of school; you said they’d have thought it was funny.”

“And so we would have! I have no hesitation in saying that James would have been highly disappointed if his son had never found any of the secret passages out of the castle.”

Harry shoved everything out of sight when there was a knock at the door. Professor Dumbledore walked in, not looking surprised to see either of us there with Professor Lupin.

“Your carriage is at the gates, Remus,” he said.

“Thank you, Headmaster.”

Professor Lupin closed his case and turned to Harry first. “Well... goodbye, Harry. It has been a real pleasure teaching you. I feel sure we’ll meet again sometime."

He turned to me, but before he could speak, I stepped forward and hugged him tightly. "Please don't go," I said, feeling near tears again.

He chuckled kindly, seeming surprised by my sudden hug. "I'm afraid I must, Lucy. I'm sure we will meet again, too. Remember what I told you this morning."

I released him, blinking away my tears and finding a smile somewhere deep inside me. "I will, Professor."

Professor Lupin turned to Dumbledore. "Headmaster, there is no need to see me to the gates, I can manage."

“Goodbye, then, Remus,” he said, and the two men shook hands. I sat on top of the nearest desk as Professor Lupin left, feeling much the same way I had felt when Cedric left the day prior. Empty. Cold.

The door closed, and I drew my wand, fiddling with it in my hand. Professor Lupin and I had nearly the same wand... imagine that.

I jumped when Professor Dumbledore spoke. I hadn't realized he was still there. “Why so miserable, Harry? You should be very proud of yourself after last night.”

“It didn’t make any difference... Pettigrew got away.”

“Didn’t make any difference? It made all the difference in the world, Harry. You helped uncover the truth. You saved an innocent man from a terrible fate.”

Harry jolted suddenly. “Professor Dumbledore, yesterday, when I was having my Divination exam, Professor Trelawney went very... _very_ strange.”

I glanced up suddenly. "You started to tell us yesterday, then the Buckbeak thing..."

“Indeed? Er, stranger than usual, you mean?” Dumbledore clarified.

“Yes. Her voice went all deep and her eyes rolled and she said… she said Voldemort’s servant was going to set out to return to him before midnight. She said the servant would help him come back to power. And then she sort of became normal again, and she couldn’t remember anything she’d said. Was it... was she making a _real prediction_?”

Dumbledore pursed his lips. “Do you know, Harry, I think she might have been. Who’d have thought it? That brings her total of real predictions up to two. I should offer her a pay raise.”

“But... but... I stopped Sirius and Professor Lupin from killing Pettigrew! That makes it my fault if Voldemort comes back!”

“It does not. Hasn’t your experience with the Time-Turner taught you anything, Harry? The consequences of our actions are always so complicated, so diverse, that predicting the future is a very difficult business indeed. Professor Trelawney, bless her, is living proof of that. You did a very noble thing, in saving Pettigrew’s life.”

“But if he helps Voldemort back to power-”

“Pettigrew owes his life to you. You have sent Voldemort a deputy who is in your debt. When one wizard saves another wizard’s life, it creates a certain bond between them, and I’m much mistaken if Voldemort wants his servant in the debt of Harry Potter.”

Harry was having considerable trouble breathing at this point. “I don’t want a connection with Pettigrew! He betrayed my parents!”

“This is magic at its deepest, its most impenetrable, Harry. But trust me, the time may come when you will be very glad you saved Pettigrew’s life.” Dumbledore paused before speaking again. “I knew your father very well, both at Hogwarts and later, Harry. He would have saved Pettigrew too, I am sure of it.”

“I thought it was my dad who’d conjured my patronus," Harry said softly. "I mean, when I saw myself across the lake. I thought I was seeing him.”

“An easy mistake to make. I expect you’ll tire of hearing it, but you do look extraordinarily like James. Except for the eyes; you have your mother’s eyes.”

“It was stupid, thinking it was him. I mean, I knew he was dead.”

“You think the dead we loved ever truly leave us? You think that we don’t recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble? Your father is alive in you, Harry, and shows himself most plainly when you have need of him. How else could you produce that particular patronus? Prongs rode again last night.” Dumbledore smiled. “Last night Sirius told me all about how they became Animagi. An extraordinary achievement; not least, keeping it quiet from me. You know, Harry, in a way, you _did_ see your father last night. You found him inside yourself.”

Dumbledore turned to me then. "As for you, Miss Diggory. I understand you've been through a fair amount in the past 24 hours as well. I think perhaps it would benefit both of you to celebrate your newfound freedom from exams and the threat of Sirius Black with a lap around the castle on your brooms. It looks like it will be a beautiful blue-sky day, after all."

With that, he smiled again and left the room.

"Oh yeah," Harry said after a moment. "In all that, I forgot Cedric left, too. How are you?"

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't sad. Tired, too," I admitted, thinking of a story on my feet. "I mean, I didn't exactly sleep very well last night after Hermione never came back to the dormitory. But..." I smiled. "A ride around the grounds sounds great to me. I reckon you can beat me in a race again, Mr. Firebolt."

Harry grinned back. "I reckon I can. Let's test it, shall we?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Eek! I know a lot of you have been looking forward to this particular scene for a loooong time, so I hope I didn't disappoint!
> 
> Sorry Harry doesn't find out about Lucy's secret in this chapter... I'm sure a lot of you were hoping for that. I won't tell you when he does find out, but I promise he will. I have a very specific idea for how and when he finds out, and I'm really excited about it, so I hope you can all forgive me for not having him find out in this chapter.
> 
> Oh, and about Lucy's wand! I took the house test, wand test, and patronus test before reading the books a little over two years ago. My wand was cypress with a unicorn core, and I didn't think much of it. As it turned out, one of my favorite characters, Remus Lupin, had nearly the exact same wand! 😂 It honestly seemed too perfect an opportunity to pass up, especially considering how much Lucy already has in common with Lupin.
> 
> As always, thank you for reading! See you next chapter with the end of third year!


	49. "Good Thing"

_Dear Cedric,_

_I hope you're doing well and learning a lot at St. Mungo's! Hogwarts hasn't been quite the same without you._

_I've kept myself plenty busy, though, so there's no need to worry about me. With the threat of Sirius Black gone, Harry and I have been together on the Pitch nearly every chance we get. His Muggle family doesn't let him fly his broom on holiday, so he's trying to fit in all of the practice that he can now, and I'm all too happy to help in that endeavor. You know I'm never one to turn down the chance to be in the sky._

_I went back to the Room of Requirement last night, to see all of my memories one more time before going home. I thought it would be a good idea, but to be honest, Cedric, it was a mistake. Now I'm more scared of seeing Mum and Dad again than I ever have been. I don't want them to know that I know, and I'm terrified of them somehow finding my jar of memories. I'm sorry to bother you with all of this, really I am, but I was hoping you might have some idea of what to do. You're brilliant, after all, and sometimes I think you know me even better than I know myself. You're my best friend. If anyone would know what to do, it'd be you._

_I love you so much. I miss you. I hope you're having a great time doing what you do best --- helping people._

_Love, Lucy_

I folded the piece of parchment into thirds and slid it into the envelope I'd already prepared. I pulled back the curtains around my bed and squinted at the clock across the room. It was 6:47 in the morning, meaning the rest of the school was likely still sound asleep and likely to remain so for quite a while. In other words, it was a great time to head to the Owlery and have Malachi take my letter to Cedric.

His reply didn't come until nearly nine o'clock the night before leaving Hogwarts. I was in the common room with all of my fellow Gryffindor third-years passing around a box of Bertie Bott's when I spied Malachi at the window.

"Trust me, eat the purple one," I whispered to Hermione as I passed her the box. In a louder voice, I said to the group, "I'm going to go see what my family's owl brought. I'll be right back."

I quickly freed the envelope from his talons and tore it open as he perched himself on my shoulder.

_Dear Lucy,_

_I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to reply. We had a sudden influx of patients --- somebody contaminated an entire supply of firewhisky with a moderately strong poison, so I've barely had time to sleep in 48 hours. But don't worry about me, I can honestly say I've never felt so... right. I love being here. I just know it's where I'm meant to be. I love feeling like I'm making a good difference, a real difference, in the world._

_I'm glad to hear you and Harry have been getting quality time together on the Pitch. I'm sure that makes you happy for a lot of reasons (other than just the flying aspect). Quidditch is what first connected Cho with me, after all. Maybe it's just meant to be!_

_Don't worry about going home to Mum and Dad. I know you're strong, and I know you'll be okay. Remember what I said about the chocolates I gave you for your birthday, and remember you can always send a letter whenever you need me. I can't promise I'll always reply right away, because some days here are extremely chaotic, but I can promise that I'll always reply to you as soon as possible. Remember what I said about your friends, too, before I left. I know I'm the only person who knows about your family, but they can still be there for you if you let them be._

_Keep your head up, Lucy. I miss you too, but we'll be okay. I promise._

_Love always, Cedric_

I returned the letter to its envelope and tucked it into the deepest pocket of my robes.

"You might as well stay here with me, Malachi," I said, stroking his feathers. "I'm taking you home tomorrow, after all. You know the way to my dormitory, yeah?"

He nipped my ear in reply and took off up the stairs. I took my seat next to Hermione.

"Thanks for the heads up on the purple," she muttered. "Grape is a lot better than the eggplant I usually get when I eat purple beans. How'd you know it was safe?"

I grinned. "It's a wolf thing," I whispered in reply.

She grinned back and jerked her chin at Lavender, who was squinting suspiciously at a red bean. "What's that one?"

"It's either chili pepper or tomato." I scratched at my nose to hide the fact that I inhaled sharply trying to tell which one she had grabbed. I giggled when I felt my nose begin to burn. "Oh no."

Surely enough, Lavender screamed as soon as she popped the bean in her mouth, prompting laughter from the whole common room. As the night went on, people headed up to their dormitories one by one until it was only Harry and I left... as tradition would have it at that point.

"The train ride here with the dementors seems like it was so long ago," he commented after a moment. "Bloody hell, what a year."

"I'll say," I replied softly.

What a year indeed. I had met another werewolf for the first time, and he had been amazing. I had learned the truth about the night I was bitten, and discovered my first family as well. I had realized my stupidly large crush on Harry, and allowed myself to hope from time to time that he might fancy me back one day. My patronus, the Quidditch Cup, the night with Sirius and Buckbeak. What a year indeed...

I glanced over at Harry. He was gazing into the fireplace with a sullen expression.

I'd taken the loss of Professor Lupin harder than anyone else, but Harry was a very close second in that regard. We'd spent a lot of time together on the Pitch, trying to stay busy, but in moments like these, everything from the year really sank in. The fights with Hermione, the horrible memories we'd been forced to live through again and again, the fact neither of us had gotten a proper Hogsmeade visit. It had been a great year, sure, but not a perfect one.

Eager to cheer him up, a sudden thought occurred to me. "Say, Harry, has Ron told you that the Quidditch World Cup is being hosted by Britain this summer?"

He blinked and sat up, turning to me excitedly. "Wait, really?"

I nodded. "First time in decades! Fred and George were telling me that Mr. Weasley usually gets tickets from work, and he's hoping to get enough for you and Hermione, too!"

"That... wow, that would be excellent! I'd love to go! Have you ever been to a World Cup? What's it like? Who's playing in it this year?"

"I've never been, I don't know, and we don't know yet," I said with a laugh. " _The Daily Prophet_ is good about tracking the teams, though, so I'll write you a message every day with updates. Scores, injuries, notable plays, rising players, statistics."

"That would be great! I don't think the Dursleys would be terribly thrilled if I asked them if they had Quidditch updates for me in Muggle newspapers."

I giggled. "I'd imagine not." I sighed. "On a serious note, my offer from last year still holds. If you need me to come get you, just let me know. I'll drop everything and grab the nearest dragon and fly to your rescue."

He grinned. "I'd love to see it. You know, I was actually thinking I should tell them Sirius is my godfather. I can't imagine they'd dare to mistreat me if the threat of his wrath hung over their heads."

"That might very well be one of the smartest things you have ever said," I remarked with a smile. 

"One of? What would the others be?"

I pursed my lips. "When you said life isn't fair. You weren't wrong."

"When did I say that?"

"After our first patronus lesson. We were talking about your parents."

He nodded. "I remember now. Yeah, well, I didn't even realize exactly how unfair life was then. I mean, what happened to Sirius-" His voice rose angrily, and he cut himself off. 

"I know," I said, keeping my voice as soft and gentle as possible. For a second, I was tempted to rest my head on his shoulder, to comfort him, but nervousness made my stomach tie itself in a knot, so I didn't. For another second, I considered reaching for his hand instead, but my hands suddenly got sweaty, and I realized that was an even worse idea. 

_Just do it, Lucy,_ I told myself sternly. _Don't be a coward. You're a Gryffindor._

But I _was_ a coward. So I didn't do anything.

"You know what one of the smartest things _you've_ ever said was?" Harry asked suddenly, being completely unaware of my raging inner debate.

I blinked. "Um, no. I tend to save the smart things for Hermione."

"You never give yourself enough credit. As I recall, it was you, not Hermione, who told me two years ago exactly, in this very spot, that the Stone was just the beginning."

"We're three for three now, as far as strange adventures every year go. When we were making predictions last year, did either of us guess time travel?"

He laughed, a sound I hadn't heard since the Quidditch Cup party. I couldn't help but smile hearing it.

"I don't think we could have seen that coming," he replied.

"Or the Scabbers thing!" I added. "I mean, what the _hell._ I still don't know what to make of that."

Harry kept laughing, and I laughed too. We talked a bit longer after that before retiring to our dormitories. That night, I fell asleep with a smile on my face. I was certainly going to miss Harry over summer, but I always enjoyed spending some of my last hours at Hogwarts alone in the common room with him, three years in a row and counting. I hoped the tradition would carry on until we graduated --- and selfishly, I let myself hope that the future held many more nights together in front of a fireplace, just the two of us.

* * *

The twins rescued me from my Cedric-less house on the first Saturday of summer holidays.

I had just gone outside to read _The Hobbit_ \--- the first of the four thick J.R.R. Tolkien books Archie had loaned me to read over summer --- when a somewhat large candy wrapped in bright green paper bounced off my forehead and landed in between pages 214 and 215. Knowing better than to eat it, I snatched the candy up and struck Fred directly between the eyes.

"Good morning to you too," I teased. "Come to bother me already?"

"Yes! And we would have come a lot sooner if Mum hadn't insisted we de-gnomed the lawn with Ron first."

"Aw, you de-gnomed without me? I'm insulted. Were you just scared I'd throw it further than you all? Again?"

"You guessed it, Cub. No, we just figured we'd let you have a couple hours of peace and quiet before we kidnapped you for the rest of the summer."

"How kind of you. Let me go tell Mum you two are kidnapping me."

"Would she mind if we kidnapped you overnight?"

"Oh, no, she'd be thrilled. She wanted me to help her paint the living room a couple days ago, but the smell of the paint was too much for me to bear. She'd be glad to have the chance to finish the project without killing me slowly in the process," I laughed. "I'll throw some clothes in a bag and meet you down here in five minutes."

When I returned to my front yard with a bag slung over one shoulder and my broom over the other, George clucked his tongue. "That was only four minutes and seventeen seconds. You have to stand there for 43 seconds now before we can leave."

"Oh, if only we could use magic outside of Hogwarts," I groaned as I marched right past them and out the gate. "I would have hit you with a tickling charm before you had time to blink."

" _We'll_ be able to next summer!" Fred bragged.

"Oh, don't remind me of that horrible fact. I'll be sure to barricade myself in my room until September first," I replied, rolling my eyes. "So are you going to tell me what that candy was? I'm guessing I was right not to trust it in the slightest."

"Well... we don't know if it works yet. But it's supposed to make your tongue swell to the size of a watermelon, maybe larger."

"Bloody hell! How'd you figure that out?"

"Lots of trial and error over the course of six months," George said sheepishly.

"And not a lot of O.W.L. studying," Fred added in an undertone. "Don't tell Mum."

"I can keep a secret," I replied, smiling. "As long as she doesn't smuggle me one of your truth candies and ask me the exact right question, your secret is safe with me."

"Speaking of truth candies, reckon you'd be up for a game with us tonight?" Fred asked. 

"Oh, definitely!" I agreed immediately. "Why wait until tonight? We could play now!"

"It _is_ a nice day," George commented. "We should play outside so we don't pester Perfect Percy."

"What's the matter with Percy?"

"He got his first report to write up for his boss yesterday afternoon, and he made sure we all knew he was not to be disturbed until it was complete."

"Hasn't he only been working at the Ministry for... two days? Maybe three?"

"He's made quite the impression," Fred said with a roll of his eyes. "You know how he is, especially with people in authority. I bet you his nose looks a little browner than usual up close."

I nodded, giggling a bit at his last comment. "Yeah, you're right. Well, good for him. We can play outside."

Ginny was floating lazily on a broomstick in the backyard when we arrived.

"Hi, Lucy!" she called, flying over and circling around me a couple of times. "How's your summer been so far?"

"It was going alright until these doofuses showed up," I replied. 

"Gin, she was _reading_ when we came to rescue her!" Fred exclaimed. "Reading! Can you believe it? It's a good thing we saved her before she died of boredom, eh?"

I grabbed _The Hobbit_ out of my bag and smacked him upside the head with it. "If you had come yesterday, you would have found me baking cookies to send to Cedric. It's not my fault you're slow." I tossed my bag aside and swung a leg over my broom. "Say, where's Ron?"

"Writing to Hermione, last I checked," Ginny said, looking at me meaningfully.

I smiled. "Glad to hear it. We were thinking about playing truth or dare. Want to play with us?"

"Oh, yeah! With the gummies?"

"We'll go fetch them!" the twins said in unison, disappearing into the house. 

I swung my other leg over my broom and dangled upside down. "So, Ron and Hermione?"

"One of the first things he told Mum and Dad about when we got home was her punching Malfoy. He seemed to think it was rather impressive."

I laughed. "It really was. You should have seen the look on his face. He looked rather stupid."

"More so than usual, you mean?"

I laughed again. "Exactly."

The twins returned shortly with the bags of candy.

"Where are the cards?" I asked.

"We thought maybe we could get creative this round," Fred replied, reaching down for a broomstick. He and George soon joined us in the air, and the game began.

Ginny, fearless Ginny, went first, choosing dare. George dared her to stand up on her broomstick like it was a Muggle surfboard, which she did with much more grace than I thought was possible.

Fred also chose dare, and Ginny dared him to fly up to Percy's window and sing the Hogwarts school song at the top of his lungs. 

George was the first to choose truth, so I asked him who he thought the most attractive professor at school was --- we all nearly died of laughter when he said Professor Snape, but fortunately, Fred realized he hadn't actually eaten the candy, only hidden it in his cheek. When he did actually eat the candy, he confessed that it was actually Professor Babbling, which made much more sense. She was the youngest female professor, after all. Most people who had taken her class had at least a little bit of a crush on her.

"Your turn, Cub," Fred said, holding out both bags. "What'll it be, truth or dare?"

"Oh, dare, easily. Remember what I had to confess to last time I chose truth?"

"Pick your poison," George said with a shrug, tossing me a dare candy.

I popped it in my mouth and swallowed, looking from person to person while they tried to think of the best dare. 

"Oh, I know!" Ginny exclaimed. "Go do a slow dance with the ghoul in the attic for thirty seconds!"

Before I even knew what I was doing, my body acted of its own accord. It was as if I were a puppet being controlled by a clumsy puppeteer who kept tangling the strings. I shot up to the attic and flew through an open window. I dropped my broom and stumbled around until I found the ghoul. My hand jerked forward in an offering.

"Dance with me," I said, and as soon as the very-confused creature took my hand, I swept him off his feet and twirled around the room to the tune of a waltz George began whistling for me. At the end of my thirty seconds, I gently set the ghoul down and bowed.

I felt my face turn a bright red as I turned to face the now-howling Weasleys.

"I am never choosing dare again!" I announced with a laugh, climbing back onto my broom and shooting out of the attic. They followed, and we reconvened in a circle just below the tops of the trees.

"Ginny, you have the best dares!" George declared.

"Your turn," Fred said, holding out the bags.

"Truth," she decided, chewing the candy a couple of times before swallowing.

"Which house has the cutest boys?" Fred asked.

"Ravenclaw!" She clapped her hands over her mouth in horror. "Did I just say that out loud?"

"Welcome to the game, little sister," Fred replied, popping a dare candy into his mouth. "Hit me with your worst."

"Go steal a pair of Percy's underwear," Ginny said immediately, smirking devilishly.

Without hesitation, Fred made a beeline for Percy's window. We followed at a distance, already laughing.

Fred knocked on Percy's window relentlessly. "Let me in, let me in! Let me in! It's urgent!"

A very-irritated Percy opened the window. "What is it?"

Fred nearly knocked him over in his rush to get into Percy's room. We couldn't see what was happening, but we heard a fair amount of shuffling and shouting. About a minute later, Fred flew back out of Percy's room, boxers held triumphantly over his head. I would have fallen off of my broom laughing if George hadn't stabilized me at the last minute.

"Percy's going to hate us," I wheezed between bouts of laughter.

"He'll hate _me_ ," Ginny corrected, "but I don't care, this is fun! George, your turn!"

"I'm quite frankly too scared to choose dare after what I just witnessed, so truth."

I cleared my throat. "Smart choice. Okay, if you had to be in another house, which do you think would suit you best?"

"Slytherin," he replied automatically. "Fred and I are both rather ambitious, even if Mum disagrees."

I grinned. "Makes sense to me. Archie would probably be glad for your company."

"That was a boring question, they need to be _juicier_!" Ginny protested. 

"I was genuinely curious," I said, pouting playfully.

"Truth or dare, Cub?" George asked.

"I have to choose truth. I don't want to find myself screaming at the chickens in Ron's pajamas if I choose dare."

"Eat up, then!" Fred said a little too cheerfully, tossing me the truth candy. Once I had swallowed, he grinned. "Alright, Cub, give us the full name of the person you fancy."

I couldn't fight it. The truth tumbled from my lips before I even comprehended the question. "Harry James Potter."

I clamped both hands over my mouth, but it was too late. My face was on fire, Fred was laughing maniacally, George was nodding his head and smiling, and Ginny was staring at me slack-jawed.

"You can't tell anyone!" I squeaked. "Ron can't know! _Harry_ can't know! Cedric was the only person I told!"

"How long have you known you fancied him?" Ginny asked. "Why didn't you tell _me_?"

Ron saved me from answering. "Oy! I got a letter from Harry!"

I turned to the others quickly, muttering through gritted teeth, "Not. A. Word."

They nodded, still smirking, and we flew down to where Ron was. 

I reached him first, jumping off my broom and reading the letter over his shoulder.

"What?" I squawked when I reached the end. "Oh no, we have to do something!"

"What is it, Cub?" George asked, now completely serious. "Is Harry okay?"

I nodded, pinching the bridge of my nose. "He is, for now. He said his cousin Dudley is going on a diet, and his aunt is making him follow the diet, too. They already don't feed him enough over summer, we figured that out the summer you went to rescue him in the Anglia. Bloody hell, we need to help!"

"Harry can't last all summer on carrot sticks," Ron added in a worried voice.

"Let's get Mum," Fred advised. "She'll know what to do."

Mrs. Weasley did in fact know exactly what to do. The second we told her what was going on, she scrawled a shopping list on a scrap piece of parchment and sent the boys to the market in the heart of the village to get ingredients for meat pies. While we waited for them to return, Ginny and I helped Mrs. Weasley bake muffins so Harry would have something a little sweeter for breakfast. All six of us started working on the meat pies once the boys got back, but the kitchen grew crowded so the twins walked with me back to my house so I could send owl food for Hedwig.

Around 4 in the afternoon, everything was ready. Ron and I headed up to his room, and I arranged everything as best I could on Hedwig while he wrote a letter back to Harry saying more food would be on the way as soon as he needed it. Ron asked if I wanted to add a bit to his letter, but I told him it was alright and that I'd send him my own letter in the morning... which was a lie, because as soon as Ginny left to take a shower that night and I found myself alone in her room, the first thing I did was dig the diary out of my bag.

_I was at the Burrow when Ron got your letter, and rest assured, help is on the way! Ron and I just sent Hedwig off._

I started to tuck the diary away, but to my surprise, Harry replied right away.

_Oh, thank Merlin. I'm glad Hedwig got there so quickly._

_The return journey may be a little slower. She has a lot of food on her right now. Why didn't you tell me sooner, Harry? I could have sent Malachi off._

_Sorry about that, I just didn't want Ron wondering how you knew so much sooner than he did. I was planning on the Weasleys telling you as soon as they got my owl, kind of a two-for-one._

_I can't argue with that! Don't worry about it. I'm just glad you let us know so you could help. Does Hermione know?_

_I'll send Hedwig her way next._

_I should warn you now that her parents like sending her sugar-free candies while she's at school, so that's probably what you'll get. How on earth do Muggles even do that? Why would they do that?_

_I wish I had an answer for you, but I don't understand either._

_Sorry to cut this so short, but I think Ginny's coming back. I'll write you as soon as I'm home tomorrow!_

_Sounds good. Night, Lu!_

_Night, Harry!_

I tucked the diary away just as Ginny returned. She closed the door quickly behind her and crossed her arms.

"You didn't answer my questions earlier."

"We were interrupted by Ron's announcement," I said with a laugh, feeling my face grow red.

"Well, he's gone now. So... when did you realize you fancied Harry?"

"Do _you_ still fancy Harry?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm over it. I was just a starstruck little girl last year. Now answer my question."

I giggled and hugged my pillow to my chest. "Alright, alright. Um, well, I think... Ginny, this is hard, Cedric didn't ask questions!"

"He's a boy," she said dismissively, coming to sit across from me on the bed. "Come on, Lucy, think! I want to know!"

I gnawed on my lower lip. "Well... last year, Draco Malfoy was really mean to me in Ancient Runes. And after Buckbeak was sentenced to be executed, he was especially mean to me, and I kind of lost it. I ran off to the Quidditch Pitch after classes because I was so hurt and angry and upset, and Harry followed me. And..." I closed my eyes and sighed, recalling the scene. "It was almost sunset, and I was by myself in the commentary box. I heard Harry's footsteps, and-"

Her eyes widened. "How did you know it was him?"

"He walks a certain way, and it's really quiet. Haven't you noticed? I only heard him coming because the stairs are creaky and it was dead silent at the top that day."

Ginny shook her head. "No? What do you mean, he walks quietly?"

I furrowed my brow. What _did_ I mean? "He... well, he walks on the balls of his feet a lot of the time, not really on his heels. It's like he's trying to tiptoe all the time, without actually tiptoeing. It's like he doesn't want to be heard."

"I've never noticed that! Merlin, you really _do_ fancy him! Anyway, go on. You heard him coming and...?"

"And I realized he had somehow known exactly where I'd be and come after me to see if I was okay. And then I looked at him, and it was like..."

"Like...?"

"Ginny, his eyes are so _green_ ," I whispered, my face flushing even more. "And they're so _expressive_. I can see exactly how he's feeling just by looking at his eyes. And that day, he was so sweet and worried and-"

"What did he say?" she prodded enthusiastically. "Did he ask what was wrong? What did you tell him?"

I laughed. "Sorry, I got a little distracted there, didn't I? Well, I told him nothing was wrong, and he didn't believe me, so I told him that Malfoy was mean to me, and he asked me what he said. And I told him a tiny part of it, and he got mad about _that_ , and when I told him the rest of it, he looked like he was going to go hex Malfoy himself. He jumped up and everything, I had to grab him by the arm and practically drag him back next to me to stop him from running off to punch him or hex him or whatever it was he wanted to do."

Ginny sighed dramatically. "What a man! What happened next?"

"We talked a bit more. I told him more about what Malfoy says to me, and he felt so bad for not knowing it was happening, and then I..." I giggled, feeling my face getting red again. "Then I rested my head against his shoulder, Ginny! I can't believe I did that!"

"I can't believe you did, either! You're so shy!"

"To be fair, I hadn't realized I liked him yet. But when I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, I... it just clicked. I realized I was in love. I think I'd liked him for a while before that, but that's when I realized."

"When do you think it started?"

"Um... I don't know. Ginny, is it obvious I like him? I really hope he doesn't know, I'd be so embarrassed."

"You two have always been close. I was a little surprised earlier, but it makes a lot of sense now."

"Do you... do you think he likes me back? No, never mind, of course he doesn't-"

Ginny shrugged. "He might. It's hard to tell with him. He keeps a lot of things hidden. But Lucy, you two make a lot of sense. Don't give up on him."

I nodded slowly, trying to process what she was saying. I cleared my throat and smiled. "Enough about me. Tell me about _your_ love life."

"Oh no," she said, shaking her head. "No no no no no. Nothing to talk about. Let's go to sleep. You've got a letter to write to Harry in the morning!"

"Oh, shut up," I muttered, smiling nonetheless.

Much of that summer passed the same way. I spent loads of time at the Weasleys, flying around the woods with Ginny and losing to Ron at chess and talking with the twins about their plans for a joke shop (though I flat-out refused to play truth or dare again). When I wasn't at their house, I was either reading _The Lord of the Rings_ , doing homework, or baking cookies. 

Truthfully, I did more baking than anything else. After Cedric told me that the snickerdoodles I baked the first week of summer were the best he'd ever had, I baked another two dozen and sent them his way. 

From there, I branched out to other audiences. Since it was summer, I kept the windows open while I was baking so the kitchen didn't overheat. So, naturally, the twins smelled the cookies one day and convinced me to bake another batch to bring back to the Burrow. Every single cookie I had baked disappeared in a matter of minutes --- even Percy had more than one. Fred and George became my all-too-willing taste testers, swinging by regularly to sample my latest creations. I branched out to other types of cookies, too, from chocolate chip to oatmeal to peanut butter to pumpkin and everything in between.

Cedric was a fan of my new hobby, too. He told me that some of his co-workers asked him nearly every day what I'd sent him lately; Cedric Diggory and his sister who baked really good cookies became somewhat legendary at St. Mungo's, from what I heard.

All in all, my summer was alright. I still missed Cedric terribly, but we exchanged letters as often as we could, and baking cookies for him as often as I did made him feel not quite so far away. On the lonely nights when I had to walk past his empty room, Tuck was there as a constant comfort. The Weasleys helped too, without even realizing, really. The twins and Ginny had lots of fun teasing me about Harry in whispers when no one else was around, and Ron and I spent a lot of time together making sure Harry was well-stocked on good food. 

But in all of this, Harry was my bright spot.

We talked every single day. As we agreed on our last night before leaving Hogwarts, I kept him updated on the Quidditch Cup prospects, and he kept me updated on the Dursleys. Sometimes we talked about homework, too, and sometimes he asked about how Cedric was doing, and sometimes I asked how Sirius was doing. Sometimes he asked questions about growing up in the wizarding world, and sometimes I asked questions about growing up in the Muggle world. Sometimes we talked about silly things, like where in the world we'd like to go after we graduated or what careers we would have if we were living in the Muggle world.

But of all the various topics we covered and facts about ourselves we shared, one thing in particular always stood out to me. Or rather, two things --- one good and one bad.

In one of Cedric's letters to me, he started telling me one good thing that happened to him that day and one bad thing that happened to him that day, and I started replying in kind. His good things were most often kind patients or miraculous healings, and his bad thing was always that he missed me and Henry and Cho and Mum and Dad. My good things usually involved the Weasleys or Harry or Tuck, and my bad thing was always that I missed him.

Harry and I started doing the same every night before we went to bed, regardless of how long we'd been talking or how late it was (because we often stayed up talking while we did homework... it was a bad habit, but it was the best time to talk truly uninterrupted). 

It was in those moments I realized exactly how much the wizarding world really meant to Harry. The Muggles he had to call family treated him like anything but. _We_ were his family. The Weasleys, Hermione, Gryffindor, Hogwarts... and me. My heart hurt for him every time his "good thing" was a countdown to leaving Little Whinging. But for what it was worth, I had to agree --- the thought of being one day closer to seeing Harry again was in fact a very, very, _very_ good thing.


	50. We've Got Brighter Lights Back Home

_I'm saying goodbye to the skyline  
Hello to the sweet pines  
Gonna see you later street lights  
I'm headed back to tree lines  
To free time and starry nights  
To bonfires and fireflies  
Pack your bags it's time to go  
'Cause we've got brighter lights back home_

_"Back Home"  
Owl City feat. Jake Owen_

* * *

HARRY:

I awoke with a start. My scar was on fire.

I pressed one hand to my forehead while I groped around for my glasses with the other.

 _What a horrible nightmare._

Still clutching my burning scar, I went to look at it in the mirror to see if it was bleeding or glowing or doing anything similarly unusual, but it looked just the same as it always did.

I closed my eyes and tried to take a deep breath. The dream had seemed so real --- maybe even _too_ real.

In my mind's eye, I saw the snake on the rug, I saw Peter Pettigrew, I saw the old man. And Voldemort... I heard Voldemort. I heard Voldemort say he was going to kill me.

I suddenly opened my eyes and spun in a rapid circle, looking for anything out of the ordinary about my room. I saw nothing, nothing at all, but I didn't know if that made me feel better or worse.

I made my way over to the window and glanced up and down Privet Drive. There was nothing unusual out there, either, but I still couldn't shake the fear that was coiling itself around my chest.

The last time my scar had hurt, it was because Voldemort had been near. I needed to tell someone.

My eyes landed on the three birthday cards on my windowsill. 

I spied Ron's first. How would he react to me telling him my scar hurt?

“Your scar hurt? But... but You-Know-Who can’t be near you now, can he? I mean... you’d know, wouldn’t you? He’d be trying to do you in again, wouldn’t he? I dunno, Harry, maybe curse scars always twinge a bit, I’ll ask Dad...”

I couldn't possibly tell Ron. He'd worry too much, and he would tell his family, then _they_ would worry too much. And I didn't want their worry to spoil the Quidditch World Cup.

I saw Hermione's next. As soon as the thought of telling her crossed my mind, I heard her immediately beginning to panic, clear as day.

“Your scar hurt? Harry, that’s really serious! Write to Professor Dumbledore! And I’ll go and check _Common Magical Ailments and Afflictions_ , maybe there’s something in there about curse scars.”

I entertained the notion of actually telling Dumbledore for a moment. What would I even say?

_Dear Professor Dumbledore,  
Sorry to bother you, but my scar hurt this morning.  
Yours sincerely, Harry Potter_

There was no way I'd write to Dumbledore; I'd sound incredibly stupid. I found myself wondering where Dumbledore spent his holidays --- the thought of him on a beach somewhere was a funny one. Lucy would find it funny too.

My eyes landed on her card next. Lucy! I could tell Lucy anything, so why not this? She wouldn't overreact. She never did. But what _would_ she say?

"That's alright, Harry, we can try to figure out why your scar hurt. Do you want me to ask Cedric? He might have learned something about curse scars this summer at St. Mungo's. In the meantime, we should plan our first real Hogsmeade trip together, you and me and Ron and Hermione. Would that take your mind off of things?"

The answer seemed so obvious --- Lucy was the person I could reach the fastest, anyway.

I grabbed the diary out from under my pillow and reached for the nearest quill. How could I possibly explain this? I started to write slowly.

_Hey, Lu. Sorry to bother you. I know it's really really early, and hopefully you're still sleeping, but I didn't know who else to talk to. My scar hurt this morning. I don't know what to make of it, and I don't know if you will, either, but I thought you might want to know about it just the same. I don't want to tell Ron or Hermione quite yet --- they'd worry too much. But I had to tell somebody._

To my surprise, words began appearing on the page just below mine.

_Are you alright, Harry? Does it still hurt?_

I couldn't help but smile. "Hopefully you're still sleeping"... this was Lucy I was talking to. Of course she wasn't sleeping.

_Not quite as much anymore. What in Merlin's name are you doing awake?_

_I just finished the last book from Archie. Bloody hell, Harry, it was too good to put down. I've been reading all night, it's terrible. But enough about me, what happened with you? You said you had a dream? Do you want to talk about it, or would you rather talk about something to get your mind off of it?_

I smiled even wider. I knew Lucy would offer to distract me. I grew serious as I began to write, though.

_Lucy, I saw Voldemort in my dream. And Peter Pettigrew was with him, and a huge snake. He killed an elderly Muggle man, and they said_

I paused, massaging my scar again. I gripped the quill tighter and finished my sentence.

_that they're going to kill me._

Lucy didn't reply for a moment, and when she did, her handwriting was shaky.

_Harry... maybe you should tell someone else about this too, an adult. It sounds much more serious than either of us are really equipped to handle. Wait a second... Harry, have you told Sirius?_

_That's actually a great idea. I'll send a letter his way right now._

_Speaking of letters, do you want me to ask Cedric about it? I won't mention the dream or even your name, if you want, I could just ask him about scars from curses. He might know something after the past couple months at St. Mungo's._

In spite of myself, I grinned again. 

_It's okay, Lu. You should get some sleep._

_Are you sure you're alright? I wouldn't mind staying up if you'd like someone to talk to._

_I'm sure. Sleep._

_Alright, alright, I'll let you write to Sirius now. Oh, and if you think of it, please let him know I say hi both to him and to Beaky! And let me know if your scar starts hurting again, okay? I'll keep the diary close._

_Alright. Good night, Lu. Or, well... good morning, I suppose._

_Good morning!_

I closed the diary and found a piece of parchment for my letter to Sirius. The sun began to rise as I wrote, and by the time the letter was complete, the sun was high in the sky. I didn't mention the dream --- I didn't want him to think I was scared. Besides, talking to Lucy had made me feel a little better; no matter what came next, I knew I could count on her to keep her wits about her. I skimmed the letter one last time before heading down to breakfast.

 _Dear Sirius,  
Thanks for your last letter. That bird was enormous; it could hardly get through my window.  
Things are the same as usual here. Dudley’s diet isn’t going too well. My aunt found him smuggling doughnuts into his room yesterday. They told him they’d have to cut his pocket money if he keeps doing it, so he got really angry and chucked his PlayStation out of the window. That’s a sort of computer thing you can play games on. Bit stupid really, now he hasn’t even got Mega-Mutilation Part Three to take his mind off things.  
I’m okay, mainly because the Dursleys are terrified you might turn up and turn them all into bats if I ask you to.  
A weird thing happened this morning, though. My scar hurt again. Last time that happened it was because Voldemort was at Hogwarts. But I don’t reckon he can be anywhere near me now, can he? Do you know if curse scars sometimes hurt years afterward?  
I’ll send this with Hedwig when she gets back; she’s off hunting at the moment. Say hello to Buckbeak for me. Lucy says hi to you and Buckbeak as well.  
Sincerely, Harry _

I had just finished my lovely grapefruit quarter for breakfast and was dreaming of the birthday cakes upstairs when Uncle Vernon returned to the kitchen after answering a knock at the door.

He glared at me. “You. In the living room. Now.”

I jumped up, heart pounding, and followed him without a word. He slammed the door behind us and whirled around to face me.

"So. _So_."

I almost said "So what?" If I were at Hogwarts, I most certainly would have. But here, on Uncle Vernon's territory, I didn't dare. So instead, I bit my lip and offered a confused expression.

He flashed a purple piece of paper in my face. “This just arrived. A letter. About you.”

He cleared his throat and began to read it out loud before I really had time to get any more confused. Who did I know that would send the Dursleys a letter about me through the postal system?

"Dear Mr. and Mrs. Dursley," he growled. "We have never been introduced, but I am sure you have heard a great deal from Harry about my son Ron. As Harry might have told you, the final of the Quidditch World Cup takes place this Monday night, and my husband, Arthur, has just managed to get prime tickets through his connections at the Department of Magical Games and Sports. I do hope you will allow us to take Harry to the match, as this really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; Britain hasn’t hosted the cup for thirty years, and tickets are extremely hard to come by. We would of course be glad to have Harry stay for the remainder of the summer holidays, and to see him safely onto the train back to school. It would be best for Harry to send us your answer as quickly as possible in the normal way, because the Muggle postman has never delivered to our house, and I am not sure he even knows where it is. Hoping to see Harry soon! Yours sincerely, Molly Weasley. P.S. I do hope we’ve put enough stamps on!"

He reached into his jacket pocket and drew out an envelope completely covered in stamps. I had to clench my hands into fists and dig my nails into my palms to stop myself from chuckling. I loved Mrs. Weasley.

“She did put enough stamps on, then,” I said, my voice trembling from barely-restrained laughter.

Uncle Vernon didn't find it quite so funny. “The postman noticed. Very interested to know where this letter came from, he was. That’s why he rang the doorbell. Seemed to think it was _funny_.”

I mean... it _was_ funny. I knew if Hermione had seen that envelope, she would have dissolved into a fit of giggles. But the Dursleys would never share her sense of humor. They lived in constant fear of their friends and neighbors somehow finding out that they were something other than the normal, perfect family they tried to pretend to be.

I stood frozen in place, knowing that if I didn't do anything stupid (like blowing up Aunt Marge) I could very well be allowed to go to the Cup. Surely he liked the sound of getting rid of me two weeks early... right? When he didn't say anything for several seconds, I opted to break the silence.

“So... can I go then?”

Another heavy silence fell. Uncle Vernon seemed to be arguing with himself. He _would_ enjoy getting rid of me two weeks early, but the thought of letting me go to the Quidditch World Cup --- something that would make me happy --- gave him pause.

“Who is this woman?” he asked suddenly, turning the paper over in his hands to look at the signature again.

“You’ve seen her. She’s my friend Ron’s mother, she was meeting him off the Hog... off the school train at the end of last term.”

 _Bloody hell, Harry, you can't say Hogwarts Express_ , I chided myself. _Don't be stupid. You'd never get to go to the Cup at that rate._

Uncle Vernon thankfully didn't seem to notice my almost-misstep. He seemed to be trying to remember Mrs. Weasley. “Dumpy sort of woman? Load of children with red hair?”

I gritted my teeth. Uncle Vernon calling someone as angelic as Mrs. Weasley "dumpy" made my blood boil. But I kept my mouth shut, and didn't mention that Dudley had finally gotten bigger horizontally than he was vertically, making it ironic that he considered Mrs. Weasley dumpy.

“Quidditch... Quidditch? What is this rubbish?”

Anger flashed in me again. "It's a sport, played on broom-"

“Alright, alright!” he interrupted, clearly not too keen on hearing the rest of the word _broomsticks_. If only Lucy had heard him call Quidditch rubbish... I reckoned she'd have some choice words about _his_ idea of sports. Uncle Vernon squinted at the letter again. “What does she mean, ‘the normal way’?”

“Normal for us. You know, owl post. That’s what’s normal for wizards.”

Uncle Vernon turned purple. “How many times do I have to tell you not to mention that unnaturalness under my roof? You stand there, in the clothes Petunia and I have put on your ungrateful back-”

“Only after Dudley finished with them,” I snapped back.

“I will not be spoken to like that!” he roared, but I forced myself not to flinch.

That summer, I had confided in Lucy, telling her some things I hadn't told anyone else, not even Ron. It wasn't that I didn't trust Ron --- because I did, with my life --- but something about Lucy was different. She understood me in a way nobody else did. Talking to her was as easy as breathing, whether it was actually talking face to face or just through the diary. It was because of Lucy, really, that I was able to stand up for myself now. I was going to go to the Quidditch World Cup, and I was going to see her and the Weasleys again.

I took a deep breath and pretended to give in. “Okay, I can’t see the World Cup. Can I go now, then? Only I’ve got a letter to Sirius I want to finish. You know, my _godfather_.”

Uncle Vernon didn't know what to do. “You’re... you’re writing to him, are you?”

I had to fight the urge to smirk. I'd done it, I'd really done it.

I crossed my arms across my chest casually. “Well, yeah. It’s been a while since he heard from me, and, you know, if he doesn’t, he might start thinking something’s wrong.”

It grew much, much harder not to smirk as his face flickered from emotion to emotion in rapid succession. Fear, anger, desperation, resignation. He _had_ to let me go.

“Well, alright then. You can go to this ruddy, this _stupid_ , this World Cup thing. You write and tell these... these Weasleys they’re to pick you up, mind. I haven’t got time to go dropping you off all over the country. And you can spend the rest of the summer there. And you can tell your... your godfather... tell him... tell him you’re going.”

“Okay then!”

I did let myself smile as soon as my back was turned. I was so caught up in my joy I nearly ran into Dudley in the hallway.

High off my victory, I couldn't help but rib him just a bit. “That was an _excellent_ breakfast, wasn’t it? I feel really full, don’t you?”

He stared at me, completely dumbfounded. I laughed then, feeling lighter than I had in several weeks, and sprinted up the stairs.

As soon as I entered my bedroom, a tiny owl collided with the side of my head. Hedwig clicked in annoyance as the little bird fluttered around my room, and I noticed a letter had been dropped at my feet.

_Harry, DAD GOT THE TICKETS! Ireland versus Bulgaria, Monday night. Mum’s writing to the Muggles to ask you to stay. They might already have the letter, I don’t know how fast Muggle post is. Thought I’d send this with Pig anyway.  
We’re coming for you whether the Muggles like it or not, you can’t miss the World Cup, only Mum and Dad reckon it’s better if we pretend to ask their permission first. If they say yes, send Pig back with your answer pronto, and we’ll come and get you at two o’clock on Sunday. If they say no, send Pig back pronto and we’ll come and get you at two o’clock on Sunday anyway.   
Hermione’s arriving this afternoon. Percy’s still working — the Department of International Magical Cooperation. Don’t mention anything about Abroad while you’re here unless you want the pants bored off you.  
See you soon!  
Ron_

The little owl --- Pig, was it? --- swooped over my head, and I could tell poor Hedwig was being driven mad by the incessant hooting. "Calm down, will you? Come here, I need you to take my answer back!" It landed on top of Hedwig's cage and cocked its head. I quickly scribbled a reply to Ron saying I'd see him the next day at five and sent the owl on its way. I turned to Hedwig with a smile.

“Feeling up to a long journey?”

She hooted back and lifted her head as if to say, "Yes, of course I am. Why even ask?"

"I have something for you to take to Sirius, as soon as I finish it. P.S.," I mumbled as I wrote, "If you want to contact me, I’ll be at my friend Ron Weasley’s for the rest of the summer. His dad’s got us tickets for the Quidditch World Cup!"

I handed Hedwig the letter and stroked the feathers on top of her head. "Same goes for you. I'll be at the Burrow by the time you get back, alright?"

She nipped my finger in understanding and flew out of the window in a flash of white wings.

Once Hedwig had flown out of sight, I reached for the diary under my pillow and wrote a quick note to Lucy, too.

_You know, Lu, I already have my good thing and bad thing for the day. Bad thing, I had a weird dream and my scar hurt. But good thing, I'll be with the Weasleys tomorrow! Anywhere is better than here, but the Burrow has got to be one of my favorite places in the world._

I waited a few seconds to see if she would reply, but I was actually glad to see no other words forming. It meant she was asleep, which was a relatively rare thing for that girl, even over summer. I tucked the diary away again and crawled under my bed for my real breakfast --- a massive slice of chocolate birthday cake. 

Today would be my last day on Privet Drive until next summer. I would see the Weasleys the very next day, and I would see Lucy at the World Cup the day after. Then, after that, it would be less than two weeks until school started again.

I smiled as I licked the last bit of chocolate frosting off of the tip of my fork. What a great day it had already been.

* * *

At two o'clock exactly the next day, everything was packed and ready to go. I was positively giddy with anticipation, but the Dursleys were anxious and irritable. 

Uncle Vernon sniffed as he adjusted the collar of his best suit. “I hope you told them to dress properly, these people. I’ve seen the sort of stuff your lot wear. They’d better have the decency to put on normal clothes, that’s all.”

I had no words of reassurance to offer him. Knowing the Weasleys, the thought probably hadn't crossed their minds. But I hoped that with Hermione there, she might remind them to dress like Muggles.

“They’ll be driving, of course?” he asked a couple minutes later.

"Er," I replied. I hadn't thought of that, either, in my excitement. With the Ford Anglia running free in the Forbidden Forest, how _would_ they get to Privet Drive?

All three Dursleys disappeared in the living room to wait, whereas I sat closer to the front of the house, poised and ready to grab the door the second I heard the sound of a car pulling in the driveway.

I wasn't waiting long, however --- suddenly, there was a shout in the living room, and my aunt, uncle, and cousin all rushed out of the room looking as if they'd seen a ghost.

“What happened? What’s the matter?” I asked.

Receiving no answer, I pushed past them into the living room. I soon realized what exactly the problem was: the Weasleys hadn't driven at all --- they were inside the boarded-up fireplace.

I could hear Mr. Weasley most clearly. “Ouch! Fred, no, go back, go back, there’s been some kind of mistake! Tell George not to --- OUCH! George, no, there’s no room, go back quickly and tell Ron-”

“Maybe Harry can hear us, Dad, maybe he’ll be able to let us out!”

This was followed by about six fists pounding on the wood and three voices shouting, "Harry! Harry? Harry! Can you hear us?"

Uncle Vernon glowered at me. “What is this? What’s going on?”

I could barely hide my amusement. I felt as if I'd explode from biting back my laughter. “They --- they’ve tried to get here by Floo powder. They can travel by fire, only you’ve blocked the fireplace --- hang on.” I walked closer to the fireplace and raised my voice. “Mr. Weasley? Can you hear me?”

The banging stopped.

“Mr. Weasley, it’s Harry. The fireplace has been blocked up. You won’t be able to get through there.”

“Damn! What on earth did they want to block up the fireplace for?”

“They’ve got an electric fire.”

Suddenly, he sounded incredibly excited. “Really? Eclectic, you say? With a _plug_? Gracious, I must see that! Let’s think... ouch, Ron!”

“What are we doing here?" came Ron's voice. "Has something gone wrong?”

One of the twins sighed dramatically. “Oh no, Ron. No, this is exactly where we wanted to end up.”

“Yeah, we’re having the time of our lives here,” the other one said. I could tell them apart in terms of physical appearance, but Lucy was the only one who could tell their voices apart. She explained that being blind for a month made your ears incredibly sharp, which made sense to me. I Had told Lucy if _that_ was what it took to tell their voices apart, though, I'd gladly pass. She had laughed and said she would have gladly passed, too.

“Boys, boys," Mr. Weasley said, snapping me from my daze. "I’m trying to think what to do... yes... that's the only way. Stand back, Harry.”

I wisely backed away, but Uncle Vernon rushed forward. “Wait a moment! What exactly are you going to-”

An explosion shook the room as four Weasleys tumbled out of the fireplace onto the floor.

Mr. Weasley rose to his feet and grinned, extending a hand to Uncle Vernon, who quickly backed away. “That’s better. And you must be Harry’s aunt and uncle!” He surveyed the destruction in the living room and pursed his lips. “Er, yes, sorry about that. It’s all my fault. It just didn’t occur to me that we wouldn’t be able to get out at the other end. I had your fireplace connected to the Floo Network, you see. Just for an afternoon, you know, so we could get Harry. Muggle fireplaces aren’t supposed to be connected, strictly speaking, but I’ve got a useful contact at the Floo Regulation Panel and he fixed it for me. I can put it right in a jiffy, though, don’t worry. I’ll light a fire to send the boys back, and then I can repair your fireplace before I disapparate.”

When neither Uncle Vernon or Aunt Petunia could think of a word to say back, Mr. Weasley turned to me. “Hello, Harry! Got your trunk ready?”

“It’s upstairs,” I reported happily.

“We’ll get it!” Fred offered, and he and George took off in the direction of my room. I remembered Lucy mentioning that they were incredibly curious about seeing Dudley, and I hoped they got their wish. They would probably have plenty of funny things to say about him later.

Poor Mr. Weasley tried to break the tension. “Well, very... very nice place you’ve got here.” But seeing as it was covered in dust and brick pieces, neither adult Dursley said anything. Mr. Weasley cleared his throat and tried again, studying the TV and lamp across the room. “They run off eckeltricity, do they? Ah yes, I can see the plugs. I collect plugs, and batteries. Got a very large collection of batteries. My wife thinks I’m mad, but there you are.”

Dudley entered the room then, trying to hide behind his dad but failing.

“Ah, this is your cousin, is it, Harry?” Mr. Weasley asked.

"Yep, that's Dudley." 

Ron and I exchanged a glance, looking away quickly so we didn't bust up laughing, but Mr. Weasley seemed concerned by the way Dudley was clutching his backside fearfully, the memory of the pig tail still fresh in his mind.

“Having a good holiday, Dudley?” 

Dudley whimpered in reply as Fred and George returned. They grinned wickedly when they saw Dudley.

“Ah, right, better get cracking then,” Mr. Weasley said. He drew his wand (making all three Dursleys stumble backwards in fright) and pointed it at the fireplace. "Incendio!"

He tossed a handful of Floo powder into the flames, making them burn bright green.

"I'll go," Fred volunteered. "Oh no..."

A bag of candies had spilled from his pocket, rolling in every direction. He scrambled around, shoving them back into his pocket, then stepped into the fire. He waved at the Dursleys and shouted, "The Burrow!"

After he vanished, George took the trunk, then Ron left.

I turned to the Dursleys. “Well, bye then.”

I was just about to step into the fire when Mr. Weasley stopped me with a hand on my shoulder and turned me back around.

“Harry said good-bye to you. Didn’t you hear him?”

My face turned red. “It doesn’t matter. Honestly, I don’t care.”

Mr. Weasley's voice rose in anger. “But... you aren’t going to see your nephew till next summer. Surely you’re going to say good-bye?”

Uncle Vernon's eyes looked between me, Mr. Weasley, and Mr. Weasley's wand. He gritted his teeth. “Good-bye, then.”

“See you,” I replied, stepping into the fire. But before I could say where I was going, there was a retching sound and a scream.

Dudley was on his knees clutching at a horrific purple thing coming out of his mouth. I realized with amusement that it was his tongue. I didn't need to ask what had happened --- I could see that Fred had missed a candy, most likely... no, _definitely_ on purpose.

Aunt Petunia tried to yank the purple monstrosity out of his mouth, so Dudley struggled against her.

Mr. Weasley had to shout at the top of his lungs to be heard over the chaos. “Not to worry, I can sort him out!”

But when he approached Dudley to try to help, Aunt Petunia planted herself firmly between Dudley and Mr. Weasley.

“No, really! It’s a simple process, it was the toffee! My son Fred, real practical joker --- but it’s only an Engorgement Charm, at least, I think it is. Please, I can correct it!”

The chaos only increased. When Uncle Vernon started throwing china figures around the room, Mr. Weasley yelled for me to leave. I didn't want to miss a second of the action, but when an ornament almost hit me in the face, I shouted, "The Burrow!" 

The scene disappeared in a rush of green flames. I spun faster and faster. The second I landed in the Burrow, Fred yanked me through the fireplace hole.

“Did he eat it?” he asked excitedly.

“Yeah! What _was_ that?”

“Ton-Tongue Toffee! George and I invented them, and we’ve been looking for someone to test them on all summer.”

The living room erupted with laughter, and I realized that Bill and Charlie were also there. They each came forward to shake my hand, but before anyone could ask any more questions about the Dudley incident, Mr. Weasley appeared in the living room with a pop.

“That _wasn’t funny_ , Fred! What on earth did you give that Muggle boy?”

Fred grinned. “I didn’t give him anything. I just dropped it. It was his fault he went and ate it, I never told him to.”

“You dropped it on purpose! You knew he’d eat it, you knew he was on a diet-”

“How big did his tongue get?” George interrupted.

“It was more than four feet long before his parents would let me shrink it!”

We all exploded with laughter again.

Mr. Weasley shouted over us, “It _isn’t funny_! That sort of behavior seriously undermines wizard–Muggle relations! I spend half my life campaigning against the mistreatment of Muggles, and my own sons-”

“Wait, Dad, we didn’t give it to him because he’s a Muggle!” Fred protested.

George nodded. “Yeah, we gave it to him because he’s a great bullying git. Isn’t he, Harry?”

“Yeah, he is, Mr. Weasley,” I said, nodding as well.

“That’s not the point! You wait until I tell your mother-”

“Tell me what?”

Everyone turned to stare as Mrs. Weasley entered the room. She smiled briefly at me. “Oh hello, Harry, dear.” Her eyes hardened as she looked back at her husband. “Tell me _what_ , Arthur?”

A heavy silence fell over the room. I got the impression that Mr. Weasley hadn't actually intended to tell Mrs. Weasley anything, but now it was too late. Hermione and Ginny entered the room then, smiling and waving. I smiled and waved back. I glanced over their shoulders, looking for Lucy, but she was nowhere to be found.

“Tell me _what_ , Arthur?” Mrs. Weasley asked again.

“It’s nothing, Molly. Fred and George just... but I’ve had words with them-”

“What have they done this time? If it’s got anything to do with Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes-”

Mrs. Weasley was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"We'll get it!" Fred and George said simultaneously, ducking out of the room before Mrs. Weasley had room to protest.

I grinned at Hermione and Ginny and Ron. "Reckon we should follow them?"

With one look at Mrs. Weasley's face, they nodded in unison, and we made our way to the kitchen.

"I hope I made enough," Lucy was saying as she entered the kitchen from the other side, holding a massive basket in her arms. "I almost forgot Bill and Charlie were coming, but I remembered just in time so I..." She glanced up, and her blue eyes met mine. She smiled instantly. "Harry! Hi!" 

She turned toward the twins, swatting Fred's arm. "You said he wasn't coming until tonight!"

Fred looked rather pleased with himself as he reached into the basket and extracted what looked like a chocolate chip cookie. "It was much more fun to surprise you." He took a bite and smiled. "New recipe?"

Lucy nodded. "I adjusted it slightly."

"Harry, Lucy's cookies are to die for," George said, reaching in for a cookie of his own. "You sent him some, right, Cub?"

Lucy turned bright red and shook her head. "No, I wanted to wait until today."

"What? Why?"

"They're best straight out of the oven," she explained, glancing at me sheepishly. "And I knew you were well-stocked on sweets, I was here the day Mrs. Weasley baked your birthday cake. But now's a good time, if you want to try one now."

"Fred and George Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley called from the other room. "Get in here!"

Lucy glanced quickly between the twins. "What happened? What did you do?"

"We found a test subject for the Ton-Tongue Toffee, as we promised yesterday," George explained with a grin.

"Good Godric, you two, you actually gave it to Dudley in front of your dad? Do you want me to try to defend you?"

"Don't worry about it, Cub," Fred said, ruffling her hair as they walked past. "Why don't you tell her about it, Harry?"

"Yeah, Harry, you didn't get to finish your story!" Ron said.

I made my way over to the basket of cookies and ate one while I explained what had happened as I was leaving the Dursleys.

"They were right, Lu, these are amazing," I said, reaching for another one. "But what was Mrs. Weasley talking about? Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, I think it was."

Before anyone could answer, Mrs. Weasley started shouting in the other room, and Lucy winced.

"Reckon we should head up to Ron's room?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, good idea," Ron replied, and we hurried up the stairs until we reached Ron's room.

Ron sat on his bed and explained, “Mum found this stack of order forms when she was cleaning Fred and George’s room. Great long price lists for stuff they’ve invented. Joke stuff, you know. Fake wands and trick sweets, loads of stuff. It was brilliant, I never knew they’d been inventing all that.”

“We’ve been hearing explosions out of their room for ages, but we never thought they were actually making things. We thought they just liked the noise,” Ginny added with a laugh.

“Only, most of the stuff --- well, all of it, really --- was a bit dangerous, and, you know, they were planning to sell it at Hogwarts to make some money, and Mum went mad at them. Told them they weren’t allowed to make any more of it, and burned all the order forms. She’s furious at them anyway. They didn’t get as many O.W.L.s as she expected.”

“And then there was this big row, because Mum wants them to go into the Ministry of Magic like Dad, and they told her all they want to do is open a joke shop.”

A particularly loud shout managed to carry all the way to Ron's room, and Lucy winced again. "What they make is brilliant magic, though," she said. "They just need to, er, work on _un_ -doing the magic, as you've probably gathered at this point. But what they've made works!"

"Yeah, especially the truth or dare game," Ginny said, smirking at Lucy, who turned the same shade of red as the Gryffindor Quidditch robes hanging on a peg behind her.

"Truth or dare game?" I echoed.

"We should play it tonight! It's Lucy's favorite game!"

Lucy shook her head vigorously, making her braids swing back and forth with so much force they hit her in the face. "You can all play if you want. I'm never touching that game again, especially not when Ginny's playing. She dared Fred to steal Percy's underwear once."

I laughed. "I reckon that didn't go over well."

"I wasn't even playing, and I heard the shouting from my room," Ron said, shaking his head.

"What's Percy up to, anyway?" I asked. "He wasn't down there with Bill and Charlie, unless I somehow missed him."

“Percy gets to keep his room all to himself because he’s got to _work._ If you couldn't already tell from the four beds in here, Fred and George are stuck in here with us while Bill and Charlie are here in their room.” 

“Percy’s enjoying work, then?”

Ron barked out a harsh laugh. “Enjoying it? I don’t reckon he’d come home if Dad didn’t make him. He’s obsessed. Just don’t get him onto the subject of his boss. 'According to Mr. Crouch, as I was saying to Mr. Crouch, Mr. Crouch is of the opinion, Mr. Crouch was telling me'... bloody hell, it's annoying. They’ll be announcing their engagement any day now.”

Lucy laughed. "You're not wrong."

"How's Cedric liking St. Mungo's?" I asked. "Is he going to the Cup?"

She nodded. "He and a bunch of other St. Mungo's employees are taking a Portkey first thing in the morning, and he said he'll meet us at our tent. He loves being there, but he said he'll be glad to be back at Hogwarts. They've certainly kept him busy."

“Have you had a good summer, Harry? Did you get our food parcels and everything?” Hermione asked.

“Yeah, thanks a lot. They saved my life, those cakes.”

“And have you heard from...?” Ron started to ask, but Hermione silenced him with a single look. Lucy was the only one I'd told about hearing from Sirius.

Hermione cocked her head. “I think they’ve stopped arguing. Shall we go down and help your mum with dinner?”

"Yeah, alright," Ron said quickly, hurrying out of the room.

I followed, but before I was out of earshot, I heard my name again.

"Does Harry have a secret girlfriend?" Ginny whispered. "Is that who Ron was asking about?"

"No, he doesn't have a secret girlfriend," Hermione hissed. "I told you he doesn't fancy anyone."

"Anyone?" Ginny echoed, a smug edge to her voice.

I walked a little faster, getting the distinct feeling I wasn't supposed to be hearing any of that. _Ginny must still fancy me_ , I thought with a small smile to myself. I still very vividly remembered my first visit to the Burrow, where she probably spoke three words to me, maximum.

When we reached the kitchen, Mrs. Weasley sent the girls outside with plates and instructed Ron and me to take the cutlery. But when we got outside, we saw that the girls were all still carrying their plates because Bill and Charlie were playing with the tables. Yeah, _with_ the tables. They each had a table flying around in the air, and they were using magic to smash them into each other. Fred and George were egging them on and Ginny and Lucy were struggling to hold onto their stacks of plates with how hard they were laughing, but Hermione stood off to the side, looking rather nervous.

Percy's head suddenly appeared. “Will you keep it down?!”

Bill chuckled, lowering his table. “Sorry, Perce. How’re the cauldron bottoms coming on?”

“Very badly,” he snapped, slamming his window shut.

Soon, the table was completely set, meaning we were left to our own devices until dinner was ready. So, naturally, a very informal game of Quidditch commenced.

Ginny quickly took charge of assembling the teams. "Let's see, we have nine people, so-"

"I don't really want to play," Hermione piped up. "I'm no good on a broom. I'll keep score."

"Fine, fine," Ginny said, drumming her fingers against her chin as she studied the rest of us. "That leaves eight... each team could have a Chaser, a Beater, a Keeper, and a Seeker. Harry and Charlie should obviously be the Seekers, and Fred and George should be the Beaters. Fred, George, choose your team."

"I'll take Lucy and be on Harry's team!" Fred said, grabbing Lucy by the elbow and parking her next to me. "Bill? Want to be our Keeper?"

The oldest Weasley shrugged. "Sure. Can't imagine I'd be good at any other position."

"Perfect!" Ginny declared. "That leaves my team with Charlie as Seeker, George as Beater, Ron as Keeper, and me as Chaser. Game on!"

It was probably the most competitive match I'd ever played in. We had to stay below the treeline so the Muggles in the nearby village didn't see us, meaning we played in very close proximity. Some of the equipment was very obviously improvised, too --- the Bludgers were just Quaffles that Bill and Charlie directed around the field with their wands, and Fred and George used large pieces of firewood as bats. 

I'd never seen Lucy play so hard. She and Ginny were fierce competitors, sending sassy remarks back and forth every time they passed each other in the air.

"My grandmother could have thrown that Quaffle more accurately, Diggory!" Ginny called mockingly as she swooped down and caught the ball that had missed the makeshift hoop by no more than a couple inches.

"Shut it, Weasley, at least I've scored a goal!"

"Not fair! Ron's easier to score on!"

"Hey, leave me out of this!" Ron protested.

Lucy laughed. "She just means you're smaller so you take up less of the hoop! Nothing personal!"

Ginny lobbed the Quaffle at Bill, who caught it soundly and threw it back to Lucy. "Not fair!" the redheaded girl squawked again.

"Not to interrupt this great conversation," I called, "but do we even _have_ a Snitch, real or makeshift?"

Ginny stopped suddenly. "Bloody hell, we don't. I forgot. You and Charlie are Chasers now!"

"Harry, catch!" Lucy shouted, sending the Quaffle flying my way. To my surprise, I _did_ catch it, and I turned around to send it toward Ron, but before I could, Ginny had snuck up behind me and punched the Quaffle free. But before she could do anything, _Lucy_ snuck up behind _Ginny_ and punched the Quaffle free. She sped forward and sent the Quaffle through the goal hoop.

She spun around on her broom to face me, sweaty and smiling. 

I smiled back. "Nice shot! Reckon this is why you're the Chaser and I'm the Seeker."

She blushed, smiling wider. "Reckon so."

The game continued until Percy appeared at the crest of the hill. "Dinner's ready! Er, if I may ask, what was the score? Who won?"

"It's a tie!" Hermione declared.

"I'll beat you next time, Diggory," Ginny said, bumping Lucy good-naturedly with her broom.

"Well, hopefully we'll be on the same team next time we play Quidditch together," Lucy replied, bumping her right back with a massive smile on her face. "Are you thinking of trying out for the team this year since Oliver graduated?"

Ginny wrinkled her nose as we flew down to the ground. "I'm not terribly keen on the idea of playing Keeper, but it's better than watching for another year."

"The team would be nearly half Weasley if you joined," Lucy chuckled, landing on her feet and swinging her broom over her shoulder in one fluid motion.

"More than half," Fred said, landing on Lucy's other side. "You and Harry are honorary Weasleys."

"And I know you're hoping to officially make Angelina a Weasley sooner than later," Lucy teased. "Hey, George, if you marry Alicia before you graduate, we could have a whole team of Weasleys, honorary or otherwise!"

"Oh shove off, Cub," George retorted, shoving her shoulder playfully.

"Why? Do you have another girl in mind?" Ginny asked.

"Let's play truth or dare tonight and find out!" Fred suggested.

"Lucy's favorite game?" I inquired.

Everyone laughed when her face grew bright red, and the sound of our laughter drowned out her protests. Merlin, Lucy really hated that game for some reason.

To my surprise, Lucy didn't sit between the twins at dinner, the way she always did at Hogwarts. She instead slid between me and Charlie, and as she sat down, I caught an inkling of... was that vanilla? Whatever it was, Lucy smelled good... _really_ good.

The twins settled across from us and didn't miss a beat.

"Alright, so who's winning tomorrow?" Fred asked.

Charlie answered first, through a mouthful of mashed potato. “It’s got to be Ireland. They flattened Peru in the semifinals.”

“Bulgaria has got Viktor Krum, though,” George posited. "Cub, would you mind passing the pumpkin juice?"

Lucy poured a bit on her own potatoes before handing it to him. Charlie looked at her askance, and she laughed. "What, the pumpkin juice?"

He nodded. "I thought the twins were the only ones who did that."

Lucy shrugged, the tips of her ears reddening slightly. "It's not that bad, honestly. They convinced me it was worth a try my first year, and I've done it ever since. But to address your point, George, Krum’s one decent player, though, and Ireland has got seven," she said. "Don't get me wrong, I think Krum's brilliant, but I don't know if he'll be enough."

“I wish England had got through. That was embarrassing, that was,” Charlie said.

"Who did they lose to again?" I asked, trying to recall all of the matches Lucy had mentioned to me.

“They were slaughtered by Transylvania, three hundred and ninety to ten,” she explained.

“Shocking performance," Charlie said with a shake of his head. "And Wales lost to Uganda, and Scotland was absolutely murdered by Luxembourg.”

"It's been a wild season," Lucy agreed. "Who is everyone _hoping_ wins tomorrow, regardless of expectations?"

The consensus was Ireland, except for Ron, who insisted that Bulgaria was sure to win thanks to Krum. Once the Quidditch conversation died, Lucy asked Charlie about Norbert.

"Norbert _a_ ," Charlie said, grinning.

"What? He's... she's... _what_?"

"Yup, Norbert's a girl! She was so tame when she first came to us, we were convinced she was a male, since they're less vicious than female dragons, but she's really established herself on the sanctuary."

"That's great news!" Lucy gushed. "Well, how is he- _she_ , I mean?"

"Brilliant. One of the finest dragons I've ever seen. You should come visit sometime, I reckon you'd love the sanctuary. Have you thought about a career in dragonology? In any magizoology, really? I've heard you have a knack for creatures."

Lucy shifted uncomfortably in her seat, smiling as her face reddened. "I've thought about it, certainly, but I'm not quite sure. When did you know that was what you wanted to do for the rest of your life?"

"The day he was born," Bill piped up suddenly from a little further down the table. "You should tell her about the time you and your friends went with me on a mission for Gringotts and you got yourself cornered by... what was it? A Norwegian Ridgeback?"

"No, you all dueled the Norwegian Ridgeback while I was stuck in the Horntail's nest!"

"What?" Lucy looked between the brothers with wide eyes. "You're kidding!"

While Charlie was talking, Fred and George were looking very intently at something over her shoulder, grins spreading across their faces. I started to turn around to see what it was they were smirking at, but I received a sharp kick under the table from what felt like both of them. When I looked back, they were completely serious, as if they hadn't seen a thing. I shot them a bewildered look, but George shook his head in a _Don't ask_ fashion. Fred held up a hand, and started counting down from five... four... three... two... one...

Someone put their hands over Lucy's eyes. She gasped. "Cedric?!"

Surely enough, Cedric was home.

When he began to laugh, Lucy wrenched her brother's hands away from her face and launched herself into his arms. He laughed, spinning her in a brief circle.

"Do Mum and Dad know you're back?" Lucy asked, staring up at him. "Merlin, Cedric, you got even taller."

"I think you grew a little too," he chuckled, patting her teasingly on the head. "Just a tiny bit, though. Yeah, I Floo-ed home to surprise you all, but Tuck was the only living being in the living room. Mum and Dad were in the kitchen and said you were having a party here, so I figured I might as well drop by and say hello to everyone before taking you home."

"Are you hungry, dear? We have plenty!" Mrs. Weasley said.

Cedric grinned. "I've eaten dinner, but thank you. It smells amazing."

"In that case, mate," Fred said, reaching down the table for the plate that was somehow managing to hold the tower of Lucy's cookies, "take one. Or five. They're probably fresher than you're used to. We've been spoiled by Lucy's stress-baking all summer."

Charlie patted the bench between him and Lucy. "You're just in time for the end of my dragon story. Though, come to think of it, I'm sure you've heard Adalyn's version."

Cedric grabbed a cookie and wedged himself between Lucy and Charlie. "That I have, but I would love to hear yours."

When Charlie's story was done, Bill asked Cedric if there were any notable stories about people he had gotten to meet at St. Mungo's, and he was all too happy to oblige. Cedric was a fantastic storyteller --- he soon had the attention of everyone at the table.

Lucy's face absolutely glowed in the candlelight. She seemed on top of the world. Fred had made the comment about Lucy's stress-baking, and I could see what he meant --- there had been a tension in Lucy's shoulders since the day she found out Cedric would be leaving. But it disappeared the second he returned. Even when Cedric said that they should be heading home and Mrs. Weasley announced that we needed to be heading off to bed so we'd be able to wake up early the next morning, she couldn't stop smiling. While he disappeared into the kitchen with the twins to grab the picnic basket Lucy had used to transport the cookies, Lucy and I walked alone to the edge of the property.

"Beautiful night, isn't it?" she remarked in a voice that was almost a whisper as she looked up at the stars that were beginning to peek through the dark curtain of the sky.

"It is," I agreed.

"If I could freeze time... I think I'd want to stay here, tonight."

"Yeah... me too. Here is good. Tonight was..."

"Magical?"

"Yeah. Magical."

"I'd have to agree. I love this time of year, when nature starts to send subtle hints that autumn is coming. And I love the giddiness we all feel, knowing how exciting tomorrow is going to be. It feels like Christmas Eve, almost. And I love being here most of all, with the Weasleys and Hermione and Cedric and you..." Lu glanced at me out of the corner of her eye, her smile deepening. "I'm glad you're back, Harry."

"And you're glad Cedric's back too, of course?"

She laughed softly. "Of course."

We heard footsteps behind us and turned in sync with each other. Cedric had the basket in the crook of his elbow, and he grinned at us. "See you in the morning, Harry, bright and early."

"See you then," I said with a nod, smiling at Lucy one last time.

She smiled back as she followed her brother down the dusty path that I knew led to their house. "Night, Harry."

"Night, Lu." I stood frozen in place until they disappeared from sight, then slowly turned and made my way back to the Burrow. Just before falling asleep that night, I had one final conscious thought.

_Yeah... tonight was magical._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I realized I've never written a chapter from Harry's perspective while he's at the Dursleys, so I figured I should do that before Goblet of Fire starts and everything goes... downhill, if you will. Oh, and also --- please do me a favor and pretend Harry has short hair like in literally every other movie. Everyone's hair in the fourth movie except Cedric's was... yeah. Not my favorite. 
> 
> Before you go... I'm planning on sticking to canon as far as Goblet of Fire is concerned, so consider yourselves warned. 
> 
> Anyway, thank you all for reading! Please feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think! (Wow, 51 chapters... that's crazy to me. Thank you for sticking with me this long!)


	51. Real Love and Truth

_“I hope that real love and truth are stronger in the end than any evil or misfortune in the world.”  
Charles Dickens_

* * *

LUCY:

I was jerked from a lovely dream by a gentle but persistent whisper.

"Lu, time to get up. You slept through your alarm, Dad's nearly ready to go."

I opened my eyes slowly and realized Cedric was hovering over me. He smiled when he saw I was awake.

"Come on, Lu. Harry's waiting."

"Oh, shut up," I mumbled, blushing nonetheless as I pushed my blankets aside.

"Were you dreaming about him? You were smiling in your sleep."

My embarrassed silence answered his question, and he laughed. "Go ahead and get dressed. I'll meet you downstairs in three minutes."

When he disappeared from the room, I reached for the outfit I had spent a solid ten minutes trying to put together the night before. It was just a light blue sweater with white polka dots and a pair of black jeans, but Harry never really got to see me in Muggle clothes --- I had to make it count. I placed his charm bracelet around my wrist with hands that were trembling from excitement and quickly braided my hair as I ran down the stairs.

I soon realized Cedric had the same idea I did, knowing he'd see Cho today for the first time in nearly two months; I could tell his light grey polo shirt had been newly pressed, and it was obvious he'd taken extra time brushing his hair. I made a mental note to tease him about that later, knowing full well he could easily tease me back for the exact same reason. Merlin, it was so nice to have my brother back.

"Well, there you are, Lucy," Dad said, checking his watch. "Ready to go?"

"You bet!" I exclaimed, quickly tying off my second braid and smoothing down my sweater. "Stoatshead Hill, right?"

He nodded, and a still-sleepy Mum approached to give me a hug.

"Have a great time, you three!" she said through a yawn. "I, for one, will be happily returning to my warm bed."

"Sleep well, Mum," Cedric replied, kissing her cheek.

With that, we stepped out into the frigid morning. My mind ran rampant with thoughts of the magic that had been obviously sewn into the fabric the night before.

Those Weasley twins would be the death of me --- they had obviously told me the wrong time for Harry's arrival, hoping I'd embarrass myself in my surprise when I saw him three hours sooner than I was expecting him. But I reckoned I'd done alright... it wasn't as if I'd dropped the basket and spilled cookies everywhere, anyway.

For all of their teasing, though, the twins were excellent wingmen. I appreciated Fred for ensuring that Harry and I were on the same Quidditch team, and I probably wouldn't have thought twice about sitting between the twins like I always did if George hadn't pointed out that there was an empty spot between Harry and Charlie. Cedric had been the key to finally getting a moment alone with Harry, when he offered to get the picnic basket and meet me at the gate.

I had meant to ask Harry if he'd heard back from Sirius, really I did, but I'd just been so distracted by how _happy_ I was in that moment. The way the stars were just beginning to show themselves to the nighttime world, the fact that Cedric was home early, the knowledge that we'd all be together at the Quidditch Cup in a matter of hours, the nearness of Harry. I couldn't bring myself to think of anything unpleasant, like the fact that Harry's scar had hurt lately or the fact that the full moon was exactly a week away or the fact that Professor Lupin wouldn't be at Hogwarts when we returned. All that mattered was that, in that moment, everything was as close to perfect as I'd ever known.

I drew myself out of my reverie and bumped my shoulder against Cedric's arm. "Hey, have I told you yet that I'm glad you're back?"

He chuckled. "Only about ten times now."

"Is that a new shirt?" I asked, raising my eyebrows teasingly.

"Er, yeah," he replied, suddenly flustered. "It is. I got it in London before I left. My flatmate was Muggle-born, and he offered to help me figure out what to wear today so I looked as much like a Muggle as possible. Does it look okay?"

"Don't worry, Ced, you make a fantastic Muggle!" Dad piped up before I could respond.

"Yeah, you do," I echoed, lapsing into silence.

Soon enough, we reached the hill. I used my eyes --- well-adjusted to the darkness at that point --- to my advantage, warning Dad and Ced of rabbit holes and protruding roots they couldn't see. (Again, one of the tiny, tiny benefits of being a werewolf. My eyes were sharp, especially in the dark.) I silently thanked Oliver Wood for all of the long practices that built up my endurance; the hill was _steep_.

I spotted the boot that was the Portkey as soon as we reached the top, and Dad hurried over to pick it up.

"Wonder where those Weasleys are," Dad muttered. "They live a bit closer than we do."

"Oh, there they are!" Cedric said a couple seconds later, jerking his chin toward the other side of the hill. "See them, Dad?"

"Good spot, Ced! Putting those Seeker's eyes to good use."

 _I was the one who spotted the boot, Dad,_ I thought bitterly to myself, clenching my jaw. Just as soon as I did, though, I released it. I wouldn't let anything ruin this day, not even Dad.

Dad raised his voice to call to the group. “Over here, Arthur! Over here, son, we’ve got it!”

“Amos!” Mr. Weasley called, leading the others over to where we were standing. I tucked my cold hands into my pockets, offering Harry a smile as my dad shook hands with Mr. Weasley. “This is Amos Diggory, everyone. He works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. And you all know Cedric and Lucy, of course.”

"Long time no see," George commented with a grin. 

"Though some of us are used to seeing Lucy this hour of the morning before Wood's awful practices," Fred added, bumping Harry's shoulder a little harder than necessary so that Harry lost his balance and had to take a step toward me to steady himself. _Godric, those twins would be the death of me..._

Dad took in the scene with an amused and bemused expression. “All these yours, Arthur?”

“Oh no, only the redheads. This is Hermione, a friend of Ron’s, and Harry, another friend-”

“Merlin’s beard! Harry? Harry _Potter_?”

I felt my face grow bright red with secondhand embarrassment even in the pre-dawn chill. _Please, no, Dad, no, not here, not now, not Harry..._

"Er, yeah," Harry said, nodding.

“Ced’s talked about you, of course. Told us all about playing against you last year! I said to him, I said, 'Ced, that’ll be something to tell your grandchildren, that will. You beat Harry Potter!'”

I fought the urge to bury my face in my hands. _Dad, please, stop, no, not here, not now, not here, not now..._

Cedric was flustered now, too. “Harry fell off his broom, Dad, I told you. It was an accident.”

“Yes, but you didn’t fall off, did you?” I didn't need to look to know that Dad was thumping Cedric on the back. “Always modest, our Ced, always the gentleman. But the best man won, I’m sure Harry’d say the same, wouldn’t you, eh? One falls off his broom, one stays on, you don’t need to be a genius to tell which one’s the better flier!”

Mr. Weasley spared us all from further comment. “Must be nearly time. Do you know whether we’re waiting for any more, Amos?”

“No, the Lovegoods have been there for a week already and the Fawcetts couldn’t get tickets. There aren’t any more of us in this area, are there?”

“Not that I know of. Yes, it’s a minute off, we’d better get ready.”

"Why don't you show Harry and Hermione how to use a Portkey, Lucy?" George asked, looking from my dad to me to Harry with an expression on his face that I couldn't quite read. 

"Oh, um, sure," I replied. Cedric subtly nudged me forward so I stood in between the two people there raised by Muggles. "The boot my dad's holding is the Portkey. You just have to be touching it somehow, a finger would be enough. Just as a word of warning, it's a bit of a jolt..." My voice trailed off when Harry's hand grazed mine as we reached forward to touch the boot, but nobody else seemed to notice, because at the same time, Mr. Weasley began counting down.

“Three... two... one...”

I ricocheted back and forth between Harry and Hermione as the Portkey swept us up in a swirl of wind and color. I managed to land on my feet when the spinning stopped, but Harry wasn't quite so lucky.

I grinned as I extended a hand to him. "Don't worry, it gets easier the more you do it."

"I sure hope so," he muttered with a sheepish smile, pulling himself to his feet.

Ron pulled Hermione to her feet, and we all looked around. A low-hanging fog swirled all around us as everyone else rose to their feet. 

“Seven past five from Stoatshead Hill,” a voice announced.

Two wizards appeared in front of us, one with a watch and one with a piece of parchment and a quill.

I handed Mr. Weasley the boot, and he passed it to the man with the parchment. “Morning, Basil!”

The man sounded exhausted as he replied. “Hello there, Arthur. Not on duty, eh? It’s all right for some, but we've been here all night. You’d better get out of the way, we’ve got a big party coming in from the Black Forest at five-fifteen. Hang on, I’ll find your campsite... Weasley... Weasley... ah, there you are. About a quarter of a mile’s walk over there, first field you come to. Site manager’s called Mr. Roberts. Diggory... Diggory... same, actually."

“Thanks, Basil,” Mr. Weasley said, and we all followed him through the mist.

I fell into step between Fred and George, who seemed uncharacteristically serious.

"D'you bring the toffees?" I asked, sure that would cheer them up.

To the contrary, George sighed. "Mum confiscated them all."

"All?"

"Every last one," Fred said with a sad nod. "Stupid summoning charm."

"That's why they gave me the truth or dare gummies!" Ginny reported happily.

"I hope you know that I hate you all," I laughed.

"But you have to admire our dedication, don't you?" Ginny asked, batting her eyelashes.

I laughed again. "I suppose." 

Fred and George still seemed troubled by something as we continued on silently. I was about to ask what was bothering them when Dad opened his mouth again.

"I'll sure be glad once you pass your apparition test, Ced," he panted. 

"That's how my older boys are arriving," Mr. Weasley said.

"Which one was Head Boy this year? I remember Ced mentioning him."

"That would be Percy. He works for Barty Crouch now."

"That's excellent! Ced is hoping to be Head Boy next year. Granted, he's already got both feet in the door at St. Mungo's, but being able to say he was Head Boy at Hogwarts in addition to prefect and Quidditch captain will make it all even easier! Now we just need to add Quidditch Cup to that list, and maybe even... ah, that must be the cottage! That's certainly a Muggle on the front porch, at any rate."

I slipped out from between the twins to go stand with my brother. I knew how much he hated it when Dad was... well, Dad. I glanced up at him to try to read his expression, but he was staring straight ahead with his jaw clenched. Something about what Dad had just said really set him off. I took another step closer and watched as Mr. Weasley approached the man.

“Morning!” the ever-cheerful Mr. Weasley said.

“Morning,” the other man replied.

“Would you be Mr. Roberts?”

“Aye, I would. And who’re you?”

“Weasley, two tents. Booked a couple of days ago? And Diggory-"

"One tent, also booked a couple of days ago," Dad finished.

“Aye. You’ve both got spaces up by the wood there. The Weasley tents are closer, the Diggory one is just a bit further down the way. You'll all be staying just the one night?”

“That’s it!”

“You’ll be paying now, then?”

Mr. Weasley faltered. "Ah... right. Certainly." He turned to Harry and Hermione, who quickly reached forward to help.

Cedric took a step toward Dad. "I can take care of it," he said softly, flipping through the wad of paper and extracting a handful of bills. He went to help Mr. Weasley, too, so I followed and tried to understand what was going on. About thirty seconds later, both parties had the right amount.

“You foreign?” Mr. Roberts asked.

“Foreign?” Dad repeated, sounding offended.

“You’re not the first one who’s had trouble with money. I had two try and pay me with great gold coins the size of hubcaps ten minutes ago.”

“Did you really?” Mr. Weasley asked, scratching at his ear nervously.

Mr. Roberts continued as he gathered up our change. “Never been this crowded. Hundreds of pre-bookings. People usually just turn up.”

“Is that right?” Mr. Weasley sounded worried now.

“Aye. People from all over. Loads of foreigners. And not just foreigners. Weirdos, you know? There’s a bloke walking ’round in a kilt and a poncho. It’s like some sort of... I dunno... like some sort of rally. They all seem to know each other. Like a big party.”

Before any of us could come up with an excuse or explanation, a wizard apparated right behind Mr. Roberts and hissed, "Obliviate!"

I felt as if I'd just been drenched in cold water, and I might have even shivered as I watched Mr. Roberts's face change. His confusion disappeared, replaced instead by an almost-dreamy look. He handed out two maps and two piles of change, which Dad and Mr. Weasley grabbed quickly.

He showed no emotion as he waved us off. “A map of the campsite for you. And your change.”

The wizard who obliviated Mr. Roberts stepped forward, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I'll walk you all to the gate." He lowered his hand, and when he spotted Dad, he went rigid. He scanned the rest of the group, eyes landing on me. It was Mr. Midgen. I recognized him from Dumbledore's memory.

He quickly snapped out of it and began walking. I remained frozen for a couple of seconds, looking from Mr. Roberts to Mr. Midgen, as everyone else except Cedric followed him. 

My brother laid a gentle hand on my shoulder and prodded me forward slowly. "Are you alright?" he asked in a voice low enough I would be the only person who heard him.

I nodded, feeling numb from head to toe. "We can talk about it later," I whispered. I shook his hand off of my shoulder and followed the rest of the group.

“Been having a lot of trouble with him," Mr. Midgen was saying. "Needs a Memory Charm ten times a day to keep him happy. And Ludo Bagman’s not helping. Trotting around talking about Bludgers and Quaffles at the top of his voice, not a worry about anti-Muggle security. Blimey, I’ll be glad when this is over. See you later, Arthur, Amos.”

He glanced my way one last time before disapparating, and I silently took a deep breath to steady myself. This was the Quidditch World Cup. Cedric was back. I was with my friends. 

_Nothing is going to ruin this day,_ I told myself firmly.

I jogged to catch up with Harry and Hermione and Ron as we walked through the tents.

"They _do_ realize Muggle tents wouldn't have chimneys, right?" Hermione wondered aloud, making us all snicker.

"Or weather vanes, or windows?" Harry added.

I laughed, pointing at a suspiciously tall tent. "Or, you know, three stories?"

Mr. Weasley smiled. “Always the same We can’t resist showing off when we get together. Ah, here we are, look, this is us.”

"This is where we leave you, Arthur," Amos said, shaking his hand heartily. "Perhaps we'll meet again as we all leave in the morning-"

"Or maybe we'll be able to shout at each other if someone forgot a change of socks," I cut in, pointing at our campsite no more than twenty yards away.

Ginny slapped her hand to her forehead. " _That's_ what I forgot. Hey, Lucy, can I borrow a change of socks?"

Everyone laughed at that, and I told Ginny I'd bring a pair of socks over once our tent was assembled. Cedric and I managed to put the tent together while Dad went to fetch water, and the sun was up by the time we stepped inside. It wasn't three stories, but it _was_ quite comfortable --- three bedrooms that stretched down a narrow hallway, and a massive den. I opted for the room at the far end of the hallway, because, to my delight, a nice window seat with a view of the Weasleys' tents

"Is it alright if I go find Cho and Henry, Dad?" Cedric asked the second he had tossed his bag into his room. 

"Of course, of course!" Dad exclaimed. "I'd quite like to find Mr. Furls myself."

"I'll build the fire, just the way Brandon taught me," I offered. "We can have lunch when you're back."

"Very well," Dad said. "Let's go, my boy."

Firewood was already neatly stacked inside the tent, so I grabbed the best pieces I could find and stepped outside. I hadn't been outside more than thirty seconds before Fred and George came over.

"Wotcher, boys," I greeted with a smile. "Long time, no see. Miss me already?"

"Always," Fred replied, taking a seat next to where I was kneeling on the grass.

"Need any help, Cub?" George asked.

I shook my head. "I learned how to build a fire without magic in America."

"Maybe you can help our dad next, then," Fred said, chuckling. "He's trying now, but it's not looking too promising."

George sat on my other side, glancing at the tent. He still seemed troubled. "Where are your dad and Cedric?"

"Cedric went to find his friends, and my dad tagged along. Why?"

"Lucy, your dad _does_ remember that he has two kids, right?"

I set the wood down and sank back onto the grass. "I think so."

"Yeah, what was that all about?" Fred asked. "Prefect, Quidditch captain, Head Boy, Quidditch Cup? _We_ won the Quidditch Cup, _you_ won the Quidditch Cup!"

"Especially the Harry thing," George continued. "Does he not realize that you play Quidditch on the same team as Harry Potter and not just against him? And bloody hell, you fell off your broom too, does he think that makes you a worse player than Cedric? I mean, Fred's right, we won the Quidditch Cup this year!"

"Is that what's been bothering you?" I asked. "I was going to say something, then he mentioned the Apparition thing."

"Yeah, it bothers us. Does it not bother you?"

I shrugged. "It's always been this way. Cedric's the perfect child, and I'm... I don't even know what I am in my parents' minds."

"But why?"

The true answer was that Dad technically didn't have two kids. He had one golden child, Cedric, and then I crash-landed into his life and ruined it. _That_ much I understood now. But the twins couldn't know that, for obvious reasons. So I offered the next best answer I could think of.

"I think he still wishes I were in Hufflepuff, at least partially," I said. "And I cause more problems than Cedric does. That's why I never mentioned the falling off my broom thing, by the way. The last thing he needs is one more thing to worry about as far as I'm concerned. But it's fine, really, tt's always been this way. I'm used to it."

"You shouldn't have to be," George muttered.

"Yeah, Cub, it's one thing when Georgie and I cause trouble in our family," Fred said. "We're just different, and we know it, and most of the time, it doesn't bother us when Mum gets upset. But you're just as good as Cedric. Better than him, as far as we're concerned, but we're probably biased because we know you so well. And you're in the right house as far as we're concerned, too."

I felt my face reddening. "Well... thanks, boys. It's good to know at least you two think of me that way. But hey, that's enough of that." I sat up and grabbed a piece of firewood. "I'm not going to let anything ruin this day, my dad least of all. Let me teach you boys how to build a fire like a proper Muggle would."

* * *

After building our fire, I helped Mr. Weasley with theirs, and it was roaring by the time the last three Weasleys showed up. I returned to the Diggory tent just as Dad and Cedric were arriving. Cedric looked happier than he'd looked in years, no doubt due to a combination of Cho Chang, Henry Furls, and Quidditch --- nothing in the world made him happier than those three, especially when combined.

By the time we started making our way to the stadium, my dad's comments that morning and the obliviation of Mr. Roberts were the furthest things from my mind. We found our seats relatively quickly, which offered a brilliant view of the stadium. Not quite as incredible as I knew the Weasleys' seats were --- they were in the bloody _Minister of Magic's_ box, for Merlin's sake --- but I was still absolutely ecstatic to be there in the first place.

Ludo Bagman's voice suddenly rang out through the stadium. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome! Welcome to the final of the four hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup!”

Cedric and I cheered loudly, and even Dad (who was only moderately fond of Quidditch) seemed excited by the energy pulsing through the crowd.

“And now, without further ado, allow me to introduce the Bulgarian National Team Mascots!”

The spectators clad in scarlet and black erupted as dozens (if not hundreds) of veela poured onto the field.

Dad leaned forward as they began to dance to the music now filling the stadium, but Cedric didn't budge. 

"How are you actually keeping your head right now?" I asked, glancing around as men and women alike started moving toward the veela as if pulled by a magnet.

He grinned sheepishly. "I think I made it pretty clear from the way I kissed Cho earlier that she's the only girl I ever want."

"You kissed her?!"

His grin widened. "After I formally asked her to be my girlfriend, of course."

I smiled. "So _that's_ why you looked so happy coming back. And why you're wearing this thing," I added, flicking the collar of his nice new shirt.   
"And... good Godric, Cedric, is that cologne?"

"Just a bit," he said, his cheeks reddening as he turned back to the field. The veela were leaving, and angry shouts were filling the stadium. It seemed nobody was happy to see them go.

Ludo Bagman shouted over the jeers, “And now, kindly put your wands in the air for the Irish National Team Mascots!”

Multiple zigzagging rainbows streaked through the sky, and soon, gold began to rain down from a giant floating shamrock.

"Leprechauns!" I exclaimed, reaching my hands forward to catch the falling coins. I knew they'd disappear eventually, but I wanted to keep at least a couple as souvenirs until they faded. _Maybe once I get back to Hogwarts, I can figure out how to undo the charm that makes them fade..._

The leprechauns eventually sat opposite the veela on the field, and the Bulgarian players began to enter the field.

“And now, ladies and gentlemen, kindly welcome the Bulgarian National Quidditch Team! I give you --- Dimitrov! Ivanova! Zograf! Levski! Vulchanov! Volkov! Aaaaaaand _Krum_!”

"Ron's crazy about Krum," I explained to Cedric with a laugh.

"So am I, quite frankly!" he replied. "He's brilliant!"

I nodded enthusiastically as the Irish team took to the skies.

“And now, please greet the Irish National Quidditch Team! Presenting --- Connolly! Ryan! Troy! Mullet! Moran! Quigley! Aaaaaand _Lynch_!”

"They all have _Firebolts_?" Cedric asked incredulously.

"Nothing but the best for the professionals, I guess!"

"And Harry, it would seem! Did you ever find out who sent it to him?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you!"

"What? Who?"

"Tell you later!" I shouted as the referee took the field.

“And here, all the way from Egypt, our referee, acclaimed Chairwizard of the International Association of Quidditch, Hassan Mostafa!”

"I hope he's good at staying out of the way," I commented to Cedric. "He's half the size of the players, at best!"

"A third their size at worst," he agreed. "You're probably... a quarter of their size? A fifth, even?"

I punched Cedric's arm in protest, and he grinned. "Just you wait, I'll grow eventually," I said loudly.

"I know, I know."

Our banter came to a screeching halt as the game began. I watched everything in reverent silence at first, the smile on my face never once faltering. It was the best match I had ever witnessed; it was clear that these players were the best of the best. I couldn't look away.

It was as if the Irish Chasers could read each other's minds as they passed the Quaffle player to player with perfect precision. I thought Angelina and Alicia and I had good teamwork --- these players were _insane_.

It was clear that Ireland had the superior Chasers, but the Bulgarian Beaters showed no mercy. The Bludgers they sent in the direction of the Irish Chasers were unfortunately very effective, breaking up even their best plays.

Just as the game had settled into a rhythm, both Seekers were suddenly diving toward the ground. The stadium shook with the crowd's screams as they got closer and closer to the ground, but at the last second, Krum pulled up. Lynch, however, was not quite quick enough, and ran himself into the ground.

Cedric and I winced in unison, then I realized what we had just witnessed.

"Cedric!" I screamed. "That was a Wronski Feint! A real Wronski Feint!"

His jaw dropped. "You're right! That was _incredible_! A real Wronski Feint, in person!"

When Lynch rejoined the game, Ireland seemed to catch their second wind. Before I knew it, the score was 130 to 10, and Bulgaria was _not_ happy about it.

"They play dirtier than Slytherin," I muttered to myself as Zograf, the Bulgarian Keeper, mercilessly cobbed Mullet, one of the Irish Chasers.

That wasn't the only trick the Bulgarians had up their sleeves, however --- the veela were an even more effective weapon than Bludgers or Beaters' bats. It wasn't until the referee himself was ensnared by their charm that they were sent away, and the fight the Bulgarians waged to try to keep the veela on the field led to two more penalties for Ireland.

Penalties occurred left and right as Bulgaria got more and more desperate. I winced at every bit of contact, knowing much of their pain all too well. I winced especially hard when Krum took a Bludger directly to the face.

Cedric looked at me with a sympathetic smile. "Been there, done that?"

I nodded, rubbing my nose. "You bet. It's not fun."

Krum, however, seemed unaffected. When Lynch dove, he did too.

This was no feint; I could see the Snitch this time.

It was Krum who came up with the Snitch, but it wasn't enough. Ireland had won, 170-160.

"He wanted the game to end on his terms," Cedric said, half to himself and half to me. "You know what, I respect that."

I nodded. "Me too."

The stadium seemed fit to explode from all of the sound. Ludo Bagman's voice could be heard over the chaos, shouting, “IRELAND WINS! KRUM GETS THE SNITCH, BUT IRELAND WINS! Good lord, I don’t think any of us were expecting that! And as the Irish team performs a lap of honor, flanked by their mascots, the Quidditch World Cup itself is brought into the Top Box!”

Just then, the Top Box glowed with brilliant light as the Cup itself was handed to Cornelius Fudge.

“Let’s have a really loud hand for the gallant losers, Bulgaria!” 

One by one, the players shook hands with the Bulgarian minister, then Fudge.

"Did I look like that?" I asked Cedric when I saw the mess that was Viktor Krum's face. When he nodded, I slapped my forehead. "You mean Harry's seen me looking like _that_?"

Cedric laughed. "Don't worry about that now, Lu. Here come the Irish!"

Surely enough, the Irish were coming. Lynch looked worse for wear after smashing into the ground twice, but their ecstasy was palpable. I couldn't help but smile. What a game that had been.

It took quite a while to get back to the tent; by the time we had wrestled our way through the crowds, the half-moon was high in the sky. The energy in the stadium translated to the campground --- we could hearing singing and fireworks and all kinds of other sounds that seemed to suggest a full-scale Irish celebration.

The Weasley crew was arriving to their tent around the same time we were, so I sprinted over.

"Harry!" I shouted, spying his messy dark hair easily in the sea of redheads. "Harry, did you _see_ that Wronski Feint?"

He whirled around, initially startled, but he smiled when he saw it was me. "I did! It was brilliant! I definitely see what everyone's been talking about, with that reverse Wronski you pulled the first time I saw you on a broom."

"A reverse Wronski?" Charlie asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"More or less," Harry explained. "She was on the broom, and an unexpected Bludger started chasing her, so she took off _literally_ straight up into the sky."

The twins overheard Harry talking and started laughing. 

"You should have seen it, Charlie," Fred said, "it was hilarious. She was eleven, mind you, and even shorter than she is now. Everyone was so impressed with this tiny first-year."

I felt myself beginning to blush as Charlie studied me with new interest. "Yeah, well, I kind of panicked," I said. "I thought I was just taking a little joyride on a Nimbus 2000, then all of a sudden there was a Bludger riding my arse."

"Did you laugh when you saw Krum take that Bludger to the face?" Ron asked, also joining the conversation.

"No, I was horrified! I think it's funny now," I said with a laugh, "but bloody hell, did I look like that?"

When everybody participating in the conversation nodded, I slapped a hand to my forehead --- again. "Thank Merlin for Lockhart, then, who made sure I couldn't see my own face for the better part of a month! Who knew he was good for something after all?"

Everyone laughed, though Charlie looked a little more confused than anyone else.

"What's taking everyone so long? Oh, hi, Lucy!" Mr. Weasley said, smiling. "Want to join us for some hot chocolate?"

"I should probably head back to my own tent, but thank you for the offer," I said. "See you all in the morning?"

"See you, Lu," Harry said, sending a smile my way that made me a little weak in the knees. Being around Harry didn't make me nervous anymore, not really, but from time to time, I'd have to admit I still got butterflies. Everyone else said their goodbyes, and I returned to the tent and disappeared into my room with a quick "Night!" to my dad and Cedric.

I grinned from ear to ear as I closed the door behind me. What a magical night, again.

I hummed to myself as I danced around the room getting ready for bed, undoing my braids and changing into my nightgown. The next morning, I'd be heading back home, and Harry would be just a thirty-minute walk away. Even at that very moment, he was a thirty- _second_ walk away. And then at Hogwarts, I'd be with him nearly every waking minute of nearly every day. Now _that_ was too good to be true.

I had blown out the candles lighting my room and was just about to take off my charm bracelet when I heard Dad shout something incoherent. I silently made my way to my door and pressed my ear against it. Dad never raised his voice unless it was at me --- something had to be wrong.

"I have all that I need, Dad," Cedric was saying. "I'm _happy_. I'm ready to be content with my accomplishments, at least until I graduate. I've taken every opportunity I've been given and done my best to make you happy-"

"But you could do even more, my boy! Don't limit yourself with your humility! This isn't just any opportunity, Cedric, this is the _Triwizard Tournament_!"

Cedric sighed shakily. It sounded as if he were about to cry. "Dad, I have a girlfriend now. I promised her that this year and next, I'd give her everything I couldn't give her last year. Dad, I love her, and I don't want her wondering why she waited all this time for me..." His voice trailed off. "I don't want her wondering why she waited all this time for me, only for me to turn around and throw myself into something else. And Quidditch... I've spent every spare minute all summer making plans and plays and practice schedules so Hufflepuff has a chance at the Cup this year. And Henry... I really wanted to spend this year rebuilding the relationships I let slip last year because I was so busy studying for O.W.L.s, and I don't think I could do that if I had the tournament to worry about, too. Haven't I done enough, Dad?"

"Of course," Dad said, backpedaling quickly now that Cedric had decided to stand up for himself. "It's just... consider it, will you? Mull it over, talk to your friends about it. You have about two months, I reckon, before you'll have to make your decision. Don't rule it out yet."

"Okay. I won't."

Now it was Dad's turn to sigh. "It's late. We should head to-"

Before Dad could finish his sentence, an explosion shook the tent.

"Lucy!" Even just saying my name, Cedric's voice was more fearful and panic-stricken than I'd ever heard it.

"I'm okay!" I screamed back, scrambling away from the door as smoke poured into the room. 

"Lucy, the hallway's on fire, so- Dad, where are you- DAD!"

"Get out, Ced, hurry!" Dad shouted back. "Go to the woods, you'll be safe there!"

"But Lucy-"

"Cedric, get out of here!" I yelled, groping in the darkness for my wand. "I'll be-"

I coughed as I choked on the smoke now completely filling my room. I pressed the sleeve of my nightgown to my face, trying to breathe. 

"Lucy!" Cedric sounded near hysterics. "Lucy, I'm coming!"

"NO!" I shouted back, coughing again as I breathed in more smoke. I lowered myself into an athletic stance, clutching my wand tightly so I didn't lose it. " _I'm_ coming!"

I sprinted at the door with all the strength I could muster, bursting through it and hurtling headfirst into the inferno that was once a hallway. I didn't stop sprinting until I plowed into something soft yet solid. _Cedric_.

"We need to get out of here! Are you alright?"

I stopped coughing long enough to choke out one word: "Go!"

He understood. Cedric grabbed me by the hand, and the two of us ran as fast as we could out the front door and in the direction of the woods.

Our tent wasn't the only one on fire; fortunately, I saw that the Weasleys' were untouched. Orange flames dotted the hillsides around us, and people were fleeing in every direction. I soon saw why: a group of wizards with masks over their faces and wands held high were marching across the field. All of their wands were pointed at... the Roberts family, high in the air and being magically contorted into horrific shapes. 

"Cedric," I wheezed, pointing in that direction.

"I know," he replied, squeezing my hand tighter. "I know. Just keep going, there's nothing we can do right now to help. The Ministry will take care of it. We need to get to the woods, it'll be safe there."

I nodded, tearing my eyes away from the horrific scene. As soon as we reached the treeline, I collapsed to the ground, coughing and clutching at my throat. Cedric dropped to a knee next to me, propping me up.

"Sitting up will help," he murmured, his grey eyes flickering over every inch of exposed skin on my face and neck and hands. "Are you hurt at all? Burned?"

I shook my head, still coughing.

"Cedric? Is that you?"

Cedric's head snapped in the direction of the voices, and he pointed his wand into the darkness. "Who's there?"

"Just us," Fred said, stepping into the clearing with Ginny clinging to his hand and George on his other side. All three of them rushed forward when they saw me pathetically gasping for breath. "Bloody hell, what _happened_?"

"Our tent was attacked," Cedric explained. "My dad and I were in the den area, and Lucy was in her room on the other end of the hallway. The entire hallway was on fire, and she had to run through it to get out."

"I'm okay," I managed to say, coughing a few more times. "Just a lot of-" I doubled over coughing again, my abdomen beginning to ache with how much I was coughing.

"Smoke," Cedric finished for me, brushing my hair away from my face. 

George dropped to a knee, too, being the twin not holding Ginny's hand. His brown eyes were wide with concern.

"Where are..." I started to say, but another coughing fit racked my body.

"We don't know," George said, glancing over his shoulder. "They stopped to talk to Malfoy, but we kept going, and when we turned around, they were gone. That's when we heard Cedric talking to someone, and we hoped it was you..."

I closed my eyes, a number of horrific images flashing before my eyes. Hermione was Muggle-born... if the people torturing the Muggles saw her and knew she was Muggle-born... 

A sudden blast of green illuminated the trees not ten feet away from us.

"We need to move deeper into the forest," Cedric said, jumping to his feet and pulling me up with him. He grabbed my other arm and swung me onto his back. "Come on."

I buried my face against Cedric's neck as I sucked in the cool night air. When we stopped again a couple minutes later, it was a bit easier to breathe, but I was definitely beginning to notice the places on my hands and arms where the flames had licked me in my mad dash to safety.

"Are you sure you're okay, Lucy?" George asked as Cedric set me down.

"Oh, my real name," I said teasingly. "I must have really scared you."

"If she's like that, it means she's fine," Cedric said, smiling a bit in relief.

Of course, I immediately started coughing again, but aside from that, I was definitely feeling better.

"What d'you reckon we do now?" Ginny asked in a small voice.

"Wait it out," Cedric answered, lowering himself to the forest floor. "We'll be safe here. We should just wait until it's quiet again. The Ministry will take care of it."

We all slowly nodded and sat down with him. I rested my head against Cedric's shoulder, and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder, rubbing his hand up and down my arm reassuringly.

We sat in silence, except for my occasional coughing fit. Cedric coughed every now and then, too, but I'd definitely gotten the worst of the smoke.

Suddenly, another blast of green illuminated all of the trees around us. But rather than a rogue spell, the green lingered. Up in the sky was...

"Oh, Merlin," I whimpered. "That's the Dark Mark. Oh, bloody hell, I hope Harry..."

I didn't need to finish my thought. We all knew that Voldemort's infamous symbol appearing in the sky did not bode well for Harry. Or Hermione, for that matter. I shuddered, cowering against Cedric. He wrapped his other arm around me and pulled me closer.

"Hey, Cedric," George said after a few minutes had passed. "You said you and your dad were on the same end of the tent, right?"

"Yeah, we were, why?"

"I just... can't wrap my head around something."

"Mhm?"

"We all still have the Trace, meaning we can't use magic outside of school, but your dad could have easily used magic to extinguish the fire and get Lucy out safely. So, I guess what I'm asking is... why didn't he?"

Cedric didn't have an answer for that. He shifted uncomfortably. "My dad... _our_ dad... has odd priorities," he said slowly. "But trust me when I say Lucy always comes first for me, no matter what he says or does."

"We know," the twins said in unison.

"I know, too," I whispered, pressing into him more. The way he had screamed my name when he thought I was injured by the blast, or worse, dead... another shudder ran through my body. 

Cedric nodded, exhaling slowly. "Good. I'm glad. I don't pretend to understand why my dad is the way he is, but... I want to be better than that."

"You are," I murmured, and the twins nodded their emphatic agreement.

A couple more minutes passed in silence before Cedric and the twins agreed it was probably safe to head back. We stumbled through the forest until we reached the Weasleys' tents. I was expecting everyone to sigh with relief when they saw us, rushing toward us and asking why we had taken so long, but nobody else was there when we stepped inside.

My heart dropped to my toes. Harry, Ron, Hermione. Where were they? What had happened?

"They'll be okay, Lu," Cedric said, as if he'd read my mind.

"Yeah, don't worry, Cub." Fred nudged me forward in the direction of a couch. I took the hint and sank down into it, looking at my singed nightgown in the glow of the candles. It was scorched in a couple different places on my arms, exposing a couple of mild burns. Cedric settled next to me on the couch and examined them with his healer's eye.

"They'll heal just fine," he reported. "I know where Mum keeps a burn cream at home, without dittany. We'll apply that first thing in the morning, as soon as we're home."

I nodded, toying with the charm bracelet on my wrist. It was blessedly undamaged, and I thanked my lucky stars that I hadn't taken it off yet when the tent was struck. If I had lost it, I never would have forgiven myself.

The next people to return were Bill, Charlie, and Percy.

"Lucy!" Percy exclaimed, rushing over to where I was sitting. "Are you alright? What happened? Why are you covered in... is that soot?"

"She's fine, Perce," George said. "Their tent burned down, but she's alright."

"You don't look much better. None of you do, really, no offense," I said sympathetically.

Percy was bleeding profusely from his nose, and Bill and Charlie were both sporting impressive arm wounds.

"We were helping the Ministry," Percy said, straightening up and adjusting his glasses (carefully) on his nose. "I'm glad you are all alright. Where are Ron and Hermione and Harry and Dad?"

Fred shrugged. "Your guess is as good as ours."

Cedric pushed himself up from the couch and hesitantly approached Bill, who had the worst injury. "May I?" 

Bill nodded, and held his arm out. Cedric examined at the wound. "An episkey should do. It doesn't look like it's a cursed wound." He glanced at Charlie and Percy. "You two as well. It's a lot of bleeding, but I don't think they're magical wounds, per se."

"I like him," Charlie said with a crooked grin. "He knows his stuff. Let's keep him around."

"He better, after two months at St. Mungo's," Fred chuckled.

Charlie poked his head out of the tent flap once he had healed his arm. “Dad, what’s going on? Fred, George, and Ginny got back okay, but the others-”

“I’ve got them here,” Mr. Weasley said, ducking into the tent. Surely enough, Harry and Ron and Hermione ducked in, too.

I squeaked and sprinted toward them, flinging my arms around all three of their necks. "Oh, Merlin, don't scare me like that," I panted as they all pressed in around me.

"Scare _you_?" Hermione repeated incredulously, pulling me tighter. "Lucy, all we saw as we ran away was your burning tent!"

"Are you alright?" Harry asked.

I pulled away from the hug and coughed a couple times. "I am now that you're all safe. What _happened_?"

“Did you get them, Dad, the person who conjured the Mark?” Bill asked.

Mr. Weasley sighed. “No. Speaking of, Cedric and Lucy, your father said you can come home with us in the morning. He had to report to work since a magical creature was involved. We found Barty Crouch’s elf holding Harry’s wand, but we’re none the wiser about who actually conjured the Mark.”

Cedric and I nodded as Percy, Bill, and Charlie all collectively shouted, " _What_?"

“Harry’s wand?” Fred echoed.

“Mr. Crouch’s elf?” Percy asked.

I coughed again, and all eyes in the room flickered over to me.

"I'm fine," I choked out, face burning with embarrassment as I returned to my spot on the couch between Cedric and George. Harry's worried gaze lingered on me for a couple seconds longer before they launched into their story. As it turned out, the three of them had escaped to a quiet clearing, and Harry realized his wand was missing. They heard the man who conjured the Mark, and once grown wizards arrived on the scene (my dad among them) they discovered Winky, Mr. Crouch's house elf, in possession of the wand, though they were ultimately convinced that she hadn't been the one to cast the spell. However, Mr. Crouch released Winky for disobeying his orders and finding herself in that situation in the first place.

Percy was the first person to speak once the story was over. “Well, Mr. Crouch is quite right to get rid of an elf like that! Running away when he’d expressly told her not to, embarrassing him in front of the whole Ministry, how would that have looked, if she’d been brought up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control-”

“She didn’t do anything, she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time!” Hermione protested, crossing her arms over her chest and making Percy take a step back.

He recovered quickly, though. “Hermione, a wizard in Mr. Crouch’s position can’t afford a house-elf who’s going to run amok with a wand!”

“She didn’t run amok! She just picked it up off the ground!”

“Look," Ron interrupted, "can someone just explain what that skull thing was? It wasn’t hurting anyone. Why’s it such a big deal?”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “I told you, it’s You-Know-Who’s symbol, Ron. I read about it in _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts_.”

Mr. Weasley nodded. “And it hasn’t been seen for thirteen years. Of course people panicked, it was almost like seeing You-Know-Who back again.”

“I don’t get it. I mean, it’s still only a shape in the sky,” Ron said, clearly trying to convince himself it wasn't that big of a deal.

“Ron, You-Know-Who and his followers sent the Dark Mark into the air whenever they killed. The terror it inspired... you have no idea, you’re too young. Just picture coming home and finding the Dark Mark hovering over your house, and knowing what you’re about to find inside... everyone’s worst fear, the very worst.”

Ron seemed to understand, and fell silent. 

Bill broke the silence a moment later. “Well, it didn’t help us tonight, whoever conjured it. It scared the Death Eaters away the moment they saw it. They all disapparated before we’d got near enough to unmask any of them. We caught the Robertses before they hit the ground, though. They’re having their memories modified right now.”

I tensed involuntarily, and Cedric laid a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

“What are Death Eaters?” Harry asked.

“It’s what You-Know-Who’s supporters called themselves. I think we saw what’s left of them tonight --- the ones who managed to keep themselves out of Azkaban, anyway.”

Mr. Weasley sighed. “We can’t prove it was them, Bill... though it probably was.”

“Yeah, I bet it was! Dad, we met Draco Malfoy in the woods," Ron said quickly, "and he as good as told us his dad was one of those nutters in masks! And we all know the Malfoys were right in with You-Know-Who!”

“But what were Voldemort’s supporters..." Harry said, pausing briefly as the room flinched in unison, "sorry, _You-Know-Who’s_ supporters up to, levitating Muggles? I mean, what was the point?”

Mr. Weasley shook his head. “The point? Harry, that’s their idea of fun. Half the Muggle killings back when You-Know-Who was in power were done for fun. I suppose they had a few drinks tonight and couldn’t resist reminding us all that lots of them are still at large. A nice little reunion for them.”

“But if they _were_ the Death Eaters," Ron cut in, "why did they disapparate when they saw the Dark Mark? They’d have been pleased to see it, wouldn’t they?”

Bill rubbed his neck. “Use your brains, Ron. If they really were Death Eaters, they worked very hard to keep out of Azkaban when You-Know-Who lost power, and told all sorts of lies about him forcing them to kill and torture people. I bet they’d be even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back. They denied they’d ever been involved with him when he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives. I don’t reckon he’d be over-pleased with them, do you?”

“So... whoever conjured the Dark Mark... were they doing it to show _support_ for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?” Hermione asked.

“Your guess is as good as ours, Hermione," Mr. Weasley replied, "but I'll tell you this. It was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I’d be very surprised if the person who did it hadn’t been a Death Eater once, even if they’re not now. Listen, it’s very late, and if your mother hears what’s happened, she’ll be worried sick. We’ll get a few more hours of sleep and then try and get an early Portkey out of here.”

"Come on," Ginny said, walking over and firmly grabbing my hand. "You're sleeping in my bed tonight. I don't even care that you smell like smoke."

"Night, everyone," I said with the most convincing smile I could muster as I followed her and Hermione to their tent. 

Ginny practically pushed me onto her bed and climbed in after me, but none of us could sleep.

"Mione, are you okay?" I asked after a couple minutes of silence. "I mean, they were..."

"No," she whimpered, sniffling. I immediately jumped out of Ginny's bed and went to sit on Hermione's. She launched herself at me, sobbing into my neck. Soon enough, Ginny joined us, silent tears falling from her eyes, too.

"I'm scared," she admitted in a soft voice. "Lucy, it feels like... like... like it did two years ago. When this was all my fault."

"It was never your fault," I said firmly. "He wants you to feel that way. It's no one's fault but his, and what happened tonight is somehow his fault too, I'm sure of it."

"Malfoy in the forest," Hermione sobbed. "He said it would be bad if they spotted me. How do they know, Lucy, how do they know?"

"I don't know," I replied, feeling anxiety creep into my chest. How _did_ they know? And if they knew about Hermione being Muggle-born... when would they know about me? _What if that's why they attacked our tent?_ I found myself wondering. Just as soon as the thought came to me, I forced it away. It was Hermione and Ginny who needed me tonight; my own problems could wait.

"And Winky," Hermione continued, crying harder. "It's so unjust! You should have seen her, Lucy, in the top box! Mr. Crouch ordered her to save him a seat, and she's terrified of heights, but she _had_ to do it because he told her to so she did and she was so scared, and the way she cried when he said he'd set her free..."

I had no good answer for that, either, so I continued to let her cry into my shoulder. 

I never did get any sleep that night. Ginny fell asleep after about an hour, so Hermione and I left her on that bed and went to sit on the other one. Once Hermione ran out of tears, she transitioned to anger, telling me every detail she could remember about Winky. I tried to explain the house-elf system as best as I could, but it was difficult since our family had never and would never have one. Once she ran out of anger, she eventually fell asleep too. I laid down next to her at first, but when I felt my breath hitch in my throat in a way I knew meant I was about to have yet another coughing fit, I jumped out of the bed and ducked outside so I wouldn't wake either girl up.

I lowered myself to the ground and pulled my knees to my chest once the coughing had stopped, finally alone with my thoughts. I began to pick apart the details of the evening, mulling each thing over with a clearer head now that the immediate danger had passed.

The Triwizard Tournament... that must have been what Dad was talking about earlier in the day, as well as the secret Percy had been bragging about knowing. I didn't know much about it, but I (obviously) agreed with Cedric. He'd done enough. He deserved to sit this one out, and just be with Henry and with Cho and play Quidditch and be as close to a normal student as he could be. But knowing my dad... that wasn't the last I'd hear of what _he_ thought Cedric should do.

It was a miracle, though, that the two of them had been in the den. If Cedric had been in his room, he might have been injured by the blast. So in a sense, the conversation might have saved his life. But as soon as I had the thought, George's words resurfaced in my mind. Why _hadn't_ Dad just used a bit of magic to ensure I'd get out safely?

"Do you _ever_ sleep?"

"It's a lot easier to sleep when lying down doesn't make me feel like I'm dying," I replied with a sarcastic laugh as Harry sat beside me. "What are you doing awake still?"

"I slept for a while, then Ron started mumbling about spiders and I heard you coughing a couple minutes later so I bailed on the idea entirely."

"Fair enough. Hermione only just fell asleep. She and Ginny were both really upset."

"And you?"

I heaved a sigh, then instantly regretted it as I began coughing again. "Bloody hell," I choked out, "this is annoying."

Harry patted my shoulder. "No worries. As Hagrid told Ron with the slugs, better out than in."

"There's nothing left _in_ me to cough out," I said hoarsely, "but you're right." I took a slow, steadying breath and relaxed a bit. "Anyway, what was your question again?"

"How are you doing with everything that happened?"

I didn't respond right away. How did I even begin to explain how I felt everything, the good and the bad alike, that had happened in the past 24 hours?

"I don't know," I said after a pause. "You know, I told the twins earlier that I wasn't going to let anything ruin this day, but-" I coughed a couple more times, and Harry patted my shoulder again. Impulsively, I leaned into his touch and rested my head on his shoulder. "I guess if anything _could_ ruin today, the Dark Mark would do it. Seeing those poor Muggles up in the air, and what Malfoy said to Hermione... I sure hope this isn't second year all over again."

"Well, if it is," Harry said, "we'll be ready to face it."

"Yeah. You're right. We will be." I took a controlled breath in through my nose, really not wanting to start coughing again. The nearness of Harry was so nice; the last thing I needed was to ruin that. An unfortunate thought rose to mind, though, and I wanted to address it before any more time passed without explanation. "Oh, and I'm sorry about my dad this morning," I said. "Sweet Merlin, Cedric and I were _mortified_."

"Oh, Lu, don't worry about that. I'm sorry for _you_. Is he like that all the time?"

"Er... yes and no. We don't have to talk about it," I said quickly, embarrassed, "I just wanted to... well, I didn't want to brush it off like it didn't happen, because it did and it was horribly awkward for us all. It was probably more awkward for you than anyone else, really."

"I'm more or less used to it at this point. I'm Harry Potter, after all. The boy who lived and all that." He sighed. "Maybe this year, I can just be Harry. No Stone, no Chamber, no Sirius Black after me. Just Harry would be nice."

"Just Harry, Quidditch player?" I asked, smiling even though he couldn't see it.

I could hear the smile in his voice as he replied. "Yeah. Just Harry, Quidditch player. _That's_ a title I wouldn't mind."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everyone! Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it ---- I've been looking forward to this one in particular for quite a while.


	52. I Believe in Family

_So are we still trying?  
Or simply surviving?  
We’re facing these giants  
The bigger they are, the harder they fall_

_But I still believe in  
They dreams we’ve been dreaming  
The hope that we build on  
It’s never too far, it’s never too far_

_I wanna fight for what we got  
'Cause I believe in family_

_"Family"_   
_TobyMac_

* * *

LUCY:

Mum and Dad both lived at work in the week that followed, leaving Cedric home alone to take care of me. (I'm not kidding --- they were so busy they transfigured my dad's desk into a bed and slept in his office overnight.)

There was no magical solution that could make my cough go away... and Cedric tried plenty. If anything, it got worse the first couple days, to the point where I couldn't sleep for longer than a few minutes at a time because I'd start coughing. The impending full moon made everything worse, adding a fever and sensory overload to the whole disaster.

Cedric and I figured out that I slept better if I was sitting up, so I set up camp on a downstairs couch. It was there that Hermione found me on Thursday afternoon.

"Oh, you really _are_ sick," she said sympathetically as she perched herself on the arm of the couch opposite my head. "When Fred and George said Cedric told them you were sick, I just assumed it was the usual full moon kind."

"It was all the bloody smoke. The full moon doesn't help, of course, but-" I coughed a couple of times, as a kind of accidental emphasis. "I _am_ actually legitimately sick. Wait, Fred and George? When did they-"

I started coughing too hard to continue, but Hermione understood what I tried to say.

"They came by this morning," she explained. "I just went with what they said at the time, but they're all playing Quidditch now so I headed down here to see you for myself."

I nodded, breathing carefully through my nose. "It's good seeing you. How is everyone doing? How are _you_?"

She shrugged. "Getting by. Everyone's still upset, of course, and Mr. Weasley has barely been home, but nobody is too rattled anymore. I've been reading what I can on house-elves, and what I've found is..."

It was great listening to Hermione rant --- I didn't have to talk at all. The occasional nod, cough, and "Mhm" was enough to keep her going for nearly half an hour. When she finally stopped to breathe, I opted for a topic change.

"Who's playing Chaser since I'm not there?"

"Bill," she replied. "Percy's trying Keeper. Yesterday it was Charlie who tried Chaser, with Bill as Keeper and Percy as Seeker."

I had another coughing fit in my surprise. "Percy's playing?" I spluttered.

"Everyone else was surprised too, when he offered yesterday. Ron said it's the first time he's played in probably a decade."

"I'll need to write to Oliver, he'll probably collapse from shock," I chuckled. "Say, any word on if either twin got Quidditch Captain?"

Hermione cocked her head. "No, why?"

"Just curious who it'll be with Oli gone."

"Oli?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.

I laughed. "I'm the only person allowed to call him that. Don't tell the twins, but Harry and I were his favorites."

"We saw him at the Cup. Did you know he's the Keeper for the Puddlemere United reserve team?"

"Yeah, he wrote me a letter as soon as he found out," I said with a smile. "I told him Cedric and I would try to go to a match when they're playing the Mag-"

The rest of my sentence was lost in a coughing fit. Hermione reached for the glass of water on the table and passed it to me.

"Thanks," I croaked, draining the glass.

"Of course. Maybe I should go. You look exhausted, and I don't want anyone realizing I'm gone and coming to bother you too."

"Thanks for bothering me, it was good to see you."

"I'll come bother you the day of the full moon, if you'd like. Maybe I could help."

I shook my head. "No, it's okay. Enjoy the Burrow. Cedric can take care of me, you do it ten months of the year."

"Alright." She jumped to her feet and tugged lightly on my ponytail. "No braids?"

"Too much effort."

"Understandable. Come visit as soon as you feel better. Everyone misses you."

"I miss them t-"

Hermione smiled sadly. "Don't die, Lucy. See you in a few days."

I managed a wave with my left hand as I coughed into my right elbow. She disappeared through the doorway and was replaced thirty seconds later with Cedric.

"I hope you don't mind that I let Hermione in but not the twins," he said as he swapped out my empty glass for a full one. "I thought you might want to see someone's face other than mine."

I drank half the water before responding. "Thanks, the water helps a lot. And no, I don't mind, but it _is_ nice having you and your face around again. I missed you. It didn't feel like home without you."

"How was it, with Mum and Dad? After everything you learned from the Pensieve?" Cedric sat on the nearest armchair and rested his elbows on his knees. "Was it alright?"

I nodded. "I didn't talk to either of them much, truthfully. I really did spend most of my time at the Burrow, until this week. Dad worked more than usual, and Mum was responsible for growing a large supply of dittany for St. Mungo's, actually, so I didn't help in the garden much either. It was alright." 

"How was it for you, Lu? Were _you_ alright?"

I sighed, the action triggering another coughing fit. Once it passed, I took another sip of water. "I'm so tired of coughing."

"You'll get better soon. You have to," he added with a grin. "Healer's orders."

"Brother's orders, more like," I replied. "But to answer your question, I suppose I was alright. I wrote a lot of letters, I baked a lot of cookies, I did homework by candlelight until I was nearly asleep so I wouldn't be left alone with my thoughts for too long. I got through."

Cedric nodded sympathetically. "I'm sorry I couldn't be here this summer, Lu. I won't let Dad send me anywhere next summer, I promise."

"One more normal summer?"

He nodded again. "One more summer with Quidditch and homework and throwing gnomes and working in the garden and staying up late playing games and even more Quidditch. And then once you graduate, we'll spend every summer working together, yeah?"

"Sounds like a plan," I said, resting my head back against the pillow and staring at the ceiling. "You really think you might be able to cure it, Cedric? One day?"

"I won't stop until I do."

"Did you learn anything over summer about it?"

"Everything I could. And there was..." He paused, and I glanced over to see what was wrong. His face had gone a bit pale, and he gripped the empty glass in his hand a little tighter.

"Ced?" I asked gently. "What is it?"

He blinked, his eyes going out of focus. "There was a little girl bitten by a werewolf. In June. Her name is Sloane. She couldn't have been more than six or seven. She told us that she had gone outside to see the bright full moon when... when..."

"Fenrir Greyback?" I guessed, pushing myself to a sitting position and turning my knees toward Cedric.

"We think so. He's known to target children."

"She's alright now, isn't she?"

He nodded, still not looking at me. "We were able to stop the bleeding. Powdered silver and dittany. But she was so scared, and her parents, they..."

"They what?" I asked after a moment.

A heavy silence fell that lasted for several seconds. "They didn't want her, Lu," he replied in a broken voice. "I saw a lot of horrible things this summer. Some injuries we couldn't heal. Some poisons that moved too fast for antidotes. Some illnesses that had progressed too far. But nothing haunted me more than what happened to Sloane."

"Where is she now?" My voice trembled. _They didn't... want their own daughter? What if Mr. Midgen doesn't have the whole story? What if my family didn't want me either, what if they somehow found out what I was and didn't want me and that's why I'm here and not with them? What if-_

"Still in St. Mungo's. Everyone there has more or less adopted her. We worked together to help her make her own space, and unless someone adopts her, we're hoping she can stay there until she goes to Hogwarts. That way we know she has a safe place to transform and access to wolfsbane." Cedric finally looked up at me, looking a little bit better having gotten it off his chest. "I want to take you to meet her next summer. I think you could really help her. She's the sweetest little girl, Lucy. You'd love her."

I nodded. "Take me. I want to meet her."

"I will. You will."

I sighed shakily, prompting another feeble coughing fit.

"For what it's worth, you do actually sound a bit better," Cedric said, rising from his chair and laying a hand on my forehead. "And you don't seem quite so hot."

I held out my arm. "You should feel how cold this is."

"Is that the shirt I charmed for you?" he asked, smiling.

I nodded. "Feel it, Ced, I think it's working overtime trying to keep me comfortable."

He touched the sleeve, yanking his hand back. "Merlin! That's freezing! How did you survive before that?"

"I honestly have no idea," I chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad Henry took up knitting and gave me the idea." Cedric took the now-empty glass from my hand. "Why don't you try to sleep a bit?"

"I will," I said with a nod, pulling a thin blanket up over my shoulders and curling up in a ball. "And Cedric?"

"Mhm?"

"I love you. I'm glad you're back."

He smiled. "I'm glad I'm back too. I love you too, Lu. Sleep well."

"I'll try," I mumbled, eyes sinking shut as I slipped into my first solid hour of sleep in quite a few days.

* * *

_The screams gave way to howls, and the werewolf that had replaced Lucy Everlin Diggory darted into the forest in search of something to eat, anything to eat. It knew these woods, and it knew where the little animals liked to hide. And it was hungry._

_The screams gave way to howls, and Cedric Diggory shuddered with horror. He found tears springing to his eyes at the sound of it. The thought of his baby sister in so much pain was a horrible one. The thought of Sloane in so much pain so many miles away was a horrible one, too._

_He had learned so much about lycanthropy from Sloane, so much Lucy had never told him. She had told him about the fever before the transformation and the hypothermia after the transformation, and he had gathered that she was restless before and exhausted after. But when Sloane started eating everything in sight for the entire week before the transformation, Cedric had been taken aback. Was Lucy always hungry, too? And for a few days afterward, when Sloane didn't want to eat a single thing and immediately threw up anything someone did convince her to eat, Cedric was even more surprised. Was that true for Lucy, too? And the way she was so easily overwhelmed by even quiet noises and even dim lights and even gentle touches and even faint smells. How much had Lucy borne in silence for nearly nine years?_

_But of everything he had learned, it was the screams... oh Merlin, the screams. Cedric knew that the screams that became howls and the howls that became screams would haunt him as long as he lived. He shuddered one more time and returned to his parchment, finishing his letter to the little girl from St. Mungo's that he still saw in his dreams. Watching her parents walk out of the hospital without glancing back once, having to be the one to break the news to her that her parents were never coming back, sitting with her whenever he had the chance and listening to her talk through her trauma... Sloane's story was something else that would haunt Cedric as long as he lived._

_The screams gave way to howls as the sun sank below the horizon, and Harry Potter spun a full 180_ ° _on his broom. He didn't recognize the screams or howls for what they were, but he heard a high-pitched sound he got the feeling he recognized._

_"What is it, mate?" Ron shouted._

_"Yeah, Harry, Quirrell jinx this broom too? Or did someone call us for supper?" Fred teased._

_Harry turned back around, glancing down at the ground. Hermione stood off to the side like she often did, but that night, she was staring off into the distance with her fist pressed to her mouth._

_"One sec," Harry muttered to Ginny, the closest person to him at the time. They were both Chasers that night, and Ginny had been about to score a goal when Harry heard the sound. "I'm going to see why Hermione looks so upset."_

_Ginny nodded wordlessly, and Harry flew down to where Hermione was standing._

_"Did you hear that too?"_

_Hermione blinked in surprise, turning to face Harry with wide eyes. "What? Hear what? I didn't hear anything."_

_Harry got the feeling she was lying, trying to cover something up, and he wasn't sure for a second if he should press her or let it go. After a half second of thought, he decided to let it go. "I heard something," he said, shaking his head. "Guess it's just my imagination."_

_"Yeah, guess so," Hermione said slowly._

_Harry lingered another half a second, giving Hermione one last chance to be honest, but when she glanced away down the hill, he sighed to himself and returned to the sky._

_The howls gave way to screams, and Lucy Everlin Diggory found herself on the forest floor, exhausted but unhurt. She coughed a handful of times as she staggered back home, but her illness was mostly gone. A couple more days, and she'd be healthy enough to return to the Burrow. As she walked, she thought of Cedric._

_Cedric was by the front gate, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he waited in the pouring rain for his sister to return. He'd barely slept all night; every time he closed his eyes, he saw Sloane's face, or Lucy's, or both. He found it was easier to keep his eyes open, so he tried to. He had eventually drifted off to sleep a couple hours before dawn, but in his nightmares, he heard the screams. The howls. And more screams._

_She thought of Harry, too._

_Harry was awake as well, staring at Ron's ceiling. He'd just woken up from a strange dream about the Forbidden Forest, as if his subconscious was attempting to remind him of something. He was reliving the night he and Hermione had saved Sirius, but this time, Lucy was with them, guiding them through the night. In his dream, both Lucy and Harry had cast their patronuses when the dementors converged, bear and deer charging them down side by side. He told himself he must just be missing Lucy after not seeing her for a week, and rolled over onto his side._

_Lucy stumbled into the clearing, dead on her feet but unharmed._

_Cedric vaulted the fence and held her tightly, thanking Merlin that she was home safely once again._

_Sleep didn't come again to Harry. Whatever was nagging at the back of his mind refused to let go._

* * *

Fred was the one who opened the door when I returned to the Burrow on the last day of summer. "Lucy! Excellent! Hey, Harry --- wait, he's upstairs making sure everything is packed since Hermione and Percy had another row about house-elves."

"Are you going to let her in or not, Fred?" George asked, grabbing me by the elbow and dragging me out of the rain. "She's just been sick for a week, the last thing she needs is to freeze to death in this weather."

"Right, sorry. How're you feeling, Cub?"

I laughed, sliding my singular glove off and tucking it into my pocket --- I had realized that morning that Harry still had my other one, the one I'd given him in December. "I'm better, thanks. Good being back. What have I missed, other than Hermione and Percy? That's an argument I'd like to see, personally, since they're both... well..."

"Yeah, it was brutal," George said with a nod. "There's a reason Mum had to break it up."

Fred lowered his voice to a mutter. "We'll tell you about Ludo Bagman sometime, but not here or now. Don't want Mum overhearing." He straightened up and smiled. "You know the way to Ron's room. That's where Harry is."

"You do realize I like hanging out with _all_ of you, right?" I asked, smiling nonetheless.

"Yeah, _sure_ ," Fred replied sarcastically. He and George each grabbed one of my arms and dragged me to the base of the stairs.

"Hey, I do!" I protested. "I can still use my legs, you know, it was only a week-"

"Is that Lucy's sweet voice I hear?" Mrs. Weasley called down from wherever she was on the winding staircase.

"You bet! She's on her way up now!" George shouted back as he and Fred set me back on my feet. I gave them one last playful look before starting my climb. I went a little slower than I usually did, still wanting to be careful not to cause a flare-up of the coughing, but I eventually came across Mrs. Weasley on the fourth floor.

"Welcome back, dear! I would hug you, but..." She held out the large laundry basket in her arms for emphasis. "How are you feeling? Better? Hermione said you were quite sick."

I smiled. "I understand. I'm better now, thank you. Is that heading up to Ron's room? I could take it."

"Are you sure? I don't want you overworking yourself."

"I don't mind!" I said, perhaps a little too eagerly. "It's only one more story."

"If you're sure." She transferred the basket to my waiting arms. "If there's confusion, Ron's dress robes are the maroon, and Harry's are the green. Have you gotten your dress yet?" she asked in a softer voice, eyes twinkling. "I'd love to see it, whenever you do."

I felt a blush rise to my cheeks. "My dormitory mates are going to help me order one once we get to school. They know more about that sort of thing than I do. I'll be sure to send you a picture once I decide on one."

Mrs. Weasley smiled. "I can't wait! Alright, run along now, I'm sure the boys will be quite glad to see you."

I headed up the stairs and set the basket down to knock. "Laundry delivery!" I called.

"Lucy!" The door flew open, and Harry practically jumped on me in a hug. "You're back!"

I laughed as I returned the hug, feeling the tips of my ears beginning to burn. "Yeah, I am."

I reached down to grab the basket and passed it to Ron, who also looked excited to see me. "Your mum was heading up with these, so I offered to bring them the rest of the way to you two. Do you mind if I crash your packing party?"

"Of course we don't mind," Ron said, tossing the basket onto his bed and hugging me, too. "We thought you were dying all week!"

I rolled my eyes and perched myself on the foot of Harry's bed. "Oh, please. You know it'd take more than a little smoke to kill me. What did I miss?"

"My dad's barely left the Ministry," Ron said as he and Harry began sorting through the laundry. "Has your dad been busy, too?"

"He has been, and Mum got called in for a slew of interviews, actually, since she was an Auror the first time everything was happening."

"I didn't know your mum was an Auror! That's wicked! Why'd she stop?"

I shifted uncomfortably, Malfoy's mocking words coming to mind. "A couple of reasons. It depends on who you ask. She took a job in Herbology when Cedric headed to Hogwarts, after Patricia Rakepick was revealed to be a Dark witch. She didn't really want me home alone for the better part of every day with her on the loose."

"What's an Auror?" Harry asked.

"Aurors catch Dark wizards," I replied. "Just about the most dangerous job you can do."

He nodded thoughtfully. "I can see why."

"What in the name of Merlin's-" Ron squawked, holding up what looked like an old maroon tablecloth. "Mum's given us Ginny's new dress by mistake. I'll go take it to-"

"Wait, no." I reached forward and caught him by the elbow before he got to the door. "Those are your dress robes."

"What?"

"They were on the list for you boys this year. Cedric got his a couple days ago. Harry's are in there too, the green ones."

Harry drew his out of the basket and saw for himself. Mrs. Weasley was right --- they matched his emerald eyes _perfectly_.

Ron flushed in anger. “Well, _they’re_ okay! Why couldn’t I have some like that? I'm going to go talk to Mum.”

"Ron, really, I like yours-" I started to say, but he hurried out of the room without another word, leaving me alone with Harry. 

"That went well," Harry remarked.

I laughed. "I'll say."

"Do you know why we need these in the first place?"

"I have a hunch," I said with a shrug, "but neither of my parents would tell me exactly why when I asked. I'm sure we'll find out tomorrow when-" I was interrupted by a loud screech from Pigwidgeon. I jumped up and strode over to his cage. "What's wrong, Pig?"

The little owl hooted mournfully, shaking his head back and forth.

"Oh, is that treat too big for you?" I asked, noticing the awkward way his beak was wedged open by a piece of meat. I opened the door to his cage and held my right hand out. "C'mere, you silly thing, I'll get it un-stuck for you."

Pigwidgeon hopped onto my hand obediently, so I carefully plucked the treat from his beak with my fingers. I broke it up into smaller pieces and offered them on my palm. He gobbled the bits down without issue, and I let him back into his cage.

"Be careful next time," I said firmly as I shut the door. "Don't try to bite off too much at once. I won't always be around to save you from yourself."

I gazed at the owl a second longer as he looked up at me with his massive eyes. He reminded me of myself to an extent, at least in terms of size. That much we had in common.

"I can't believe he actually listened to you. He normally never shuts up."

I jumped about a foot into the air. I had completely forgotten Harry was there.

"Sorry," he chuckled as I turned to face him. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay." I was already blushing furiously at that point. "I knew you were there, I just got lost in thought, I guess."

"Ron just gets annoyed with him," Harry continued, a curious expression on his face. "He only gave him the treats to try to shut him up."

"I can't really blame him," I said as I lowered myself onto Ron's bed and started folding socks so I'd have something to do with my hands. "I mean, his last pet was... well, you know. I can imagine he'd be a little hesitant to truly love another pet. I mean, for all we know, Pig could be Voldemort."

We both turned to look at the tiny owl, now nipping at the feathers near his rear end, and burst out laughing. 

"You said the name," Harry commented as our laughter began to dry up.

" _You_ do," I pointed out. "I try not to say it around anyone else, but since you don't mind it, might as well."

He nodded, his eyes wandering to Hedwig's empty cage. “It’s been over a week. You don’t reckon Sirius has been caught, do you?”

"I reckon it would have been in the _Prophet_ if he had, Harry, don't worry. Besides, it sounds like he could have gotten away in the first place if he'd really wanted to, so I think he'll be too smart to be captured now."

"You're right," he said, sighing. 

"But you were still expecting a response by now?"

"Yeah. Hoping for one, anyway."

"It'll come, Harry."

Before he could reply, a hoarse yell could be heard just below us. We moved in perfect unison, racing down the stairs.

"What happened?" Harry called as we reached the fourth floor.

"Spider!" Ron squeaked.

"I got it," I said, rushing past him and stomping as hard as I could on the eight-legged fiend scurrying across the floor. I turned to Ron with a smile. "Want to finish him off?"

He shook his head. "No. I'm good. Thanks, Lucy."

"No problem," I replied. 

"Is that Lucy I heard?" came Ginny's voice from the stairs. "Oh, it is!" 

She rushed forward to hug me, Hermione quickly following.

"How are you?" Hermione asked, studying me with a critical eye.

I shrugged. "I'm alright. Do either of you happen to have something I could use to dispose of the spider under my boot?"

"Sure," Hermione said. She pulled a small tissue from her pocket and knelt down. "I was wondering if a spider was the reason why Ron shouted."

"Why else?" Ginny giggled.

"You two should have seen him in the Forbidden Forest, though," I said with a smile as Hermione handed me the wadded-up tissue. "Surrounded by acromantulas, and he stood his ground."

"Yeah, well," Ron stammered, blushing like mad as Hermione gazed at him in wonder, "it'll never happen again, so don't expect a repeat performance."

This time, everyone joined in on the laughter.

It was great to be back.

* * *

The next morning, I was woken suddenly by a loud slam of our front door. When I made my way down to the kitchen in a panic, I was greeted by an odd sight --- my dad was on his hands and knees with his head in the fireplace.

“Muggle neighbors heard bangs and shouting, so they went and called those what-d’you-call-’ems... please-men. Arthur, you’ve got to get over there!”

"Here!" came Mrs. Weasley's voice from the fireplace. I lingered in the doorway, not wanting to be caught eavesdropping, but also not wanting to miss a single word spoken. There had been an attack? Not on Muggles or Muggle-borns, I hoped.

“It’s a real stroke of luck I heard about it in the first place! I had to come into the office early to send a couple of owls, and I found the Improper Use of Magic lot all setting off. If Rita Skeeter gets hold of this one, Arthur-”

“What does Mad-Eye say happened?” Mr. Weasley's voice asked.

“Says he heard an intruder in his yard," Dad replied with a hefty helping of sarcasm. "Says he was creeping toward the house, but was ambushed by his _dustbins_.”

Mr. Weasley's voice was far kinder, as if he were seriously considering what he was being told. “What did the dustbins do?”

“Made one hell of a noise and fired rubbish everywhere, as far as I can tell,” said Mr. Diggory. “Apparently one of them was still rocketing around when the please-men turned up.”

“And what about the intruder?”

“Arthur, you know Mad-Eye. Someone creeping into his yard in the dead of night? More likely there’s a very shell-shocked cat wandering around somewhere, covered in potato peelings. But if the Improper Use of Magic lot get their hands on Mad-Eye, he’s had it. Think of his record! We’ve got to get him off on a minor charge, something in your department... what are exploding dustbins worth?”

“Might be a caution. Mad-Eye didn’t use his wand? He didn’t actually attack anyone?”

“I’ll bet he leapt out of bed and started jinxing everything he could reach through the window, but they’ll have a job proving it, there aren’t any casualties.”

“Alright, I’m off,” said Mr. Weasley's disembodied voice. I retreated backwards, knowing the conversation was over, and hurried back upstairs. What a weird conversation to overhear...

For whatever reason, Cedric's door was slightly ajar, so I peeked in.

Cedric had somehow slept through the door slamming and Dad's loud conversation. He was curled in a ball on his side, still deeply asleep. His suitcase was neatly packed in the corner, and I could see that he had already laid out his outfit for the day, the same way I had. It was funny falling in love with Harry at the same time my brother and Cho became official --- Cedric was always one step ahead, of course, blazing a trail for me to follow on my own timeline, but it made me happy all the same. It didn't even really matter that we weren't related by blood after all; he was as much my brother as Claire was my sister. We'd never share genes, Ced and I, but we'd always share little mannerisms like sleeping in the same position and putting in extra effort for the people we loved. A glance at the clock told me Cedric still had more time to sleep, so I closed his door silently and continued down the hallway to my room.

I changed out of my pajamas and climbed into my Muggle clothes for the morning, this time a red jumper and dark brown slacks. I braided my hair with extra care and even used a tiny bit of the perfume Hermione had given me for my birthday. It was very subtle, but I could detect traces of citrus and lavender. I wasn't sure if Harry would notice (he could be quite oblivious) but I figured it was worth a try. We'd be in the same compartment on the train all day, after all --- it couldn't hurt.

I heard Cedric stirring in the next room, so I did one last spray, tossed the glass vial into my backpack, and headed back to his room.

"Good morning, sunshine," I teased. "Slept in, I see."

"I see you didn't," he replied, grinning as he pulled on a sock.

I shrugged. "Dad was loud this morning. Figured I might as well get up."

Before Cedric could reply, Tuck burst into the room and sprinted straight to him.

"Good morning, boy," Cedric laughed, scooping Tuck off the ground and burying his face in his fur. "How did _you_ sleep?"

Tuck started attacking Cedric's face with kiss after kiss, making both of us laugh.

"Why so affectionate, bud? I'm not complaining but- ack! Tuck, that lick went in my mouth! Ack, again! I'm shutting up now."

I laughed and laughed as Tuck continued to cover my brother's face in a shiny layer of slobber. Cedric struggled to keep his mouth shut as he laughed, too --- Tuck refused to stop.

"I'll be back before you know it, Tuck, don't worry," Cedric said, setting the crup down and dragging his sleeve across his face. His eyes sparkled with tears from laughing so hard as he grinned at me. "That was so funny. Have you ever seen him act like that, Lu?"

I shook my head, still giggling. "That was adorable, but no. He doesn't even do that when we come home from school."

Tuck jumped up onto Cedric's bed and promptly laid his head on my brother's lap.

"Looks like someone doesn't want you to leave," came Mum's voice from the doorway.

Cedric stroked Tuck's head, chuckling to himself. "I guess not."

"Well, breakfast is ready whenever Tuck lets you free. Made your favorite, Ced, since you've been gone all summer."

"Thanks, Mum," Cedric said with a smile. "I'll miss your pancakes."

"You can eat all the pancakes you want next summer," she chuckled. "I would have sent them with Lucy's cookies, but I wasn't sure how well they'd travel."

"Cedric home, pancakes every day?" I exclaimed. "Boy, next summer just gets better and better!"

Mum and Cedric both laughed, and Mum disappeared down the stairs. Cedric planted a kiss on the top of Tuck's head. 

"I'll miss you too, bud," he murmured.

"C'mon, Tuck, you'll get fur all over Cedric's nice slacks," I said, beckoning for the dog to follow me. "He has a girlfriend to impress now, you know."

Cedric blushed ever so slightly as Tuck jumped off his lap, his hand drifting to his pocket. I didn't miss the movement, and I smirked. "What's in your pocket?" I asked innocently.

"You don't miss a beat, do you?" Cedric shook his head and drew a small silver box out of his pocket. "It's not much, but I got Cho a necklace in London, hoping she'd agree to date me. I'm planning on giving it to her on the train today. What do you think? Will she like it?"

He opened the box. Inside laid a necklace with two intertwined silver "C"s. 

"For Cedric and Cho?"

"Yeah," he said softly, blushing even more. "I figured since we have the same initial, might as well... but, well, I was worried she'd think it was silly and-"

"Cedric, it's perfect," I assured him, closing the lid. "You two are going to make each other very happy. Stop worrying so much about it and just be yourself, because Cho loves you for you."

"I just..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "What if she doesn't like me after all? What if I'm not everything she's dreamed I'd be?"

"You're Cedric Amos Diggory, Hufflepuff's Golden Boy and Quidditch captain and prefect and soon-to-be Head Boy, _and_ -" I added emphatically when he opened his mouth to protest, "I know for a _fact_ that even if you _weren't_ all of those amazing things, she'd be lucky to have you anyway because you care this much about her. So stop doubting yourself and just be you, unapologetically."

Cedric sighed, smiling a bit. "What would I do without you?"

"Who knows? Now come on, your pancakes are waiting."

Three hours later, Cedric and I found ourselves on Platform Nine and Three Quarters. I winked mischievously at him as he hurried in the direction of Cho Chang before going to join my own friends. We found ourselves a car and waved out the window at Mrs. Weasley and Charlie and Bill.

“I’d invite you for Christmas," Mrs. Weasley called, "but... well, I expect you’re all going to want to stay at Hogwarts, what with one thing and another.”

Ron groaned. “Mum! What d’you three know that we don’t?”

“You’ll find out this evening, I expect! It’s going to be very exciting! Mind you, I’m very glad they’ve changed the rules-”

 _That_ got the twins' attention. "What rules?"

“I’m sure Professor Dumbledore will tell you. Now, behave, won’t you? _Won’t_ you, Fred? And _you_ , George?”

With that, Mrs. Weasley gave one last wave, and the three of them disapparated with a pop.

"How rude of Mum not to tell us what's going on," Fred sighed. "Though I do like the sound of rules changing. Well, Georgie, let's leave the itty bitty fourth-years find a compartment. See you all at school!"

I glared at their backs as they left. "Watch who you call itty bitty!"

They only laughed and walked a bit faster down the hallway. We _not_ -itty-bitty fourth-years found our own compartment and quickly settled in. I strategically positioned myself next to Harry, not that it was terribly difficult to do so. We'd ridden next to each other in third year easily enough, so what made fourth year any different?

Before much time at all, our compartment became the hub of Quidditch World Cup talk. Other kids all came and left, eager to share their own experiences, and we were still talking about the match when Draco Malfoy strolled past.

“We saw him right up close, as well. We were in the Top Box,” Ron was saying before Draco interrupted.

“For the first and last time in your life, Weasley.”

Harry stiffened next to me. “Don’t remember asking you to join us, Malfoy.”

But Draco was already distracted by the sleeve of Ron's dress robes hanging below Pigwidgeon's cage. “Oh _Weasley_ , what is _that_?”

I lunged forward and caught his wrist before he could grab the sleeve. "None of your business, Malfoy, that's what it is."

He smirked, quickly flicking his wrist so _his_ hand was gripping _my_ wrist. Merlin, his hand was cold. "Oh, is that so?"

I tried to yank myself free, but he held tight. "Yes, it _is_ so. Now let me go."

"It would seem feigned superiority is a Diggory family trait," Draco sneered, still not letting go of my wrist. "Saying what's my business and what's not."

"As if your father doesn't stick his nose in everyone else's business anyway?" I scoffed, attempting once again to tug myself free. Still Draco didn't budge.

"He knows his place. Your meddling mother, on the other hand-"

"She said to let her go, Malfoy," Harry said, reaching forward and firmly twisting my wrist out of Malfoy's freezing hand. As he did so, Draco reached forward and successfully wrenched Ron's robes free.

“Look at this! Weasley, you weren’t thinking of _wearing_ these, were you? I mean, I'm sure they were very fashionable in about eighteen ninety-”

"Eat dung, Malfoy," Ron snarled, snatching the robes back, but it was too late. Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle were all howling with laughter.

Once he stopped laughing, Draco grew quite serious. “So, going to enter, Weasley? Going to try and bring a bit of glory to the family name? There’s money involved as well, you know, you’d be able to afford some decent robes if you won.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Are you going to enter? I suppose _you_ will, Potter? You never miss a chance to show off, do you?”

Hermione didn't even look up from her book as she said flatly, “Either explain what you’re on about or go away, Malfoy.”

“Don’t tell me you don’t know? You’ve got a father and brother at the Ministry and you don’t even know? My God, my father told me about it ages ago-”

"Shut up!" I snapped. "Don't you think there'll be an age limit? There's no way any of us will be able to actually compete, so why bother asking?"

"Ah, someone who knows what she's talking about," Draco said, smirking. "I suppose your brother will be competing, pride and joy of the Diggory family and all. Your father is quite annoying, according to my father, always going on and on about Cedric. Can't blame him, though, it distracts from you. Speaking of, is it true that he left you in the tent when he went to help the Ministry?"

I would have loved to throw a snarky response at him as he turned on his heel and left the compartment, but words utterly failed me. Ron marched forward and slammed the door so forcefully it shattered the glass. Hermione repaired it with a muttered spell, and I realized all at once that Harry was still holding my wrist.

His hand was trembling with anger, and he stared at Malfoy's retreating form for a second before glancing at me. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," I said softly, nodding and pulling my wrist (very, _very_ reluctantly) out of his gentle grasp. 

"What the hell was he talking about, Lucy?" Ron asked. "Enter what?"

"The Triwizard Tournament," I replied, sitting back down and rubbing the back of my neck. "I accidentally overheard Dad and Cedric talking about it that night in the tent. Nobody was supposed to tell their kids, but... well, you know my dad."

"Yeah," he muttered, sitting next to Hermione with a frustrated huff, throwing his robes back toward Pigwidgeon's cage, making the small owl screech in indignation.

"What did he mean by your dad leaving you in the tent?" Harry inquired, green eyes fixed on me.

"Oh, I don't know," I lied. "He must have overheard some stupid rumor on the train."

"Might've been the twins," Ron said with a shrug. "Couldn't hear quite what they were saying, but I definitely heard them talking about you while you were sick, and they sounded pretty upset about something."

I forced a laugh. "What is wrong with everyone all of a sudden? I thought _Cedric_ was supposed to be the Diggory kid everyone gossiped about, not me!"

My friends snorted, and we lapsed into silence. The rest of the train ride (thankfully) passed uneventfully, and when we arrived at Hogwarts, rain was coming down in sheets. We made our way over to the carriages as quickly as we could, but we were still soaked to the bone when we arrived.

“I wouldn’t fancy crossing the lake in this weather,” Hermione murmured, watching sympathetically as the first-years clambered into boats.

"At least it wouldn't make much difference if you fell out of the boat or stayed in it," I laughed, prompting laughs from the others too.

It wasn't much drier inside the castle than it was outside --- Peeves was dropping water balloons on everyone who walked in.

"Hey, Peeves," I called, trying to appease him. "Would you mind maybe not-"

When an orange balloon interrupted me by exploding on my face, peace negotiations were concluded.

“Peeves, come down here at once!” Professor McGonagall shouted.

The poltergeist only laughed. “Not doing nothing! Already wet, aren’t they? Little squirts! Wheeeeeeeeee!”

“I shall call the headmaster! I’m warning you, Peeves-”

He stuck out his tongue and dumped the rest of his balloons with a flourish before disappearing up a staircase.

Professor McGonagall sighed, then turned her attention to the soaked hordes of students. “Well, move along, then! Into the Great Hall, come on!”

"Hey, Harry, this'll be your first Sorting since our first year, huh?" I asked, sliding into my typical seat between the twins.

He nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. Hope it's fast this year, though. I’m starving."

"Me too!" Ron agreed enthusiastically.

“Hiya, Harry!” Colin Creevey called from further down the table. I bit back a laugh at the _I forgot about this kid_ look on Harry's face. Colin had somewhat grown out of his fanatical obsession, but he still seemed plenty excited to see Harry again after the long summer holiday without him.

“Hi, Colin,” he replied.

“Harry, guess what? Guess what, Harry? My brother’s starting! My brother, Dennis!”

“Er... good!”

“He’s really excited! I just hope he’s in Gryffindor! Keep your fingers crossed, eh, Harry?”

"Will do," he said, smiling politely before asking us in a lower voice, “Brothers and sisters usually go in the same Houses, don’t they?”

"Oh, honestly, Harry," George said, slapping my back. I coughed a couple of times pathetically, laughing nonetheless. "Sorry, Cub! Didn't mean to do that!"

"No worries," I choked out, reaching for a goblet. I swore under my breath when I saw it was empty, making everyone laugh. I coughed a couple more times and brushed my wet hair out of my now-quite-red face. "Anyway, Harry, I think he was trying to point out that siblings don't always end up in the same house." I held up my red-and-gold tie for emphasis.

"Oh, right. Of course." He smiled, cheeks reddening slightly.

“Oh, and Parvati Patil’s twin’s in Ravenclaw, and they’re identical," Hermione piped up. "You’d think they’d be together, wouldn’t you?”

"I guess so," he said with a shrug. "Well, I guess we'll see if we get two Colins in Gryffindor this year, or just the one."

"You sound thrilled about the idea of two," I remarked sarcastically. He shot me a pained glance and directed his attention toward the front of the room as the first-years approached the Sorting Hat.

"Bit dense, isn't he?" Fred whispered in my ear.

"Shut up," I hissed, swatting his knee under the table.

"Thought you'd go for someone with a couple more brain cells," George added in an undertone.

"Well, that rules you two out," I retorted. When he didn't immediately laugh me off, I swatted the back of his head. "Shove off, Weasley."

To be quite honest, I was too hungry to pay much attention to the Sorting. I did notice, though, that Dennis Creevey was put into Gryffindor. Once Kevin Whitby was placed in Hufflepuff and welcomed with applause, Professor Dumbledore rose to his feet.

“I have only two words to say to you: Tuck in.”

"Hear, hear!" the boys all around me shouted as food appeared on the plates.

Nearly Headless Nick floated into the middle of our little group. “You’re lucky there’s a feast at all tonight, you know. There was trouble in the kitchens earlier.”

I pursed my lips. "Trouble, sir?"

“Trouble indeed! Peeves, of course, the usual argument, you know. He wanted to attend the feast --- well, it’s quite out of the question, you know what he’s like, utterly uncivilized, can’t see a plate of food without throwing it. We held a ghost’s council. The Fat Friar was all for giving him the chance, but, most wisely, in my opinion, the Bloody Baron put his foot down.”

Ron nodded. “Yeah, we thought Peeves seemed hacked off about something. So what did he do in the kitchens?”

“Oh the usual. Wreaked havoc and mayhem. Pots and pans everywhere. Place swimming in soup. Terrified the house-elves out of their wits-”

Hermione knocked her goblet over with a loud bang. “There are house-elves _here_? Here at _Hogwarts_?”

Nearly Headless Nick furrowed his brow as if confused by her question. “Certainly. The largest number in any dwelling in Britain, I believe. Over a hundred.”

“I’ve never seen one!”

“Well, they hardly ever leave the kitchen by day, do they? They come out at night to do a bit of cleaning, see to the fires and so on. I mean, you’re not supposed to see them, are you? That’s the mark of a good house-elf, isn’t it, that you don’t know it’s there?”

“But they get _paid_? They get _holidays_ , don’t they? And sick leave, and pensions, and everything?”

The ghost laughed. “Sick leave and pensions? House-elves don’t want sick leave and pensions!”

Hermione slammed her fork and knife down and shoved her plate away.

“You won’t get them sick leave by starving yourself, Hermione,” Ron said, nudging her plate back toward her.

“Slave labor. That’s what made this dinner. _Slave labor_.”

"Hermione," I said, trying to reason with her, "what's done for tonight is done. They've already made the food, so you might as well eat it. I've met the ones in the kitchens before, and they'd rather you eat the food and enjoy it than not eat it at all."

"You've _met_ them? And done nothing for them?"

"I've baked cookies with them before, yeah," I said with a nod. "They're very sweet. They'd want you to eat tonight, Mione, so please."

But she refused to eat another bite, staring darkly at her still-full plate while the rest of us enjoyed the feast. Dumbledore's announcements began as soon as the food disappeared.

“So! Now that we are all fed and watered, I must once more ask for your attention, while I give out a few notices. Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to tell you that the list of objects forbidden inside the castle has this year been extended to include Screaming Yo-Yos, Fanged Frisbees, and Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. The full list comprises some four hundred and thirty-seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch’s office, if anybody would like to check it.”

Fred snorted, saying in an undertone, "The only useful thing we've ever seen in his office is that _beautiful_ map we nicked all those years ago."

I snorted too as Dumbledore continued, “As ever, I would like to remind you all that the forest on the grounds is out-of-bounds to students, as is the village of Hogsmeade to all below third year. It is also my painful duty to inform you that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup will not take place this year.”

My jaw dropped, as did Harry's and Fred's and George's, as well as Cedric's and Henry's across the room.

“This is due to an event," he continued, as if he hadn't just dropped a horrific bombshell on the room, "that will be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers’ time and energy --- but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts-”

Before he could continue, the door banged open. A man I recognized as Mad-Eye Moody entered the Great Hall. He looked the same as he had when I met him as a child, when my mum was still an Auror. I remembered Cedric being scared of him, and I understood why. The magic blue eye was unnerving.

Nobody spoke as Moody made his way to the professor's table and dropped into a chair.

Professor Dumbledore smiled. “May I introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher? Professor Moody.”

“Moody? Mad-Eye Moody? The one your dad went to help this morning?” Harry whispered to Ron.

“Must be,” Ron replied.

"It is," I whispered. "I've met him. You heard that conversation between Mr. Weasley and my dad, too?"

Harry and Ron nodded tersely before returning their attention to the front of the room.

Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat. “As I was saying, we are to have the honor of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year.”

“You’re joking!” Fred shouted, unable to stop himself.

The Great Hall erupted into laughter.

“I am not joking, Mr. Weasley, though now that you mention it, I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll, a hag, and a leprechaun who all go into a bar... er, but maybe this is not the time. Where was I? Ah yes, the Triwizard Tournament... well, some of you will not know what this tournament involves, so I hope those who do know will forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely. The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three largest European schools of wizardry: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. A champion was selected to represent each school, and the three champions competed in three magical tasks. The schools took it in turns to host the tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of establishing ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities --- until, that is, the death toll mounted so high that the tournament was discontinued.”

The words "death toll" did not sit well with me, but if they were bringing it back, surely the Tournament would be safer this time... right?

“There have been several attempts over the centuries to reinstate the tournament, none of which has been very successful. However, our own departments of International Magical Cooperation and Magical Games and Sports have decided the time is ripe for another attempt. We have worked hard over the summer to ensure that this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger. The heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their short-listed contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place at Halloween. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Triwizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money.” Whispers filled the Hall, but they fell silent when Dumbledore spoke again. “Eager though I know all of you will be to bring the Triwizard Cup to Hogwarts, the heads of the participating schools, along with the Ministry of Magic, have agreed to impose an age restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are seventeen years or older will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration."

Meaning... Cedric. He'd be seventeen a little over a week before Halloween.

"This is a measure we feel is necessary, given that the tournament tasks will still be difficult and dangerous, whatever precautions we take, and it is highly unlikely that students below sixth and seventh year will be able to cope with them. I will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion. I therefore beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen. The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving in October and remaining with us for the greater part of this year. I know that you will all extend every courtesy to our foreign guests while they are with us, and will give your whole-hearted support to the Hogwarts champion when he or she is selected. And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter your lessons tomorrow morning. Bedtime! Chop chop!”

To say the Weasley twins were upset about the age limit would be an understatement, but I did shoot Malfoy a smug look as we left the Great Hall. I had been right.

Everyone else talked about the Tournament as we climbed the stairs, talking about how badly they wanted to enter and how they might fool the judge, but my thoughts were with Cedric. I'd largely forgotten about his argument with Dad given the events that followed it, but everything came flooding back to me at once. I bid the boys good night and made my way up to the dormitory in silence, Hermione muttering to herself about house elves. Parvati and Lavender gushed about dresses, and I listened with rapt attention to everything they said, eager for the distraction.

"You should get a blue dress, Lucy, to match your eyes!" Lavender squealed.

"Or purple, to compliment them instead of matching them," Parvati suggested.

"What color are your dresses?" I asked. "I haven't even looked for one yet, knowing you two would help me out."

"We don't know!" they exclaimed in unison, setting us all into a fit of giggles. I felt better being momentarily distracted. But when I was left alone with my thoughts that night, lying in bed, an inkling of anxiety wormed its way into my heart.

_Death toll?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Eek! So begins Year 4! Goblet of Fire is my favorite book, so I really hope to do it justice in this story. (Side note: I have finally seen all of the movies. I wasn't allowed to read or watch Harry Potter as a kid, actually, so I'm a relatively new fan. That being said, Chamber of Secrets was actually my favorite movie! What movie is your favorite? Let me know below, I'm curious!)
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! 
> 
> (Oh, and just pretend that the necklace at the top is two "C"s instead of horseshoes... that was the closest thing I could find to my mental image.)


	53. A Gentle and Tender Hand

_"When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives means the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving much advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a gentle and tender hand."  
Henri Nouwen_

* * *

LUCY:

"You know I love you boys, and I think you're bloody brilliant, but I don't think you'll be able to fool the 'impartial judge,'" I said to Fred and George as we headed down to breakfast the next morning.

"Ah, come off it, Cub," Fred replied. "Theoretically, we _should_ be able to compete in the first place, being sixth-years. Your brother can! Why not us?"

"Is he entering? Cedric, I mean?" George asked.

I shrugged. "I'm sure he's thinking about it."

"Do you want him to enter?"

I shrugged again. "I don't know. It's not my call, it's his. If he enters, I'll support him. If he doesn't, I'll support him in that too."

Fred pouted. "So you'll support him, but not us?"

"It's legal for him to enter!" I chuckled. "Besides, what if you somehow trick the judge, and one of you is chosen? You can't both be chosen. What would that be like?"

"May the best twin win!" they said in unison, making everyone around us laugh. 

When course schedules came around, I scanned mine quickly. "Yes! Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures! What a great way to start the..." My voice trailed off as I saw what was in store after lunch, and I slapped a hand to my forehead.

"What is it?" Harry asked, holding his hand out for my schedule. I passed it to him, and he groaned sympathetically. "Double Ancient Runes? Bloody hell, no wonder you look so upset."

"Wait, if she has that, we must have double Divination!" Ron skimmed his own schedule and swore.

Hermione clucked disapprovingly as she reached for a piece of toast. “You should have given it up like me, shouldn’t you? Then you’d be doing something sensible like Arithmancy.”

“You’re eating again, I notice.”

“I’ve decided there are better ways of making a stand about elf rights.”

“Yeah... and you were hungry.”

I snorted quietly as I took my schedule back from Harry.

The owls carrying the post swooped in then, and Harry scanned them all, searching for Hedwig. He looked troubled, and I tried to think of something I could say to make it better, but nothing came to mind. So, instead, I nudged his foot with my own and offered a sympathetic glance. He shrugged and returned to his breakfast. I glanced across the room to see if Cedric had gotten anything from home; surely enough, he was reading a letter, and I could tell that he was trying hard not to let his emotion show on his face. But as his sister, I could see the tension in his shoulders and the slight tremble of his hands as he gripped the parchment.

Henry, sitting by Cedric's side as always, met my eyes, having noticed the same things I had.

"What is it?" I mouthed.

His eyes flickered between me and the letter a couple of times.

"The Tournament," he mouthed back.

I nodded slowly, biting my lip. Henry sighed and nudged Cedric's plate toward him. I couldn't quite tell what he said, but it looked an awful lot like, "Eat now, deal with him later." Cedric nodded and folded the letter in a single quick motion. I glanced quickly back at my plate before Cedric caught me looking at him, making a mental note to read the letter for myself later. I considered trying a summoning charm to read it right away, but I decided against it.

Harry and I were both lost in worlds of our own thought as we walked down to Herbology. He was undoubtedly thinking about Sirius still, and I was consumed with worry over what that letter could have possibly said to upset Cedric so much.

"Ooh," I said softly when I saw what we were working with in Herbology. "This should be fun."

"What _are_ these, Professor Sprout?" Zacharias Smith asked, clearly horrified.

“Bubotubers. They need squeezing. You will collect the pus-”

“The _what_?” Seamus interrupted, even more horrified.

“Pus, Finnigan, pus, and it’s extremely valuable, so don’t waste it. You will collect the pus, I say, in these bottles. Wear your dragon-hide gloves; it can do funny things to the skin when undiluted, bubotuber pus.”

I quickly pulled my gloves on and eagerly set to work. I'd done this several times in the garden at home, and it actually provided a great release for the worry and anger that had been building up for the past several days since the Quidditch World Cup.

"What about this was supposed to be fun, Lucy?" Ron asked under his breath after he popped a particularly, ah, _fruitful_ swelling.

"It's so satisfying," I replied, screwing the cap onto one of my bottles. "Cedric and I do it all the time in our garden at home."

Ron wrinkled his nose. "Fun," he replied sarcastically, making everyone within earshot laugh.

"What else will we be learning this year, Professor Sprout?" Neville piped up near the end of class. I smiled; I knew very well how much he loved Herbology.

"Wiggentrees are next, Mr. Longbottom!"

"Will the bowtruckles be provided, Professor?" I asked with a laugh.

"You can catch your own, Miss Diggory," she chuckled.

It was Harry's turn to ask a quiet question. "Bowtruckles?"

"They guard trees whose wood is used in wands," Hermione explained.

"They're adorable!" I added. "They're everywhere in the forest."

"Adorable? Lucy, surely you of all people know that their 'harmless' classification by Newt Scamander is hotly debated by magizoologists."

I waved her off. "They're only aggressive if they believe their trees are being threatened. They're typically as skittish as porlocks."

"Do you know what they're talking about? Because I sure don't," Ron said in a stage-whisper to Harry, making us all laugh again.

My mood was already improved by the end of Herbology; Care of Magical Creatures was even better. Hagrid had told me over summer that he'd been breeding creatures he called blast-ended skrewts, and he was hoping they'd hatch before the first lesson. The sound of small explosions confirmed that they had, in fact, hatched.

“Mornin’!” Hagrid greeted cheerfully.

"Good morning, Hagrid!" I replied. "I can't wait for your lesson today!"

He smiled and nodded. “Be’er wait fer the Slytherins, though, they won’ want ter miss this..." He paused for dramatic effect before announcing, "Blast-ended skrewts!”

Ron cocked an eyebrow. “Come again?”

"In there," I said, pointing to the crates.

Lavender shrieked and jumped away. I, on the other hand, watched in awe as the creatures scurried around inside, periodically sending off tiny explosions.

“On’y jus’ hatched, so yeh’ll be able ter raise ’em yerselves! Thought we’d make a bit of a project of it!” Hagrid said.

“And why would we want to raise them?” I whirled around angrily as Draco and the rest of the Slytherins arrived. “I mean, what do they _do_? What's the point of them?”

 _I will NOT let him ruin Care of Magical Creatures this year, too,_ I swore to myself, feeling my hands automatically close into fists.

"They exist," I said as calmly as I could. "They're living magical creatures. Therefore, they're worthy of our interest, especially in this Care of Magical Creatures class. Is that not enough of a 'point' for you?"

"Says the daughter of a magical creatures enthusiast."

"You signed up for this class again," I pointed out.

He scoffed and turned to Hagrid. "Tell us, _Professor_ , why would we want to raise them?"

“Tha’s next lesson, Malfoy. Yer jus’ feedin’ ’em today. Now, yeh’ll wan’ ter try ’em on a few diff’rent things, I’ve never had ’em before, not sure what they’ll go fer. I got ant eggs an’ frog livers an’ a bit o’ grass snake, so just try ’em out with a bit of each.”

"What do you recommend first?" I asked, immediately stepping forward and offering my best smile, trying to compensate for Malfoy however I could.

"Prob'bly the frog livers, reckon it'd be easiest for 'em ter eat since they're so young."

"Alright!" I plunged my hands into the barrel and knelt down in front of a crate. "Hey there. Want to try?"

When none of them came forward, I gingerly reached inside and laid the liver down. They gathered around it curiously, and I heard a couple classmates beginning to follow my lead.

"How do you distinguish between the males and females, Professor?" I asked later in the period when I finally stepped back so everyone else could get a turn. I kept a very sharp eye on Draco, who was muttering something to Pansy Parkinson.

“Ah, some of ’em have got stings, an' I reckon they’re the males. The females’ve got sorta sucker things on their bellies, and I think they might be ter suck blood.”

Before I could reply, Dean Thomas yelped. “Ouch! It got me! Its end exploded!”

Hagrid nodded. “Ah, yeah, that can happen when they blast off.”

"I can heal it up," I offered, tapping Dean's hand with my wand and muttering a quick healing spell Cedric had mentioned would have worked on my burns from the Quidditch World Cup.

"Thanks, Lucy," he said. "How did you do it without getting burned?"

"Drop the food a little closer to the edge of the crate and back away a little faster," I replied with a wry grin. "And-"

Draco Malfoy interrupted the rest of my advice. “Well, I can certainly see why we’re trying to keep them alive. Who _wouldn’t_ want pets that can burn, sting, and bite all at once?”

Hermione replied immediately, her voice bitingly cold. “Just because they’re not very pretty doesn’t mean they’re not useful. Dragon blood’s amazingly magical, but you wouldn’t want a dragon for a pet, would you?”

Harry and Ron snorted, thinking of Norbert, no doubt. No, wait... Norbert _a_.

"Even scary creatures can be useful," I added as I reached for a couple of ant eggs.

Draco actually stopped what he was doing to look up at me. "What makes you say that?"

"Like dragons, for example. I mean, you probably have dragon heartstring in your wand, Malfoy," I said with a shrug, going to stand next to him at his crate. Couldn't be too careful when he was in this class, after all.

"Um, no, actually. I don't. Why'd you think that?"

"Doesn't Draco mean dragon in Latin?"

"How did you know that?"

"Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus," I replied. "Never tickle a sleeping dragon. You know, the Hogwarts motto?"

"I know what the Hogwarts motto is," he snapped, "I was just wondering how someone as dense as you could know something as obscure as-"

"Yeah, whatever," I interrupted, "I know you think I'm stupid. Sorry to disappoint you. I'm curious, now, though... what _is_ your wand core?"

"Unicorn hair."

"Huh. Mine too." I raised my eyebrows. "I guess we have more in common than perhaps we realize."

He sniffed. "I wouldn't go that far, Diggory."

"I know, I know. You still hate me." We could hear the distant bell ringing, signaling the end of class, I tossed the last egg into the crate and rejoined Ron and Harry and Hermione. 

“Well, at least the skrewts are small,” Ron was saying as I caught up.

“They are _now_ , but once Hagrid’s found out what they eat, I expect they’ll be six feet long,” Hermione said.

Ron smirked. “Well, that won’t matter if they turn out to cure seasickness or something, will it?”

Harry and I both laughed, but Hermione was less than amused. “You know perfectly well I only said that to shut Malfoy up. As a matter of fact, I think he’s right. The best thing to do would be to stamp on the lot of them before they start attacking us all.”

I stopped laughing abruptly. "I thought they were neat."

"Yeah, when they're not burning or biting or stinging or whatever else they can do," Hermione retorted, rolling her eyes. "Honestly, Lucy, sometimes you're as bad as Hagrid."

I bit my lower lip, not knowing how to respond. Thankfully, I didn't have to, because we had reached the Great Hall. Hermione nearly ran to her seat and began shoveling food into her mouth.

The boys and I exchanged a look.

Ron found his voice first. “Er... is this the new stand on elf rights? You’re going to make yourself puke instead?”

“No, I just want to get to the library.”

“What? Hermione, it’s the first day back! We haven’t even got homework yet!”

She shoved a couple more bites into her mouth and jumped up again before we had even thought about sitting down. "See you at dinner!" she called through a mouthful of food as she nearly ran back out of the Hall.

All things considered, my first day of double Ancient Runes wasn't as bad as I feared. Professor Babbling decided to pair us up according to how well we performed in the class the year prior... meaning I was still stuck sitting next to Draco Malfoy, since I had finished top of the class and he was a close second. But, to my surprise, he didn't say anything mean to me. He didn't say anything nice, either. In fact, he said nothing at all. But the silence was better than anything I had yet experienced.

"I'll beat Draco in the class this year, I promise," Hermione said as we left the classroom in search of Harry and Ron. "I would have last year, but I was so worried about Arithmancy I spent most of my Ancient Runes study time studying for that instead and-"

"You had too much going on, it's okay," I said. "He actually didn't say anything mean to me today. But I'm looking forward to sitting next to you next year!"

We spied the boys a few feet ahead of us and hurried to keep up, Hermione going to Ron's side and me going to Harry's.

“Miserable old bat. That’ll take all weekend, that will,” Ron complained as we approached.

“Lots of homework? Professor Babbling didn’t give us any at all!” Hermione bragged.

He rolled his eyes. “Well, bully for Professor Babbling.”

"How was Ancient Runes, Lu?" Harry asked. "Malfoy give you any trouble?"

"He... bloody hell, here he comes-"

“Weasley!" he shouted, grinning. "Hey, Weasley!”

I reached for my wand slowly but deliberately.

Ron stiffened. “What?”

“Your dad’s in the paper, Weasley! Listen to this! 'Further Mistakes-'"

"Silencio!" I hissed, the second I heard "mistakes."

Malfoy mouthed a couple more words, but realized he'd been silenced and drew his own wand. "Finite incantatem," he mouthed, and continued, "As I was saying, Further Mistakes at the Ministry of Ma-'"

"Silencio!" I hissed again.

His cold eyes swept the crowd as he reversed the spell again. When his gaze landed on me, my wand in my hand, he smiled. "Your dad wasn't stupid enough to make the paper, sorry Diggory-"

"Silencio!"

"Expelliarmus!" My wand flew out of my hand and straight into Pansy Parkinson's. She smiled sweetly at me. "Nice try, Scars. Go on, Draco."

Draco smirked at me and cleared his throat.

"'Further Mistakes at the Ministry of Magic! It seems as though the Ministry of Magic’s troubles are not yet at an end, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. Recently under fire for its poor crowd control at the Quidditch World Cup, and still unable to account for the disappearance of one of its witches, the Ministry was plunged into fresh embarrassment yesterday by the antics of Arnold Weasley, of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office.'" He laughed and looked up. “Imagine them not even getting his name right, Weasley. It’s almost as though he’s a complete nonentity, isn’t it?”

"Shut up," I growled.

"Make me," he replied. "Oh, wait! You can't!"

I glared at him as he continued, "'Arnold Weasley, who was charged with possession of a flying car two years ago, was yesterday involved in a tussle with several Muggle law-keepers ('policemen') over a number of highly aggressive dustbins. Mr. Weasley appears to have rushed to the aid of 'Mad-Eye' Moody, the aged ex-Auror who retired from the Ministry when no longer able to tell the difference between a handshake and attempted murder. Unsurprisingly, Mr. Weasley found, upon arrival at Mr. Moody’s heavily guarded house, that Mr. Moody had once again raised a false alarm. Mr. Weasley was forced to modify several memories before he could escape from the policemen, but refused to answer _Daily Prophet_ questions about why he had involved the Ministry in such an undignified and potentially embarrassing scene.' And there’s a picture, Weasley! A picture of your parents outside their house, if you can call it a house! Your mother could do with losing a bit of weight, couldn’t she?”

Harry stepped forward and grabbed Ron's arm, glaring at Draco. “Get stuffed, Malfoy. C’mon, Ron.”

“Oh yeah, you were staying with them this summer, weren’t you, Potter? So tell me, is his mother really that porky, or is it just the picture?”

Harry dropped Ron's arm and took another step forward. “You know your mother, Malfoy? That expression she’s got, like she’s got dung under her nose? Has she always looked like that, or was it just because you were with her?”

“Don’t you dare insult my mother, Potter.” To my surprise, Draco was beginning to turn red.

“Keep your fat mouth shut, then,” Harry said, turning around. Draco drew his wand in a split second, and I shoved Harry out of the way.

"Get down!" I shouted, lunging forward and snatching my wand out of Pansy's hand. Before I could face Draco, there was a pop and a shout of “OH NO YOU DON’T, LADDIE!” And just like that, Draco was gone. I didn't have time to wonder where he had gone.

Mad-Eye Moody approached the scene, reaching Harry first.

“Did he get you?” he asked.

Harry shook his head, hand going up to his cheek. "No. Missed. Lucy shoved me out of the way."

Mad-Eye Moody turned to me, a strange light in his eye... well, his normal eye. His magical eye was pointed in a completely different direction. "Lucy Diggory, is it? Susan's girl?"

I nodded, feeling my cheeks flush as I tried to tuck my wand away. "Yes, sir. I know magic in the halls is against the rules, but I can explain-"

"Leave it!" he shouted suddenly.

"Leave... what?"

"Not you, him!" he said, whirling around to face Crabbe and Goyle, who were trying to pick up... a ferret? The ferret squeaked and tried to run away, but Moody lifted it into the air with a flick of his wand. “I don’t think so!”

Harry suddenly grabbed me by the arm and pulled me away from Pansy. He leveled his wand at her. "Don't even think about it," he muttered through clenched teeth. In my panic over a professor arriving, I hadn't even realized her wand was pointed at me. She lowered it, though, looking somewhat intimidated by Harry.

"Thanks," I breathed, inching closer to him as he released my arm.

"You saved my back first," he said with a small smile. "Fair's fair."

I looked for a second longer into his eyes before turning away. Moody got closer and closer to the ferret, bouncing it up and down in the air as he talked to it. “I don’t like people who attack when their opponent’s back’s turned. Stinking, cowardly, scummy thing to do. Never do that again.”

"Professor Moody!"

 _Oh bloody hell,_ I thought to myself, _if McGonagall finds out I used magic in the halls, I'm done for..._

Professor Moody seemed unfazed. “Hello, Professor McGonagall,” he said, as casually as if they were merely passing in the street.

“What- What are you doing?”

“Teaching.”

The books she was carrying spilled out onto the floor. “Teach- Moody, is that a _student_?”

“Yep.”

“No!” With a flick of Professor McGonagall's wand, the ferret became none other than Draco Malfoy, on the ground with pain written all over his face. “Moody, we never use transfiguration as a punishment! Surely Professor Dumbledore told you that?”

“He might’ve mentioned it, yeah, but I thought a good sharp shock-”

“We give detentions, Moody! Or speak to the offender’s Head of House!”

“I’ll do that, then.”

Draco, eyes watering, muttered something that sounded an awful lot like "My father will hear about this."

“Oh yeah? Well, I know your father of old, boy. You tell him Moody’s keeping a close eye on his son, you tell him that from me. Now, your Head of House’ll be Snape, will it?”

Draco nodded.

“Another old friend. I’ve been looking forward to a chat with old Snape. Come on, you. Oh, and Diggory?” Professor Mood turned to face me.

I felt some of the blood drain from my face. But he didn't seem to have ill intent.

"Tell your mother I'm keeping a close eye on you, too."

"Y-Yes sir," I stammered. He merely smiled and limped away, gripping Draco by the shoulder. With the spectacle over, the four of us took our seats at the Gryffindor table.

“Don’t talk to me,” Ron said, closing his eyes.

“Why not?” Hermione asked, clearly surprised.

Ron smiled dreamily. “Because I want to fix that in my memory forever. Draco Malfoy, the amazing bouncing ferret...”

Hermione and Harry laughed, but I found myself still somewhat numb. Something about the way Professor Moody had looked at me... something about the fact he was going to keep a "close eye" on me... something about how quickly he'd turned Malfoy into a ferret and hurt him badly enough to make his eyes water, with physical pain or humiliation, I couldn't tell... something about everything that had just happened didn't sit right with me.

Hermione seemed to share at least part of my concern after she stopped laughing. “He could have really hurt Malfoy, though. It was good, really, that Professor McGonagall stopped it-”

“Hermione! You’re ruining the best moment of my life!” Ron whined.

She didn't reply, instead shoveling food into her mouth the way she had at lunch.

Harry watched her with mild horror. “Don’t tell me you’re going back to the library this evening?”

She swallowed quickly. “Got to. Loads to do.”

“But you told us Professor Babbling didn't-”

“It’s not schoolwork,” she replied, taking one more bite and jumping up.

"Did she tell _you_ what she's doing, Lucy?" Ron asked.

I shook my head and shrugged.

The twins slid onto the bench on either side of me.

“Moody! How cool is he?”

“We had him this afternoon.”

Harry raised his eyebrows. “What was it like?”

The twins exchanged a long look.

“Never had a lesson like it.”

“He _knows_ , man.”

"Knows what?" Ron asked.

“Knows what it’s like to be out there _doing_ it.”

“Fighting the Dark Arts, he means.”

“He’s seen it all.”

I wasn't terribly hungry, so I left a couple minutes later. I bumped into Cedric, who was just entering the Great Hall.

"Oh, hi," I said, offering a smile. "How was your first day?"

"It was alright, and yours?"

I shrugged. "Same."

"You know, I'm not terribly hungry," he said. "Walk with me?"

"Sure. Dad's letter kill your appetite?"

"Something like that. How'd you know about that?"

I managed a smile. "Sibling intuition, I suppose. With a bit of help from one Henry Furls, of course."

"Of course," he chuckled.

"Does Dad still want you to enter the Triwizard Tournament? Because I personally agree that you could benefit from spending more time with Cho and Henry, but if _you_ want to do the Tournament _independently of Dad_ , I'll support that, too."

"How'd you know about _that_?"

"I overheard part of the conversation in the tent," I admitted. "I swear I wasn't eavesdropping, I just heard Dad raise his voice and started listening then to make sure everything was alright."

"It's probably for the best you were listening," he said softly. "I hate to think about what might've happened if you'd been asleep when we got hit, or even worse, in the hallway..."

"And it's a good thing _you_ weren't in _your_ room," I pointed out. "It was hit directly, since it was in the middle of the hallway. I know that conversation wasn't one you really wanted to have, but... it might have saved your life."

He nodded. "Yeah, it might have."

We walked in comfortable silence for a couple of seconds, both enjoying the cool September air as the rays of the setting sun bathed the grounds in gold. We both naturally gravitated toward the Quidditch Pitch, and we didn't speak again until we found ourselves in the stands, between a Hufflepuff box and a Gryffindor box, funny enough.

"Did you really spend the whole summer working on Quidditch plans?" I wondered aloud.

He snorted. "Yes. It was a good distraction from the life-and-death heaviness of the work I had to do during the day. Back in my flat, when I wasn't writing letters to you or Henry or Cho or Mum and Dad, I was working on plays and planning practice schedules.."

"At least you can use them next year, yeah?"

"Yeah, and I will. Gryffindor is going _down_ next year," he added, grinning good-naturedly.

"In your dreams," I retorted. "We'll see what our new Captain has to say about that... whoever it is."

"My money's on Angelina. She and Alicia are both very skilled, of course, but Alicia's more introverted, and whoever's in charge of controlling Fred and George needs to be..."

"Not shy," I finished for him, laughing.

He laughed too. "Not shy. Exactly." He sighed. "You know, part of me wishes I were just 12 days younger so I wouldn't even have to worry about the Tournament. The twins are lucky in that way, though I know they'd think I was mad for saying such a thing."

I nodded, opting to remain silent so he could talk freely about whatever came to mind next. Surely enough, he spoke again after a couple moments.

"I did what Dad said. I haven't come up with a solid reason to _not_ do it yet. I just... haven't come up with any reason _to_ do it, either." He turned to me. "What do you think I should do?"

"I think you should follow your heart," I said softly. I sighed. "Ced, I've watched Dad try to live through you for nearly ten years now. He's told you what to do. And you've done it, and you're brilliant, but... the Triwizard Tournament could be the most important decision you've ever made. And I don't want Dad to be the one who calls this shot for you, the way he's tried to call the shots in everything else. Whatever you decide, it needs to come from _you_. Not from Dad, not from Mum, not from Henry or Cho or Beatrice or Professor Sprout, not even from me. This needs to be _your_ call."

"What if I make the wrong decision?" he asked, his voice strained. "If I don't enter, Dad would never let me forget the opportunity I missed. But if I do enter, if I'm somehow chosen... well... what then?"

I bit my lip, considering this for a second. "You know... if being a Gryffindor when I was expected to be a Hufflepuff has taught me anything, it's that when you listen to what your soul is telling you, there are no wrong decisions." I paused a moment. "Did I ever tell you what the Sorting Hat told me?"

"I don't think so, but I'll admit I've always wondered. You were nearly a Hatstall."

I laughed a bit. "That's because I resisted! I begged to be in Hufflepuff, just like you. And honestly, there have been several times when I thought being in Gryffindor was a mistake. It happened a lot last year, like with the boggarts and everything they entailed, and during the 24 hour period in which you left, there was a full moon, _and_ Professor Lupin left. A lot of the time, I don't _feel_ brave. I don't _feel_ like a Gryffindor. But I am, and I know in my heart the Sorting Hat made the right decision." I took a deep breath and released it slowly. "The Sorting Hat told me that its job was to sort me for who I was, rather than who everyone else wanted me to be. It's taken me a long time to figure out what that means, but I think I'm finally starting to understand. And Cedric, I think the Triwizard Tournament is your Sorting Hat, so to speak. Whether you decide to enter or not, it needs to be what _you_ want to do, not what you think everyone else wants you to do."

"So what I'm hearing is... you're not going to tell me if you want me to enter or not?"

I swatted his arm. "Honestly! Did you not hear a word I just said?"

He laughed. "No, I did. I'm just clarifying."

I narrowed my eyes at him, trying to look as stern as Professor McGonagall and probably --- no, definitely --- failing. "No. I'm not going to tell you what I think you should do, because my opinion shouldn't matter to you. This is your call, Cedric Diggory, and you need to make it yourself."

"Okay," he said, nodding slowly. "Thanks for talking to me, Lucy. I'll definitely remember what you said. What the Sorting Hat said is interesting, too. It definitely made the right decision, putting you in Gryffindor."

"You think so?"

"Don't get me wrong, I still wish sometimes that we were in Hufflepuff together. But then I see you laughing with the twins, or talking very seriously about Merlin-knows-what with Harry and Hermione and Ron, or absolutely crushing it on the Quidditch Pitch with the Gryffindor team, and I realize you're exactly where you're meant to be."

"I know you're where you're meant to be, too," I said. "I know that you're a Hufflepuff at heart and that you're meant to be a healer and that you truly love Quidditch and Henry and Cho and Transfiguration and Chocolate Frogs and all of that... I know Dad had nothing to do with shaping those parts of your life. But I also know that you're meant to make this decision about the Triwizard Tournament by yourself. A coming-of-age journey, if you will."

He nodded. "I'll admit I was planning on just taking a general survey of people whose opinions I value and basing my decision on their consensus, but you've convinced me, Lu." Cedric sat a little taller and squared his shoulders. "I'll still ask people their opinions, but at the end of the day... I'll do whatever my heart tells me to do."

I smiled. "That's what I like to hear."

"So... what should I do?"

I punched his shoulder, laughing. "Ask Henry and Cho. _I'm_ still not going to tell you what I think you should do."

He pouted playfully. "Why not?"

"Because I don't know what I want you to do," I admitted. "I don't know if I want you to enter or not. But I do know that I'll support whatever decision you make, as long as you make it for yourself."

"Okay. That's fair."

Cedric's voice already sounded more confident than it had been at the start of the conversation. I knew I was up against years of well-hidden insecurities, but I was determined to have my say just the same. Cedric deserved it. Whatever the Triwizard Tournament held, Cedric deserved to write his own chapter of the story, without Dad's editorial comments in the back of his mind.

"Thank you for talking to me, Lucy," he said after a moment. "You've given me something to think about other than what Dad wants."

"That's what little sisters in Gryffindor are for," I replied, smiling. "Now, come on. You should have at least a little something for dinner."

* * *

As I fell asleep that night, Professor Moody's odd comments toward me were long forgotten. My mind swirled instead with images of Henry and Cho on either side of me as we cheered Cedric on, and alternative images of Cedric with us as we cheered someone else on. I had meant what I said to Cedric; I didn't know what I hoped he'd do. I still didn't like the sound of "death toll," but I knew that Cedric would be able to handle whatever challenges came his way. 

The next morning brought the first Potions class of the year, which proved to be nothing short of a disaster for Neville. He added an ingredient to his potion too soon, leading to his cauldron promptly melting. Snape, of course, was quick to give him detention, but as we walked to Professor Moody's class afterwards, I reminded Neville of how silly the boggart looked wearing the elderly Mrs. Longbottom's clothing. This seemed to cheer him up a little, and I invited him to sit at the same desk as Harry and me. He eagerly accepted, so I slid in between the boys and waited for the lesson to begin.

Soon enough, Professor Moody arrived, clunking footsteps and magical eye and all.

He surveyed the room. “You can put those away, those books. You won’t need them.”

Everyone quickly stuffed their books into their bags, the room swelling briefly with excited whispers before falling silent again. Everyone had heard from the older kids at that point that Professor Moody's first lesson was interesting, to say the least, so we were eager to see what exactly it entailed.

He quickly took attendance, his magical eye flicking to every student's face as his normal eye read their name. I felt somewhat uncomfortable all over again when he looked at me, but I reminded myself that Mum had trusted and respected him in his time as an Auror, so I had no reason not to as well.

He set down the parchment when everyone had declared themselves present and surveyed the room again. “Right then. I’ve had a letter from Professor Lupin about this class. Seems you’ve had a pretty thorough grounding in tackling Dark creatures. You’ve covered boggarts, red caps, hinkypunks, grindylows, kappas, and werewolves, but you’re behind --- very behind --- on dealing with curses. So I’m here to bring you up to scratch on what wizards can do to each other. I’ve got one year to teach you how to deal with Dark-”

“What, aren’t you staying?” Ron asked.

Moody's magical eye snapped in his direction, then he smiled. “You’ll be Arthur Weasley’s son, eh? Your father got me out of a very tight corner a few days ago. Yeah, I’m staying just the one year. Special favor to Dumbledore. One year, and then back to my quiet retirement.” He laughed sarcastically and clapped his hands together. “So, straight into it. Curses. They come in many strengths and forms. Now, according to the Ministry of Magic, I’m supposed to teach you countercurses and leave it at that. I’m not supposed to show you what illegal Dark curses look like until you’re in the sixth year. You’re not supposed to be old enough to deal with it till then. But Professor Dumbledore’s got a higher opinion of your nerves, he reckons you can cope, and I say, the sooner you know what you’re up against, the better. How are you supposed to defend yourself against something you’ve never seen? A wizard who’s about to put an illegal curse on you isn’t going to tell you what he’s about to do. He’s not going to do it nice and polite to your face. You need to be prepared. You need to be alert and watchful. You need to put that away, Miss Brown, when I’m talking.”

I subtly looked over my shoulder to see what had happened. Apparently, she'd been showing Parvati something under the desk. If his eye could see through solid wood... what else could it go through? I chose to force this thought from my mind and turned back to Professor Moody.

“So, do any of you know which curses are most heavily punished by wizarding law?”

He nodded toward Ron first. “Er, my dad told me about one. Is it called the Imperius Curse, or something?”

“Ah, yes. Your father _would_ know that one. Gave the Ministry a lot of trouble at one time, the Imperius Curse.”

Professor Moody wordlessly rose from his chair and grabbed a jar with three spiders inside. I watched with a small smile as Ron's hand shot out for Hermione's beneath their shared desk, and she gave it a reassuring squeeze. I nudged Harry and pointed in their direction, and his hand flew to his mouth to stifle a laugh.

"Imperio!" Professor Moody said suddenly, pointing to the spider in his hand. The arachnid did a number of gymnastics stunts and silly dances, making nearly everyone in the class laugh. I remembered all too well the trouble in the Ministry Professor Moody had mentioned --- Mum's own partner, Brenda, had been affected by the curse, and I remembered all too well the distress it had caused our family when her partner was killed for learning to resist it by the same Dark wizard trying to control her.

Professor Moody stopped abruptly. “Think it’s funny, do you? You’d like it, would you, if I did it to you?”

Nobody was laughing anymore. A chill ran down my spine, but I forced my emotions away, not wanting any to show themselves while I was sitting between Neville Longbottom and Harry Potter... I knew which Unforgiveable Curses were next. And I knew both boys needed me to be strong for those.

“Total control... I could make it jump out of the window, drown itself, throw itself down one of your throats. Years back, there were a lot of witches and wizards being controlled by the Imperius Curse. Some job for the Ministry, trying to sort out who was being forced to act, and who was acting of their own free will. The Imperius Curse can be fought, and I’ll be teaching you how, but it takes real strength of character, and not everyone’s got it. Better avoid being hit with it if you can. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!”

Everyone flinched when he shouted suddenly, but he had a point. With the Dark Mark in the sky at the Quidditch World Cup... anything was possible.

“Anyone else know one? Another illegal curse?”

Neville slowly raised his hand. It trembled in the air, but it was in the air. Professor Moody looked over in surprise.

“Yes?”

Neville lowered his hand. “There’s one... the Cruciatus Curse.”

“Your name’s Longbottom?”

He nodded. 

Professor Moody reached for another spider. “The Cruciatus Curse needs to be a bit bigger for you to get the idea. Engorgio!”

The spider grew to about the size of a Bludger. Poor Ron screeched his chair backward in fright.

"Crucio!" Professor Moody shouted.

Neville's hands gripped the desk suddenly, his face completely white with horror. I laid my hand atop his, rubbing my thumb in small, comforting circles.

"It's okay, it's okay," I whispered, trying hard not to panic myself as the spider twitched and rolled and spasmed, obviously in horrific pain. "It's okay, Neville, it's alright-"

"Stop it!" Hermione shrieked, having looked over and seen Neville's distress. 

Professor Moody reduced the spider to its typical size and returned it to the jar. I gently pried Neville's hands off the desk. I continued rubbing my thumb up and down the back of his hand, hoping to try to calm him. He gripped my hand back as if his life depended on it.

"It's okay," I whispered again. "It's over."

It was for Neville, anyway.

“Pain. You don’t need thumbscrews or knives to torture someone if you can perform the Cruciatus Curse. That one was very popular once too." Professor Moody grabbed the last spider from the jar. "Right, anyone know any others?”

Hermione was the only one to raise her hand this time. “Avada kedavra,” she whispered.

“Ah. Yes, the last and worst. Avada kedavra. The Killing Curse.” He laid the spider on the table, pointing his wand at it. "Avada kedavra!"

With a flash of sickeningly green light, the spider was dead. I shot out for Harry's closest hand with my free hand, seeing how pale his face was. His eyes were far away, just like Neville's, and he held my hand tightly, too, just like Neville.

I didn't listen to another word Professor Moody said the rest of the lesson, it seemed. I could hear what he was saying, copying down the notes he wanted us to take because the boys on either side of me were shaking too badly to write legibly, but I chose not to actually absorb any of the information. I didn't want to have to remember this lesson. When the class ended, I threw my parchment into my bag and turned to Neville, who remained frozen in place.

"Nev," I said softly. "Class is over. We can go now."

He blinked, swallowing hard. "Yeah. Yeah, we can. I'll just-" He wadded up his parchment and shoved it into his pocket. "Forgot my bag today," he explained in a mumble. "Just like me, isn't it? Leaving my bag behind in the dormitory, the disaster in Potions, now this. All I'll ever be is a-"

"Shh." I laid a comforting hand on top of his. "Don't say that."

He looked at me for the first time, eyes so full of pain my chest hurt at the sight of it. "Why not? It's true."

Neville stood and started to walk toward the door, but Professor Moody's voice stopped him in his tracks. “Mr. Longbottom, why don’t you stay? Come on, we can have a cup of tea.”

Neville glanced between me, Harry, Ron, and Hermione, the only people left in the room, but before any of us could say anything, Professor Moody spoke again.

“You alright, are you, Potter?”

Harry's voice was flat and almost angry. “Yes.”

“You’ve got to know. It seems harsh, maybe, but you’ve got to know. No point pretending... well... come on, Longbottom, I’ve got some books that might interest you.”

The rest of us left the room quietly, not speaking again until we were a good distance away. 

“What was that about?” Ron asked.

“I don’t know,” Hermione replied, looking at me. "Do you, Lucy?"

I hesitated for a second before nodding. "I don't really want to talk about it. It's not my place, anyway."

“Some lesson, though, eh? Fred and George were right, weren’t they?" Ron gushed. "He really knows his stuff, Moody, doesn’t he? When he did Avada kedavra, the way that spider just died, just snuffed it right-”

Hermione whacked Ron's shoulder when she saw the look on Harry's face. I let my hand swing in such a way that our knuckles grazed, a gentle reminder that I was right there beside him. 

Again, Hermione ate in a rush and disappeared to the library, leaving the boys and I to our own devices. Neville never came down to dinner, so when the boys headed up to their dormitory to get their homework, I asked them to check on him if he was up there, telling Harry to bring me the Map if he wasn't so I could go find him. I was halfway through the introductory paragraph of my Potions essay when they returned.

"He's up there," Harry reported. "Moody gave him a book about Herbology, and mentioned that Professor Sprout told him Neville was really good at Herbology."

I smiled. "He is! I'm sure Neville was glad to hear that. It's not too often he's told he's good at something."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Seems like something Professor Lupin would do," he added after a moment.

My smile faltered slightly. "Yeah... it does, doesn't it?" I cleared my throat. "What are you two working on tonight?"

"Divination," Ron groaned, flopping down dramatically into the chair across from me as Harry sat between us. "Want to help?"

"Help? I haven't the foggiest about Divination, why would you want my help?"

"We have to predict our futures for the next month," Harry explained. "Say, you're good at Astronomy! That's the first thing you ever helped me with! Maybe you'll know why Mars-"

"That's not what I meant, mate," Ron chuckled. "I was thinking we could, ah... do what we usually do when we don't understand."

“What, make it up?”

“Yeah, exactly. Lucy might have some new ideas.”

I laughed. "New ideas? What do you mean?"

Ron drew his quill out of his bag with a flourish and began writing. “Next Monday, I am likely to develop a cough, owing to the unlucky conjunction of Mars and Jupiter.” He added a period to his sentence and looked up at me. “Just put in loads of misery, she’ll lap it up.”

Harry grinned at me sheepishly. “He's right. Okay, on Monday, _I_ will be in danger of --- er --- burns.”

“Yeah, you will be, since we’re seeing the skrewts again on Monday," Ron retorted. Harry grabbed his book and started flipping through the pages. "Okay, Tuesday, I’ll, erm-”

"Lose a treasured possession?" I offered, reading a list of omens over Harry's shoulder.

“Good one, Lu! You're catching on! I'll say it's because of, uh, Mercury. Why don’t you get stabbed in the back by someone you thought was a friend, Harry?”

Harry nodded as he wrote it down. “Yeah, cool, because... Venus is in the twelfth house.”

“And on Wednesday, I think I’ll come off worst in a fight.”

“Aaah, I was going to have a fight. Okay, I’ll lose a bet.”

“Yeah, you’ll be betting I’ll win my fight.”

I giggled. "You two, I swear to Merlin. I need to ask Henry if he and Ced are like this."

"You should also ask Cedric if he'd like to join me in nearly drowning in the Black Lake on Thursday," Harry said.

"Maybe Henry will help me rescue you both, only to be attacked by the grindylows!" Ron suggested.

"I'll be sure to get pictures, safely on the shore and far away from the water," I commented, rolling my eyes. "What about Friday? Are you two going to have your shampoo replaced by the twins with firewhisky?"

"You know what, I think we will," Ron said as he scribbled it down.

"I think I'll go temporarily blind because of it," Harry added. "We can be blind buddies, Lu."

"Lovely," I remarked sarcastically. 

I never did touch my Potions essay again that night. After helping ("helping," more like) the boys with their predictions for a bit, l joined the twins in the corner of the room.

"Ludo Bagman still?" I asked in an almost-whisper.

"Yeah," George muttered, moving over so I could kneel in between them. "I told Fred this sentence sounds too accusatory, what do you think?"

I skimmed it quickly. "It's a bit harsh," I agreed.

"A bit harsh?" Fred protested. "Cub, he stole our-"

"I know, I know," I said, frantically gesturing for him to lower his voice. "But you can always get more aggressive over time. It's always better to start reasonably calm and respectful, then escalate the tension if necessary."

"Do you blackmail people often?" George asked.

"This would be the first time," I replied with a small grin. "But then again, I wouldn't be the one doing it. I'd just be the one, ah, offering advice and proofreading services. Speaking of, want me to read over this one in the morning before you send it?"

"That'd be great, thanks," Fred said, sighing. "Well, we'd best be off to bed. You'll go to bed soon, yeah?"

"Yeah, yeah, once Hermione's back."

"Where has she been going?"

"The library. Merlin knows why, though. Night, boys."

"Night, Cub!" they said in unison, disappearing up the stairs to their dormitory.

Hermione burst in through the portrait hole as soon as I sat back down at the boys' table, balancing a stack of parchment and a massive box in her arms. She dumped this all onto the table with a smile.

“I’ve just finished!” she exclaimed

"So have I," Ron announced, setting his quill down and interlocking his fingers behind his head.

Hermione skimmed his homework curiously. “Not going to have a very good month, are you?”

He shrugged. “Ah well, at least I’m forewarned.”

“You seem to be drowning twice.”

“Oh, am I? I’d better change one of them to getting trampled by a rampaging hippogriff.”

“Don’t you think it’s a bit obvious you’ve made these up?”

“How dare you!” Ron scoffed, pretending to be mortally offended. 

Harry set down his quill. "Nice knowing you all, but I'll be decapitated on September 30."

I swatted his arm, laughing nonetheless. "Don't even joke about that!"

He kept his face perfectly serious, though I could tell it took some effort. "Are you doubting the integrity of my Inner Eye?"

"Yeah, Lucy, that's not very aura-sensitive of you. Your disbelief is really clouding my vision," Ron said. He closed his eyes and reached his hand toward me. "Hold on, I'm sensing something... a change in your aura..." His eyes snapped open, and he gasped, his hands flying dramatically to his cheeks. "Tragedy is coming! Unspeakable tragedy! Within the next year! Lucy, you're doomed!"

I threw a wadded-up piece of parchment at his forehead. "Oh, shove off, Weasley."

All four of us laughed, then, and for the first time since arriving back at Hogwarts, I felt a surge of warmth in my chest. We were home.

“What’s in the box, Hermione?” Harry inquired.

She removed the lid with theatrical flair and revealed the contents --- about fifty multicolored badges, all bearing the letters SPEW.

Harry reached for a badge. “‘Spew?’ What’s this about?”

“Not 'spew.' It’s S-P-E-W. Stands for the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare.”

“Never heard of it,” Ron said.

“Well, of course you haven’t. I’ve only just started it.”

“Yeah? How many members have you got?”

“Well, if you three join... four.”

Ron looked at her with thinly-veiled amusement. “And you think we want to walk around wearing badges saying ‘spew,’ do you?”

“S-P-E-W! I was going to put Stop the Outrageous Abuse of Our Fellow Magical Creatures and Campaign for a Change in Their Legal Status, but it wouldn’t fit. So that’s the heading of our manifesto. I’ve been researching it thoroughly in the library. Elf enslavement goes back centuries. I can’t believe no one’s done anything about it before now.”

"Most people are too scared to try," I said. "Which is no excuse, I know, but think about it, Hermione. The only people who own house elves are people like Lucius Malfoy and Barty Crouch. People like my dad have wanted to do something about it for ages, but they haven't quite known how."

"Your dad's wanted to do something about it?" she asked incredulously. "You should have seen the way he was talking to Winky!"

I winced. "You've probably observed by now he's not known for being... gentle. Or tactful. But when I was younger, he tried to convince my mum we should start rescuing house elves and having them work for us instead, because he knew we'd treat them better than the families that owned them at the time."

"But that's just perpetuating the slavery! That's-"

"I know," I interrupted, "and that's what my mum told him, which is why we never did. But anyway," I said, rubbing the back of my neck. "Enough about that. I want to hear your solution, because I'm sure it's a lot better than my dad's."

She beamed with pride. “You can be vice president, Lucy! Or my co-president, with experience like yours! Our short-term aims are to secure house-elves fair wages and working conditions. Our long-term aims include changing the law about non-wand use, and trying to get an elf into the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, because they’re shockingly underrepresented. We start by recruiting members. I thought two Sickles to join --- that buys a badge --- and the proceeds can fund our leaflet campaign. You’re treasurer, Ron, I’ve got you a collecting tin upstairs. And Harry, you’re secretary, so you might want to write down everything I’m saying now, as a record of our first meeting.”

"Maybe we can do it together in the morning," I said quickly, noting the _No way I'm doing that right now_ look on Harry's face. "It's getting late."

"You're right," Hermione agreed. "I'm going to bed. I was too excited about my plans for S.P.E.W. to sleep last night! I'm tired."

"I'm going to bed, too, since I've finished Divination," Ron said. "Harry, you coming?"

"In a bit, sure. I'm just going to look this over one more time, make sure I didn't write something twice," he replied.

"I'll help you check since Hermione checked Ron's," I offered. "Fresh set of eyes. Good night, you two."

"Good night!" they said in unison, exchanging a brief glance and smiling before heading their separate ways.

"You know... I was thinking," Harry said once the doors had closed, "I don't think I've ever heard how the 'Cub' thing started. With the twins, I mean."

I smiled. "Well, they called me Little Diggs at first, the way Skye did, and I hated it. It took them three weeks to come up with Cub, as in a little lion cub, to match the Gryffindor lion. Since I was a first-year, two years younger than they were, and small at the time."

"You say that as if you're not small anymore," he said, flashing a stupid grin at me.

"I grew over summer!"

"Oh, I know you did, you just still have a ways to go."

I laughed, wadding up another piece of parchment paper and throwing it at him. "Shut up, Potter."

I was about to reach for his Divination homework to read over it when there was a tap at the window just behind us.

Harry's entire face lit up. "Hedwig!"

He rushed toward the window to let her in, and she landed gracefully atop Harry's Divination homework.

"Hiya, pretty girl," I said, stroking her feathers. "Harry, she's got a reply!"

"About time!" He hurried back over and untied the parchment from her leg. "He says, 'Harry, I’m flying north immediately. This news about your scar is the latest in a series of strange rumors that have reached me here. If it hurts again, go straight to Dumbledore; they’re saying he’s got Mad-Eye out of retirement, which means he’s reading the signs, even if no one else is. I’ll be in touch soon. My best to Ron and Hermione and Lucy. Tell Lucy Buckbeak is doing just fine. Keep your eyes open, Harry. Sirius.'"

Harry hit himself in the forehead with his fist, and I lunged forward to catch his hand before he could do it again. "Harry, no! Don't do that! What's wrong?"

He shook his hand free. “I shouldn’t’ve told him! It’s made him think he’s got to come back! Coming back, because he thinks I’m in trouble! And there’s nothing wrong with me!”

I bit my lip. I had been the one to suggest Harry tell Sirius in the first place. Did he remember?

"Harry," I said, "Sirius will be okay. It's like I said... he's smart. He won't get caught. And if push comes to shove... he's already escaped Azkaban once, yeah?"

"I guess," he muttered. He glanced at me, his face softening a bit. "Why're you looking at me like that, Lu?"

"Like what?"

"Like... well, I don't know exactly. What's on your mind?"

The intensity of his green-eyed gaze made my cheeks start to heat. "I-"

The door to the boys' dormitories creaked open, revealing a pajama-clad Colin Creevey. He didn't seem to notice us in the corner, and he shuffled to the couch by the fireplace, sinking into it and resting his head in his hands. When we heard a soft sniffle, Harry and I exchanged a brief glance before moving in unison to sit on either side of him.

He glanced up, looking between me and Harry. "Hi, Lucy. Hi, Harry. I... I couldn't sleep."

"What's wrong, Colin?" I asked gently.

"D-Do either of you take Divination?" 

"Oh," Harry said, jumping in realization. "Colin, was today the day Professor Trelawney had you read tea leaves for the first time? And she predicted someone's death?"

Colin nodded slowly. "Mine. How did you know?"

"It happens every year," Harry explained. "She predicted my death last year, and Lucy's brother's three years ago. And the two of us are just fine, aren't we? So don't worry, Colin, you'll be alright too."

"Really?"

"Really." Harry clapped him on the shoulder. "I'll let you in on a little secret, Colin. Ron and I just finished writing complete nonsense on our homework. Divination is... foggy. And confusing. To say the least. I can't think of a single one of Professor Trelawney's predictions that has come true yet."

"In other words... you will be totally, completely fine," I assured him. "And if you somehow fall off the Astronomy Tower tomorrow and snap your neck, you can become a ghost and tell us 'I told you so.' But I doubt that will happen, so don't lose any more sleep over it."

"Coming from the most sleep-deprived Gryffindor herself," Harry added with an amused grin. "But yeah, Lucy's right. You'll be okay."

"Alright," Colin said, rising from the couch. "Thank you. I feel better now. See you two at breakfast!"

"Night, Colin!" Harry and I called after him.

"Are you alright after Moody's class today?" I asked as soon as Colin left. "I meant to ask you earlier, but with Neville being as shaken as he was, I didn't get the chance."

"It's alright, Lu, I know you're the only one who really understands why he was so upset. I'm alright, it's just..." He sighed shakily. "The Dementors never _showed_ me how my parents died. I saw the green light whenever I fainted, but it was so much more than just... the... the way the spider just... well, like Ron said..."

"I understand," I said, inching closer to him on the couch. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"If you could tell Sirius not to come, that'd be great," he mumbled. "I only just got him back, the last thing I need is him dying too."

"He won't be caught, Harry. I know he'll be careful." A couple moments passed in silence. "Do you want me to check your Divination homework?"

"It's okay, but thanks for offering. I'll look it over in the morning. I'm too tired to change it, if you find any duplicates."

"Fair enough." 

We rose from the couch and gathered up our homework. I thought back to the conversation with Colin, and found my eyes wandering once again to Harry. For as much as Colin annoyed him... he had been so kind and helpful. Almost... brotherly. Harry would have made a great big brother, I realized, if only his parents had-

"You're looking at me again," Harry commented, smiling.

My face was instantly red, and I busied myself with my parchment. "Just thinking about how glad I am that Professor Trelawney was wrong about you dying," I stammered. "And how glad I am that your head will still be attached to the rest of your body on October first."

Harry laughed. "Fair enough. Good night, Lu."

"Good night, Harry."


	54. Till the Sirens Sound, I'm Safe

_Fault lines tremble underneath my glass house  
But I put it out of my mind  
Long enough to call it courage  
To live without a lifeline  
I bend the definition of faith  
To exonerate my blind eye  
Till the sirens sound, I'm safe_

_"Earth"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

"Son of a _banshee_!" I shouted, throwing my lunar calendar as hard as I could across the dormitory. I fumed in silence for a couple seconds more before sheepishly getting up to retrieve it.

The door burst open, Hermione rushing in. "Lucy! Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I burn you?" I asked, slapping my hand to my forehead.

"A bit. But it's okay," she added quickly, twisting her ring a couple of times, "it was really brief. What happened?"

"I just realized the full moon is on your birthday," I mumbled. "And then the next one is the night before Cedric's. I'm going to ruin both of your birthdays."

"Oh, no, you won't ruin anything at all! It's a Monday, anyway, so it's not like we would have stayed up all night partying. Besides, even if we were planning on that, it's not your fault."

"Thank you for being so understanding," I said in a small voice, flopping down onto my bed. "I'm just so sick of everything in my life revolving around something so..."

Hermione settled down next to me. "Horrible?"

I nodded. "Yeah. That's a fair way to put it."

"Well, do you want to come do homework with me? Harry and Ron are there, too."

I squeezed my eyes shut and groaned, realizing the boys had been _right there_ when Hermione rushed up here in a panic. "I just need to be alone with my thoughts for a while. I'm going to take a walk."

"What? Lucy, it's dark outside!" Hermione said as I rose to my feet.

"I'm going to go visit the skrewts." I grabbed the Magpies beanie Harry had given me for Christmas once and made my way down the stairs.

"But you're not bringing your notes! How will you record your findings?"

"I'll write them down when I get back," I said, securing the beanie over the tips of my ears. I plastered a smile on my face as I passed Harry and Ron, who were looking between me and Hermione with obvious confusion and a bit of concern. "I'm heading down to visit the skrewts. See you later."

Without waiting for another word of protest from Hermione, I leapt through the portrait hole.

The events of my first week of school weighed heavily on my shoulders as I made my way down the stairs.

Harry had sent a letter to Sirius practically begging him not to come back, but I figured it was no use. If I had been in Sirius's shoes, I would have done the exact same thing. I could tell that worry for Sirius had created a dark cloud of worry above Harry's head, and by extension, Ron's and Hermione's (and mine) as well. I wasn't worried about Sirius, necessarily, but I did worry for Harry. His scar hurting 24 hours before the events of the World Cup didn't sit right with me, but I didn't dare voice this concern to anyone else. I didn't want to worry my friends any more. They had enough burdens of their own,

Speaking of friends having burdens of their own, Neville had forgotten about his Snape detention after the disastrous DADA class, meaning Snape was even more cruel than usual. I reckoned that having to disembowel a hundred or so horned toads was nearly as traumatic for him as watching the spider be hit with the same Cruciatus Curse that stole his parents from him. Ginny and I had stayed up past midnight trying to calm Neville down after the detention; we were the only ones who seemed to make any difference.

Then there was the return to Ancient Runes. I had attempted to ask Draco if he was okay after the ferret incident, but he bristled at my genuine concern and suggested a very specific place I could try shoving my wand. (Needless to say, I kept my wand in my pocket where it belonged. Because... ouch.) After our surprisingly civil conversation in Care of Magical Creatures about our shared wand cores, I had thought that perhaps Draco and I were one step closer to becoming friends --- or, at least, not enemies. But he made it abundantly clear that we weren't, so I kept my head down as best as I could with him glaring at me every chance he got.

On top of everything, whispers of the Triwizard Tournament followed me everywhere I went. Every single person in my year asked me at least once if Cedric was entering. I replied to every one of them with some version of "He's still thinking about it," because I knew he was, in fact, still thinking about it.

As for myself, I'd been thinking about Cedric entering, too. I really saw no harm in him entering, but if he were actually _chosen_... I would be more than a little worried. I'd been unable to shake the words "death toll" from my mind. But I was determined to stand by what I had said to him on the first full day of school; I was going to support him wholeheartedly whatever he decided, entering or refraining, chosen or not chosen.

Before I knew it, my feet had brought me to Hagrid's hut. Despite the chilly September night, he was on his front step, tossing a bone for Fang to fetch.

"Hi, Hagrid!" I called, waving.

"Is that Lucy Diggory?" he asked teasingly, squinting into the distance.

I smiled. "The one and only. I came to see if you needed any help with the skrewts."

"Not particularly, but thanks fer thinkin' of that. Yeh want ter see them anyway?"

"Sure!" _I could use the distraction_ , I added to myself.

I followed Hagrid in silence to the boxes where he kept the creatures.

"Do you think I could try letting one out and seeing what happens?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I don' see why not. Could be helpful."

I gingerly reached down into one of the crates and lifted one out with both hands. I didn't realize in the darkness that I had grabbed a male until I felt his stinger sinking into my arm.

"Hey!" I protested, dropping him back into the crate. "I'm just trying to help! No need to sting me!"

Hagrid rushed over, clearly worried. "Yeh alrigh', Lucy?"

"I am, don't worry," I said. I smiled. "I'm no Draco Malfoy. I can handle a little pain. I will grab a female next, though."

I lit my wand and reached in to grab a female. I set it on the grass and went to stand with Hagrid, wand out in front of me so we could see what she did.

"Does it hurt?" Hagrid asked suddenly. "Transformin'?"

"A little," I lied. "Why do you ask, Hagrid?"

"When you were in the Forest las' year, tryin' ter look for Sirius Black, I could hear somethin' sometimes. Screams an' howls an' the like."

I bit my lower lip. "Yeah, that's me."

"It hurts that much?" He sounded a bit stunned.

"Er... yeah. But the pain doesn't last very long," I added, trying to dodge his pity, "and you get used to it. I used to cry when I was younger, but I don't anymore. Professor Lupin told me last year that it gets easier the older you get. He doesn't even gag taking wolfsbane anymore, which I thought was rather impressive when I first saw him drink it in October." I sighed. "I miss him, possibly more than anyone else does, even Harry. He... made me feel better. Like I wasn't the only one at Hogwarts with a secret monster."

"Yeh never have been," Hagrid said after a moment. "The only one, I mean."

"I... what?"

"I thought yeh knew."

"I... knew what?"

"I'm half-giant, Lucy."

I turned to face him. "You are?"

He nodded, looking rather ashamed. "I thought yeh knew, and tha's why yer always so nice ter me. Because you didn' want me to feel like I was any different from you."

"Oh, I..." Looking back, it seemed rather obvious. He was a massive man, after all. But I'd never really questioned Hagrid's parentage, because he was always just... Hagrid. "Hagrid, I've always been nice to you because you're a good person. Not to mention you're the only person who understands how I feel about creatures. I mean... dragons and werewolves and giants and blast-ended skrewts are still living beings, right?"

"Right." He sighed. "I'm sorry fer not tellin' yeh sooner, Lucy. It's not that I don't trust yeh, I do, I just thought yeh knew."

"I should have known," I admitted with a sheepish laugh. "But honestly, Hagrid, I've never thought about it because I like _who_ you are, so it doesn't matter to me _what_ you are."

Hagrid looked at me out of the corner of his eye, and I might have spied a glimmer of tears in the glow of my wand. "'Slong as yeh remember the same thing for yerself."

I offered a thin-lipped smile and nodded, but doubts lingered in my mind. Hagrid was only half-giant, and there was no such thing as a half-werewolf. And when it came to giants, I knew it was possible to reason with them. I knew it was possible to teach them how to love; Hagrid was living proof of that. But werewolves... without wolfsbane, we killed without second thought. For werewolves like the infamous Fenrir Greyback, I reckoned they killed even with wolfsbane.

I appreciated the sentiment, but Hagrid and I were very, very different in that regard, and we always would be.

A sudden thought occurred to me. "Oh! Hagrid!"

"Mhm?"

I couldn't help but laugh as I began to explain. "Alright, so I saw Charlie Weasley this summer. Ron's brother, who works on the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary? He had an update on Norbert!"

Hagrid sounded like a child in his excitement. "He did? Oh, how is the little tyke? Do you think he'd still know us? Is he getting along well with the other dragons? It was a good update, right?"

"He's alright! But... he's not a he. Norbert is actually Norbert- _a_."

"Really! He's a female? Well, erm, _she's_ a... well, yeh know what I mean."

I laughed again. "Don't worry, I understand. Yes! And to answer your other questions, she's doing well, she'll probably recognize us when we visit, and she's getting along well with the others! Say, Hagrid, Charlie had a very interesting story to tell me about a dragon expedition he took with Bill and Adalyn and a couple of others. Would you happen to know anything about that?"

He grinned. "A bit. Would yeh like to hear my version of the story?"

"Of course!"

Hagrid and I didn't learn anything new about blast-ended skrewts that night, but I did learn a lot about dragons. I returned to the Gryffindor common room in much higher spirits. So high, in fact, I didn't even remember being stung until Harry's eyes bugged out at the sight of my arm.

"What happened?" he asked, jumping up out of his chair. I noticed offhandedly that he was the only one still in the common room.

"What do you mean?" I replied.

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean?' What happened to your arm?"

"Oh." I pushed back my sleeve briefly to look at the puncture in my arm, which had apparently bled quite a bit, but I quickly yanked my sleeve back down as soon as I realized Harry had already crossed the room and was standing right in front of me. I had forgotten about my scars for half a second, somehow. "Just got stung by a skrewt. No big deal."

"No big deal? Lucy, Hagrid knows nothing about them. What if they're poisonous?"

I laughed a bit as I looked up at him. "Well, I'd probably know by now if they were. This happened hours ago."

"Hours? Let me see."

Without really waiting for an answer, Harry reached out and gently grabbed me by the elbow. He rolled my sleeve up with so much care and caution I might have actually laughed again if I hadn't been so flustered. I grew even more flustered as he used his thumb to clean some of the blood away, revealing in even more detail the thin white scars I kept hidden by long sleeves 24/7. The thin white scars I hated so, so, so much. 

"Well... I'm no Cedric, but it hasn't turned green or started smoking, so I think you're right. It's not poisonous."

"Venomous," I corrected, before I could stop myself.

He glanced at me, hands still gently holding my arm. "What?"

 _You absolute idiot, Lucy Everlin Diggory!_ I chided myself. I cleared my throat and looked down at the floor for half a second before meeting his gaze again. I managed an embarrassed smile. "Sorry. The creature-lover in me couldn't help it. Venomous creatures bite or sting you to kill you. Poisonous creatures have to be eaten to kill you."

He stared at me for half a second longer before laughing, dropping my arm in the process. I tugged my sleeve back down over my forearm and wrapped my arms around my midsection.

"Glad I could amuse you with my useless knowledge," I said softly, still smiling.

He shook his head and grinned. "No, it's not useless. You might have just saved me from Snape's wrath. I think I wrote in my essay that doxies are poisonous, but they'd be venomous, wouldn't they?"

I nodded. "Technically speaking, yes, they're venomous. Which is confusing, considering we counteract doxy bites with the antidote to uncommon poisons."

"Well, poison or venom or whatever, I'm glad the skrewts don't seem to have it. How'd you get stung, anyway? You've managed just fine all week without getting burned."

"I, er..." I felt my face growing hotter by the second. "I picked one up. To observe how they behaved on their own."

"Well, that's the most Lucy answer I've ever heard," he chuckled. "Did you learn anything?"

I shook my head. "Not about skrewts. Dragons, sure, but not skrewts."

"Another very Lucy answer. Well, I'm going to fix the poisonous versus venomous part of my Potions essay, then head to bed, unless you want someone to stay up with you."

"I'm heading to bed, actually," I said, though I was sorely tempted to take his offer. Talking to Harry was the calmest I had been all night, and I really didn't want to have to part ways. But at the same time, I was tired, and I was sure that Harry must have been, too.

"Not a Lucy answer," he teased.

"Yeah, well, contrary to popular belief, I do actually sleep," I replied in the same teasing tone. "Good night, Harry."

"G'night!"

I climbed the stairs quietly, grinning from ear to ear and making a mental note to visit the skrewts more often.

Despite what I had told Harry, I didn't sleep much the next week, with the full moon approaching. 

I did the best I could to make Hermione's birthday as special as possible. I had knitted an S.P.E.W. sweater for Crookshanks, which she immediately and very excitedly forced him to wear. She had promised that the full moon wouldn't ruin anything, but I wasn't stupid --- I saw the way she watched me out of the corner of her eye all day, concerned as always by my tomato-red face and my trembling hands. She insisted on walking with me to the Room of Requirement after Potions, where she squeezed my hand reassuringly and said she'd see me in the morning. I wished her a happy birthday again, pulling her into a quick but firm hug, and disappeared behind the door. I sank to the ground, breath coming in ragged gasps as I waited for the sun to fully set. I cursed my condition with every foul word I could recall until the transformation began.

* * *

_On September 19, 1994, Hermione's birthday was celebrated with a small party in the common room after dinner, consisting of Harry and the Weasleys who remained at Hogwarts. Since Lucy wasn't there, they played truth or dare. There was much laughter, of course, as Harry and Fred waltzed around the common room and Ginny attempted to backflip off the back of the couch. There was also a surprising amount of intimacy. They learned that Hermione's greatest fear was rejection rather than failure, that Ron wanted a career as an Auror one day but doubted he'd ever get there, that George really was afraid of dogs. All of these things Lucy already knew, of course --- these were the confessions made late at night in the girls' dormitory, in the middle of a wizard's chess game, at a Quidditch party while Fred wasn't around. These were the confessions Lucy drew out of her closest friends, not on purpose, never on purpose, but... these confessions came anyway, naturally._

_Lucy slept through all of this, safe and warm --- but very much a werewolf --- in the Room of Requirement._

_This same group played again on October 19, 1994. They'd tried all month to convince Lucy to play, but she refused time and time again, with a new excuse every time. She always had more homework to do, more skrewts to observe, more reasons to visit the Hufflepuff common room. Fred, George, and Ginny were of the opinion she was scared of being forced to confess her feelings for Harry to whoever else was playing, and they were correct, in a sense. Hermione, Ron, and Harry were of the opinion she was actually using all of this extra time to talk to Cedric about the Tournament; they knew Lucy well enough to know without even asking that Cedric still hadn't decided whether he was going to enter or not. They could tell from the way she stiffened every time someone asked her, from the way she often became lost in thought staring at the Hufflepuff table during meals, from the way she was often found in the Hufflepuff common room on the Marauder's Map. And they were correct too, in a sense --- Lucy was spending lots of time with her brother, and the Tournament was on her mind, but the two of them never explicitly talked about the Tournament. She didn't want to put any more pressure on Cedric than he was already feeling. Really, she was spending time just being with him, after a whole summer spent apart. And... she was afraid of confronting her feelings for Harry._

_Lucy once again slept through the game, completely unaware it was even happening. But her last conscious thought as a human was of Harry._

_"This is why Harry could never love you," she whispered to herself, half a second before the billions of hot knives plunged into her skin. This final whisper gave way to a scream, then another scream, then another scream. Then with one last piercing howl, the werewolf curled up to sleep until sunrise._

* * *

I was jolted from my sleep by blinding pain. I screamed, and screamed, and screamed, and then, slowly, the pain stopped, and I was human again, sprawled on the floor of the Room of Requirement. I drew a deep, steadying breath and pushed myself to a sitting position.

It was Cedric's birthday!

That very happy thought motivated me to push myself to my feet.

"Happy birthday!" I exclaimed, flinging myself into his arms as soon as he rounded the corner.

He chuckled as he set me back down. "Thank you! How are you? Did anything happen?"

I shook my head. "I'm alright. Tired, of course, but alright."

"I'll walk with you to the Hospital Wing to get your wideye potion."

"Okay, thanks. So... any plans for the big day?" I asked as casually as possible, knowing very well that he did have plans, just plans he didn't know about quite yet. "You're seventeen, after all, making today arguably your most important birthday ever."

He shrugged. "I have a Potions exam today, so that's probably going to be the highlight of my day... kidding, of course," he added with a grin, noting the horrified look on my face.

" _No_ , I thought you were _serious_ ," I replied with as much sarcasm as I could manage. He laughed as I slipped into the Hospital Wing and downed the wideye potion waiting for me on a floating tray near the door. When I emerged again, Cedric was leaning against the opposite wall, suddenly looking nervous.

"Well, I may have been kidding about _that_ ," he said, shyly tucking his hands under his armpits, "but I'm completely serious about what I'm about to tell you. I figured my birthday was a good day to announce this, and I wanted you to be the first to know."

 _I will never understand how he goes from Mr. Confident to an insecure mess in half a second,_ I thought to myself.

I felt my heart beginning to pound in my chest, my palms suddenly sweaty. But I forced these emotions away and smiled encouragingly at my now-very-nervous brother. "Oh?"

He nodded, biting the inside of his cheek for a second. "I've decided to enter the Tournament. And I know what you're going to ask, and... no. This isn't about Dad. I'm doing this for myself. I promise."

Part of me wanted to be angry with him for going along with what Dad wanted, even if it was his own decision. But I immediately forced it away along with my anxiety and jumped at him in another hug. "You made your decision!"

"Do you think it's the right one?"

I stepped away from him and narrowed my eyes. "It doesn't matter what _I_ think, only what _you_ think. We've discussed this, sir."

He smiled sheepishly. "It was worth a shot."

"Do you think it's the right decision?"

"Yes. I do."

"Then I think it is, too!" I lied, concealing my fears with the brightest smile I could manage. Cedric always knew when I was lying, but for the first time in my life... I fooled him. Perhaps... perhaps I fooled him because I gave him the answer he wanted to hear from me. Perhaps I fooled him because he was too scared to look for doubt from me. Perhaps I fooled him because he somehow heard Dad's voice in mine. Whatever the reason... I fooled him.

"Thanks for being so supportive," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Now I just have to tell Henry and Cho, and then... well, I reckon the whole school will know soon enough."

"Definitely," I chuckled. "Well, I'm proud of you for deciding, and I'll see you at breakfast!"

"See you then," he replied. He smiled at me one last time before turning on his heel and heading in the direction of the Hufflepuff common room. I couldn't help but notice a spring in his step that hadn't been there for a long time. He was serious about the Tournament... he really _did_ want to enter. And, true to my word, I would support that.

Besides... what were the odds he'd actually be chosen out of the dozens of Hogwarts students probably entering?

Though his announcement rattled me initially, I felt better after a hot shower and a change of robes. I carefully tucked Cedric's gift into my bookbag and headed down to breakfast, sliding in between the twins as per always.

"You missed a rousing game of truth or dare last night, Cub!" Fred announced.

I wrinkled my nose. "I'm so disappointed to hear that. My absolute favorite game in the entire world. Did I miss anything particularly exciting?"

"I had to cuddle with Crookshanks for an entire minute!" Ron complained.

Hermione laughed. "For what it's worth, I think Crookshanks hated it even more than you did."

"I wish I could have seen that," I chuckled.

"Yeah, it's unfortunate you missed it," George said with a dramatic sigh. "But alas, I suppose you will just have to settle for Quidditch tonight."

"Oh, I can't wait! Even if our positions will be all jumbled up."

"That'll be the best part, I bet!" Fred predicted.

Henry and I had scheduled a very-improper Quidditch game between the end of classes and sundown to celebrate Cedric's birthday. The teams would be composed of the players from Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, with Cho filling in for Oliver Wood, the only person on either team that had graduated. But since Cho, Cedric, and Harry were all Seekers and we only needed two Seekers, we designated Cedric and Fred team captains and decided they could assign positions based on who they chose for their team.

Unsurprisingly, I was on Cedric's team as a Chaser. He gave Henry the role of Keeper, kept the Hufflepuff Beaters as Beaters, and volunteered himself to play Chaser with me, giving the role of Seeker to Cho. Our third Chaser was a Hufflepuff third-year named Mary.

The other team had the Weasley twins as Beaters, Harry as Seeker, Angelina, Alicia, and the smaller Hufflepuff Chaser as Chasers, and the stockier Hufflepuff Chaser as Keeper.

Ginny Weasley was referee, and she had a heck of a time trying to keep up with the match. It was nowhere nearly as fast as the Quidditch World Cup had been, but everyone was surprisingly competitive, and before we knew it, the scores had reached triple digits.

Cedric was an astonishingly good Chaser. He was a natural team player, and a fast learner. Between Mary's sneakiness, Cedric's strength, and my speed, we were quite the team. I was initially worried about playing against Angelina and Alicia, my teammates for three years, but we slowly and steadily pulled ahead of them.

Cho was using the same tactics that had nearly cost Gryffindor the match back in February, distracting Harry every time he got close to catching the Snitch since his broom was faster.

Cedric followed my gaze as I passed him the Quaffle and grinned. "Boys are rather dumb sometimes, aren't they?"

"It doesn't help that Cho's pretty _and_ brilliant," I replied with a huff of a laugh. "Now come on, let's teach Harry a lesson about keeping his head in the game."

Cedric passed the Quaffle back to me, and I sent it flying clean through the left hoop.

We continued to pull ahead, one goal at a time. The sun was just beginning to sink below the horizon when we finally won.

Everyone headed their separate ways after the match, promising we'd do it again someday, but I still needed to give Cedric his gift, so I jogged to catch up to him and Cho.

"Hey, Cho, do you mind if I steal him for juuuust a minute?" I asked.

"Go ahead!" she replied, smiling. "I'm going to freshen up a bit in the locker rooms so I don't smell like a troll at dinner."

I laughed. "I doubt you ever smell like a troll, but thanks! I just need a minute."

I grabbed Cedric by the arm and dragged him under the nearest tree. "Okay, so I put this together before I knew if you were doing the Tournament or not," I explained, "but I hope you enjoy it anyway. One thing was there in case you entered, and one was there in case you didn't."

He dug into the bag and drew out a bright blue Muggle book titled "Guitar for Beginners." He chuckled. "I see you coordinated with Henry and Cho?"

"Yeah, I knew they were getting you a guitar for your birthday," I admitted with a smile. "I wrote to Dom for his best suggestion, and he sent this back in response. He was the DJ at all of our Gryffindor Quidditch parties. Okay, go ahead and open the other thing!"

He extracted a long silver chain with a yellow pygmy puff at the bottom.

"I know, you're probably wondering why I gave you a necklace," I said quickly, "but I can explain. I was thinking that if you were a Triwizard Champion, you might want a good luck charm. I remembered the time you told me you wanted a pygmy puff one day, and I was thinking it might be just the thing you needed for a bit of inspiration. And-" I drew an identical chain out of my own robes, with a red pygmy puff dangling off the end. "-I have an almost-matching one. I made the chain extra long so nobody would see it and think you were somehow cheating, but... I hope you like it."

Cedric immediately tossed the chain around his head and wrapped his arms around me. "I love it. Thank you, Lucy. This birthday has been incredible."

I smiled. "Good. We did our best to make sure it was. Now go, Cho's waiting for you."

He hurried after his girlfriend, looping his arm around her shoulders and whispering something in her ear. And just like that, I was alone in the almost-dark. I thought about heading up to the castle, but I instead lowered myself onto the grass and leaned my back against the tree.

Happiness swelled inside me. Cedric's birthday had been a success. 

But alongside that happiness crept a dark knife of anxiety. Cedric was entering the Triwizard Tournament, a competition with a death toll.

I thought about heading up to the castle, but I didn't want to leave that spot, that moment. If I did, I had to accept that everything might change. If I did, I had to accept the fact that I couldn't freeze time. If I moved on from that spot, that moment, I was stepping into the unknown and facing all that the future might bring, for better or for worse.

The sun's rays painted the grounds in vibrant, joyful shades of gold, but I was also acutely aware of the chill breeze that whipped around me. So, I supposed, was my inner whirlwind of happiness and anxiety. Wrestling for control. Trying to push me to one extreme or another. Refusing to let me just sit in the middle, at peace.

In that moment, I chose joy. I couldn't stop the passage of time, the same way I couldn't stop the ever-changing phases of the moon. But I could decide to face it head-on, like a brave Gryffindor should.

So I pushed myself up from the ground and walked in the direction of the castle alone, using my scarf to shield my face and neck from the biting wind. But just before I stepped into the castle, I turned around to face the Quidditch Pitch.

The Quidditch Pitch. My safe place. My escape from reality. The place where we had won the Quidditch Cup. The place where I had first realized I loved Harry. And, most importantly, the place Cedric and I had shared on so many occasions, just the two of us against the world.

 _Well... it's like Cedric said all those years ago,_ I told myself. _Some things never change. Like Quidditch, and Hogwarts sunsets, and Cedric._

With that, I headed into the castle and didn't look back again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey, everyone! I'm warning you now that I'm going to slowly stop including author's notes at the ends of chapters. As you all know, the next "season" of this story, if you will, is going to have a very different tone from everything I've written beforehand, and I want my author's notes (and lack thereof) to reflect that as much as possible. But please please please, keep commenting! Keep leaving feedback! I'll keep responding to every comment and engaging in the way I always have, I just won't have quite as many author's notes for a little while.
> 
> As always, thank you for reading! I hope you liked Chapter 54, take 2. See you all next chapter, with Cedric's perspective on the Tournament!


	55. Leaps of Faith

_"Living rationally and authentically means understanding that life centrally involves making leaps of faith, both small and large, and that the value of living is to a large extent the value of experiencing your life, whatever that experience is."  
L.A. Paul_

* * *

CEDRIC:

The morning of October 30, I walked into the Great Hall to see that it had been transformed overnight to welcome the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. I smiled at the sight of it, then scanned the room to find Cho. She was sitting by herself at the Ravenclaw table, nose buried in her Transfiguration textbook. 

"Good morning, beautiful," I said, pressing my lips to her cheek in a swift kiss. "How are you this morning? Did the potion I gave you for your headache help?"

"Good morning," she replied, blushing as she set her book down. "It did, thank you. I feel alright, but I bet I'll feel even better once today's Transfiguration exam is behind me."

"I know you'll do brilliantly, darling, but is there anything I can do to help?"

She shook her head, black hair swishing around her face. "Just my typical pre-exam nerves. What about you? Are you nervous at all for tonight?"

"For once in my life... not really." I smiled. "On one condition, that is."

"Oh? What might that condition be, may I ask?"

"Will you come with me, when I enter?"

"Of course," she replied, smiling back at me. "I'm offended you even had to ask."

"I didn't _have_ to ask, but I wanted to. It feels more official that way."

Cho laughed. "Always the gentleman, aren't you?" 

"I try to be." I kissed her cheek once more. "Best of luck on your test, darling. See you at lunch?"

"Mhm," she murmured, already reading again. I smiled to myself. _That's my girl._

I looked up at the doors just as Lucy was walking in, by herself, oddly enough. A quick glance at the Gryffindor table confirmed that the twins were already there, heads bowed together as they spoke in low voices. I crossed the room quickly and greeted her with a smile.

"You're looking rather cheerful," she commented, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. "What's up?"

"I wanted to ask you if you'd come with me when I enter my name, whenever and however that happens," I said. "I want you and Cho and Henry to be there, since I wouldn't be doing this without you."

Lucy smiled. "Of course, Ced. Wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Great, thanks. Now I just need to ask Henry."

"I can't imagine he'd say no," she giggled, "but good luck regardless, I suppose." Her eyes wandered to the Gryffindor table, and she pursed her lips when she spotted the twins. "Oh, this can't be good. I better go see what's wrong."

"Any guesses?" I inquired, curiosity gnawing at me. The twins were so rarely serious, it was a bit disconcerting.

She nodded, rolling her eyes. "Oh yeah, I know exactly who this is about. I just don't know what went wrong this time. I'll see you tonight at the feast if not before!" With that, Lucy firmly planted herself between the twins and looked back and forth between the two of them, not even needing to verbally ask what was going on before they began to explain in hushed, serious tones.

I finally made my way over to the Hufflepuff table and sat in the same seat I had claimed for six years to wait for Henry. Before he arrived, though, Beatrice slid in to my left.

"Good morning!" I greeted.

"Hi," she replied, immediately reaching for her typical mug full to the brim with black coffee. 

"How are you?"

"As well as can be expected for a seventh-year." Her hands trembled slightly as she lifted the cup to her lips. "At least I don't have to worry about the Tournament too. You know you're absolutely insane, right?"

I grinned. "Perhaps. But I'm just entering, the chances of me actually being _chosen_ are slim to none."

Beatrice rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up and stop being modest. If you enter, you'll be chosen, everyone knows that."

"You're not wrong, Bea," Henry said, sliding in on my right. "Can't wait to watch you enter. How _will_ you enter, anyway? Who's the judge?"

"Not sure yet," I replied with a shrug. "So you'll go with me when I enter?"

He gave me an incredulous side-eye after a moment. "Wait, was that a genuine question? Because I thought it was obvious." He grabbed a piece of toast for himself and passed me the basket. "Now eat up, future champion, today's a big day."

Classes passed in a bit of a blur. Before I knew it, I was helping Professor Sprout shepherd the Hufflepuff students into lines. The whole school filed out of the Great Hall, whispering and murmuring and giggling with excitement, and formed a block in front of the castle. Hufflepuff was between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, and I found myself in the very back with the twins on my left and Henry on my right, considering we were among the tallest students in the school. I scanned the sea of maroon and gold for Lucy, but she was nowhere to be seen. _That's odd..._

"Do you two know where Lucy is?" I asked.

They followed my gaze.

"Well, there are Harry and Ron and Hermione a couple rows up-"

"Maybe she's with Neville and Ginny --- nope, not there either..."

"She wasn't trying to follow us, right?"

"Not unless she was planning on standing on our shoulders, she'd never see from here."

"Oi! Harry!" 

Harry's head turned, and he glanced around for a bit before realizing it was the twins that had called him.

"Where's Lucy?" they asked in unison.

"With Hagrid!" he called back. "Skrewt trouble! He grabbed her after Potions!"

"Thanks!" I said, flashing a thumbs-up to show I understood.

He smiled and shrugged apologetically, in a _You know how she is_ kind of gesture. I chuckled, knowing all too well how he felt, and he turned back around.

"Hagrid asked Lucy for help with the blast-ended skrewts?" Henry repeated, sounding somewhat shocked.

"Yeah, she's been heading down to help him with them since the beginning of the year," Fred (or George? I thought it was George) explained. "She loves them."

"She _does_?"

"Come to think of it, she hasn't met a creature she _doesn't_ love," I remarked.

Before any of us could explain further, Professor Dumbledore announced, “Aha! Unless I am very much mistaken, the delegation from Beauxbatons approaches!”

"There they are!" I called, pointing everyone in the direction of the Forbidden Forest.

"Good spot, Seeker Boy," Henry teased.

"I will forever regret telling you Brandon called me that," I laughed.

My eyes had not deceived me; surely enough, a massive winged-horse-drawn carriage landed on the lawn. A boy jumped out and fiddled with something that soon gave way to a set of golden stairs, and the largest woman I had ever seen stepped out --- I think I even heard a couple of people gasp when they saw exactly how large she was. She appeared to be even taller than Hagrid, a feat I had thought nearly impossible. 

Professor Dumbledore began applauding, and we students quickly followed suit. She smiled as she shook hands with our headmaster, about a dozen students emerging from the carriage wearing baby blue robes that matched the carriage.

“My dear Madame Maxime, welcome to Hogwarts.”

“Dumbly-dorr. I ’ope I find you well?”

“In excellent form, I thank you.”

Madame Maxime waved a hand behind her. “My pupils.”

"George, I reckon we could get rich quickly if we invest in the sweater-knitting business now," Fred muttered, drawing snickers from everyone in earshot. It was clear that the Beauxbatons students were freezing, none of them having cloaks, or sweaters, or anything more than silk scarves and shawls. 

“'As Karkaroff arrived yet?” Madame Maxime inquired.

Professor Dumbledore shook his head. “He should be here any moment. Would you like to wait here and greet him or would you prefer to step inside and warm up a trifle?”

“Warm up, I think, but ze ’orses-”

“Our Care of Magical Creatures teacher will be delighted to take care of them the moment he has returned from dealing with a slight situation that has arisen with some of his other --- er --- charges.”

Madame Maxime frowned. “My steeds require forceful ’andling. Zey are very strong.”

“I assure you that Hagrid will be well up to the job,” he replied cordially.

“Very well. Will you please inform zis ’Agrid zat ze ’orses drink only single-malt whiskey?”

“It will be attended to.”

The Headmistress nodded, beckoning to her students. “Come.”

"Remind me to make sure Lucy doesn't try to help," I mumbled to Henry. "Those horses are..."

He nodded. "They'd crush her instantly."

The twins snorted in agreement.

“The lake! Look at the lake!” Lee Jordan shouted suddenly.

Every head snapped in the direction of the Black Lake just as a massive ship emerged. Durmstrang had arrived.

These students were well-prepared for the October chill, compared to the poor Beauxbatons students, wearing massive cloaks that made them look like bears rather than students.

The Durmstrang Headmaster approached Professor Dumbledore with a wide smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. “Dumbledore! How are you, my dear fellow, how are you?”

“Blooming, thank you, Professor Karkaroff,” he replied, shaking the man's hand.

He grinned up at the castle. “Dear old Hogwarts. How good it is to be here, how good. Viktor, come along, into the warmth... you don’t mind, Dumbledore? Viktor has a slight head cold.”

"Viktor _Krum_?" Henry hissed incredulously. "Bloody hell, it _is_!"

He was completely correct; Viktor Krum approached Professor Dumbledore and Professor Karakoff, and he helped lead everyone else into the castle. 

Once everyone was seated and silenced, Professor Dumbledore addressed the Great Hall.

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and --- most particularly --- guests. I have great pleasure in welcoming you all to Hogwarts. I hope and trust that your stay here will be both comfortable and enjoyable. The Tournament will be officially opened at the end of the feast. I now invite you all to eat, drink, and make yourselves at home!”

My stomach jolted unpleasantly, and I felt my heart beginning to beat faster in my chest. The time to do what I had been thinking about for two months at that point was approaching... rapidly.

A couple of Beauxbatons students --- one girl and one boy --- settled across from me, smiling and adjusting their hair subtly. I knew what they were trying to do, but I smiled politely as the boy introduced the pair.

"I am Christophe Laurent, and this is my sister, Sophie," he said, extending a hand, which everyone around shook.

"I'm Cedric Diggory," I replied. "Welcome to Hogwarts!"

"I'm Henry Furls." Henry offered a friendly smile too. "Are you two twins?"

"We are, unfortunately," Sophie said with a laugh.

"We have twins, too, sitting at the table with the red banner. Fred and George Weasley." I glanced over at the Gryffindor table just as Lucy slid in between them, her brow damp with perspiration but seemingly unharmed. "My sister just sat in between them."

Sophie's hand flew to her mouth, and she whirled back around to face me. "What happened to her face?" she whispered.

"There was an incident in her first year," I explained, a familiar pang of sorrow in my gut. Her scars faded more every year, and I barely noticed them anymore, but Sophie's question reminded me that Lucy would carry that burden forever.

"Long story short, there's a reason it's called the Forbidden Forest," Henry said, saving the day as always.

I blinked hard and returned myself to the conversation. I had to mention Cho, just to spare myself a potentially awkward situation later. "There's another set of twins, too, in different houses." I scanned the other tables over their shoulders. "I see one of them sitting next to my girlfriend at the Ravenclaw table, actually!"

Both Christophe and Sophie's faces fell slightly at the mention of the word "girlfriend," but neither commented further. 

Archie slid in on my other side. "I can't handle Draco's arse-kissing," he muttered in explanation. "I tried to stay at my designated table, I really did, but I just can't take it." He glanced up and smiled at the twins. "Hi there! I'm Archie. I'm technically not supposed to be here, I'm a Slytherin, but I like to say the Hufflepuffs have adopted me. Say, you're from France, right? Does Paris actually have extensive underground sewer systems like in _Les Misérables_?"

"Ah, you are also _né Moldu_?" Sophie inquired, immediately intrigued by Archie's... well, Archie-ness.

"Half-blood," he replied, somehow knowing the French translation for Muggle-born. "I think blood supremacy is stupid. Magic is cool and all, but I like _Les Misérables_ and Lord of the Rings and Star Wars too. How about you two?"

Archie easily carried the conversation while Henry and I absorbed all of the unfamiliar terms in silence. It was just as well --- I was beginning to get anxious, very anxious, and I doubted I would have been able to make good conversation anyway.

Once everything had been eaten, Professor Dumbledore rose again to address the room. Henry bumped my shoulder with his encouragingly, and I offered a smile in response. Holy Helga Hufflepuff, I was nervous.

Professor Dumbledore smiled. “The moment has come. The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports.”

Both men rose briefly to acknowledge the room. I glanced over at the Weasley twins, sure they'd be excited to see such a legendary Beater, but for whatever reason, both boys were scowling, and Lucy was muttering something to the twin I thought was Fred. _That's odd..._

“Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament, and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime on the panel that will judge the champions’ efforts.”

The room seemed to draw its collective breath. 

“The casket, then, if you please, Mr. Filch.”

"They really couldn't think of a better name than _casket_?'" Archie mumbled under his breath, drawing quiet laughter from everyone who heard him.

Mr. Filch carried himself with an air of dignity we rarely saw as he placed the so-called casket in front of Professor Dumbledore. It was in fact not a casket in the sense we had all imagined; quite the contrary, it was a beautiful chest adorned with jewels that sparkled in the candlelight.

"Wouldn't mind being buried in a casket that looked like _that_ ," Archie whispered. "Though I doubt I'd fit... oh well, you could always just shove me in there. I wouldn't care, I'd be dead."

Everyone around us snorted quietly again. Archie's commentary was appreciated; it lightened the mood.

“The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman, and they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways: their magical prowess, their daring, their powers of deduction, and, of course, their ability to cope with danger.”

My mind began to race through the checklist. Magical prowess? Hardly. Daring? No way. Powers of deduction? I was decent at wizard's chess, but not great... but ability to cope with danger? That was Lucy's area of expertise, not mine. I didn't know the slightest thing about danger.

And yet, in the middle of my doubt, I remembered why I had decided to enter in the first place.

I realized early on in my time at Hogwarts that reputation was a powerful thing. It followed me everywhere, from the very first day onward. I was expected to be the best in the class, I was expected to know what to do when the world fell apart. Nobody bothered to ask if I'd been chosen as prefect and Quidditch captain... it was just assumed. (Correctly... but still.) I had every reason to have all of the confidence in the world, right?

But I didn't. I could still recall the horror and helplessness I felt when Madam Pomfrey was petrified while my back was turned in my first year. And in my second year, all of the conversations over Gobstones with Adalyn where she assured me that popularity wasn't my fault and wasn't anything to fear. And in my third year, finding out that my sister had nearly been killed in the pursuit of the Philosopher's Stone while I was asleep. And in my fourth year, reliving the terror of unexplained petrifications left and right and just trying to keep my head above water, for my sake as well as everyone else's.

My fifth year, O.W.L. year, was the worst by far. I spent nearly every waking minute studying, preparing, working. Because... what if after everything I'd done, I still wasn't good enough? What if the good marks I'd earned the past four years had just been luck? Or worse, lies or favoritism or sympathy? I couldn't accept the possibility of failure, so I did everything in my power to make sure it wasn't an option. And in the end, I'd succeeded, earning top marks in everything, but I still had my doubts.

When Dad first mentioned the Triwizard Tournament, my initial reaction was one of absolute refusal. I wanted nothing to do with it. I told myself and everyone else that it was so I could rebuild the relationships I had let slip in my mad studying, but once I was reassured that no such thing had taken place, I was left asking myself why I was so adamantly against the Tournament.

Fear was the answer, simple enough. But it wasn't the fear I had been expecting.

I realized that all my life, I'd feared I wasn't actually everything people thought I was. I was afraid of fire, because fire burns away everything that isn't true; gold could endure a fire, but nearly anything else in the world would eventually succumb to the flames. What good was the Golden Boy who had nothing left after the fire had burned? I hid my doubts behind layers upon layers of what I realized had the potential to burn away --- always reaching out to help others but never asking for help myself, always going the extra mile in my studies and my relationships and my Quidditch practice, always holding myself to the same high standard everyone else learned to expect from me. These things were all good, of course, but... I realized I was more to me than what I _did_. Beneath all of that, there was... me. As I was. Unapologetically untouched by influence or expectation.

I realized that I had always run away from fire because I feared what it might expose. I feared that the fire might reveal that in reality, I was less, so much less, than what everyone expected me to be. 

But I decided I was done running. The Triwizard Tournament was a fire. One with spectators and expectations and vulnerability. And, for the first time in my life, I decided to run _toward_ the fire rather than _away_ from it. I was done letting fear hold me back. I was a Hufflepuff through and through, but I wanted to see what it was like to be brave like a Gryffindor. Like Lucy... the bravest person I knew.

And if I were chosen? I would rise to the occasion like I never had before.

So, magical prowess? I would dig my heels in and do the work I needed to do to succeed, but I would trust myself when the moment came, too.

Daring? I didn't feel particularly daring, but when someone was in distress at St. Mungo's, I was often the first person on the scene. And when Lucy was nearly killed in her first year, I had run into the Forbidden Forest without second thought. So I supposed there was an element of daring already within me somewhere.

Powers of deduction? I had been around some of the wisest healers in the wizarding world all summer. Surely, I reasoned, I had learned _something_ of deduction from their analysis of symptoms and various experimental treatments. 

And ability to cope with danger? Well... I didn't know much of danger, but Lucy did. She was the bravest person I knew. And if she could cope with danger every single month of her life, surely I could handle three tasks, especially considering the three tasks were closely supervised and meticulously planned to be as safe as possible.

“As you know, three champions compete in the tournament, one from each of the participating schools," Professor Dumbledore continued, suddenly jerking me from my thoughts. "They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the Triwizard Cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector: the Goblet of Fire.”

Professor Dumbledore reached down and drew from it a wooden cup filled with brilliant blue flames.

“Anybody wishing to submit themselves as champion must write their name and school clearly upon a slip of parchment and drop it into the goblet. Aspiring champions have twenty-four hours in which to put their names forward. Tomorrow night, Halloween, the goblet will return the names of the three it has judged most worthy to represent their schools. The goblet will be placed in the entrance hall tonight, where it will be freely accessible to all those wishing to compete." He paused to let that sink in. “To ensure that no underage student yields to temptation, I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet of Fire once it has been placed in the entrance hall. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to cross this line. Finally, I wish to impress upon any of you wishing to compete that this tournament is not to be entered into lightly. Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obliged to see the tournament through to the end. The placing of your name in the goblet constitutes a binding, magical contract. There can be no change of heart once you have become a champion. Please be very sure, therefore, that you are wholeheartedly prepared to play before you drop your name into the goblet. Now, I think it is time for bed. Good night to you all.”

The room immediately erupted with hundreds of excited voices as people began to leave.

Henry grabbed me by the arm and asked in my ear, "When do you want to enter?"

I watched as Professor Dumbledore placed the Goblet of Fire on the stool that typically hosted the Sorting Hat. I thought to myself how appropriate that was; in a sense, for me, choosing to enter the Triwizard Tournament was rather like being Sorted again.

"Tomorrow morning," I decided. "Probably rather early. I don't want everyone watching, but I don't want to do it tonight either."

"You _are_ still planning on entering, right?" Archie asked. "You're not just trying to delay it so long you run out of time?"

I laughing, nodding. "I'm still planning on entering."

"You are of age as well, then?" Christophe inquired.

I nodded again. "I turned seventeen a little over a week ago. Will you two be entering?"

"Definitely!" they said in unison, drawing laughter from all five of us.

"Well, we should be going now," Sophie said, "but it was wonderful talking to you all, and we will see you in the morning!"

"Best of luck!" Christophe waved, and the twins were on their way.

Archie rose. "I hope Snape doesn't get mad at me for bailing on the Slytherin table. Guess I'll find out. Night, you two!"

"Night, Archie!" we called.

My eyes strayed back to the Goblet, now in the center of the room.

"Are you thinking about entering now?" Henry asked, reading my mind the way he always did.

I nodded.

"Lucy and Cho are walking over," he said. "If you just want the three of us around and no one else, tonight would probably be a good idea. Hell, we could do it in the middle of the night. Head back to the common room, wait for things to settle down, then come back just the four of us."

I pursed my lips. "I like that idea."

Lucy and Cho slid into the empty seats previously occupied by the Beauxbatons twins.

"What're you thinking, Ced?" Lucy asked. "When do you want to enter?"

"I was originally thinking about entering first thing in the morning, but now..."

Cho reached across the table and squeezed my hand. "It's your call, Cedric. We'll come whenever you're ready."

I ran my free hand through my hair, eyes straying yet again to the Goblet. It was practically screaming at me to enter.

Of course it was the Goblet of _Fire_ , of all things, that decided the champions. Fire, that I had always feared. Fire, that I decided I didn't want to fear anymore. Fire would be what determined the course of my life for at least the rest of the school year, and possibly forever after that. It seemed too perfect to be mere coincidence; rather, I was exactly where I was meant to be.

I glanced around the room. We were nearly the only people left.

I squeezed Cho's hand and looked into her beautiful amber eyes. "I'm going to do it now. I just need a piece of parchment."

"The pad of parchment we always keep in the common room for anyone who needs it?" Henry suggested.

"Sounds good," I agreed. I glanced at Cho and Lucy. "Fancy a trip to the Hufflepuff common room with us, or do you want to wait here?"

"I can go get the parchment," Henry said, jumping up from his seat. "Which quill do you want out of your bag?"

I chuckled. "Any quill will do, Hen."

"No, no, he has a point," Cho said. 

"Yeah, Ced, it has to be special!" Lucy insisted. "You have the special parchment from the Hufflepuff common room, so you need a special quill too. Ooh, Cho, didn't you get him a fwooper feather quill last Christmas?"

"I'll grab that one!" Henry decided, disappearing from the Great Hall.

"You don't look nervous at all anymore," Lucy commented. "Are you?"

I hesitated a second, then shook my head. "Actually... no. Not at all." I looked back at the Goblet of Fire. "You know, I've spent my life running away from fire. Both literally and metaphorically. But I don't want to be afraid of it anymore. I want to prove myself, in a real way."

Cho furrowed her brow in confusion. "Prove yourself? You do realize you're... well, _you_ , right?"

"I know it must sound strange," I admitted sheepishly. "But I want to prove myself to myself."

"You want to prove to yourself that you're more than just what people see from the outside?" Lucy clarified.

I nodded. "Exactly."

When Henry returned, I wrote my name on the piece of parchment with Cho's quill. 

"Wait, if you used Henry's parchment and Cho's quill, I want to be represented, too!" Lucy exclaimed suddenly. "Oh, I know."

She removed her pygmy puff necklace from her neck and draped it over mine. I grabbed my own so the yellow and red pygmy puffs were displayed together on the outside of my robes and grinned at her. "How do I look?"

"Great!" she reported with a smile. "Come on, let's do it."

At this point, we were the only ones left in the Great Hall. The torches were burning low, meaning a blue glow hung over the room. I stepped over the Age Line and lifted a trembling hand to the Goblet of Fire. I hesitated for half a second, then drew a deep breath. Lucy, Henry, and Cho were behind me; the future and whatever opportunities it may bring were ahead.

I dropped the slip of paper into the fire, and an overwhelming sense of joy and exhilaration overcame me.

I jumped out of the Age Line into Henry's arms, seeing as he was the only one who would be able to support my body weight. And he did, hugging me back tightly as Lucy and Cho joined in on the sudden group hug. 

I had done it.

I slept soundly that night, far more soundly than I honestly expected. The next day passed in something of a daze; I didn't really want to watch everyone else putting their names in, knowing it would only make me more nervous, but I received updates throughout the day anyway as Henry and I camped out in the common room, playing board games and helping younger Hufflepuffs with homework.

Ernie Macmillan was the one who told me Angelina Johnson entered. Susan Bones was the one who told me Cassius Warrington entered. I heard from Archie about the people who tried to enter but failed, among them Fred and George Weasley (of course), Sasha Fawcett, and Adrian Summers. When the time came to head to the Halloween feast, I couldn't help but feel some of my anxiety returning. I'd entered, sure, but what if I _was_ chosen?

Henry bumped my shoulder with his. "You okay?"

I nodded. "I'm okay."

He studied me for a second longer. "Liar. You're nervous."

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you'll be just fine either way. If you're chosen, excellent. You get exactly what you wanted. And if you're not, that's alright too. Learn guitar with me, take Cho on dates around the castle, play more informal Quidditch games with the same group from last week. Chosen or not, this will be a good year, Ced. I promise."

"Thanks, Henry, I needed that." I took a deep breath in through my nose and released it through my mouth. "Well, here goes nothing."

Just before I stepped into the Great Hall, a voice called, "Diggory!"

I glanced up just as Professor Moody limped over to Henry and me. "Yes, sir?"

"Did you enter?"

I nodded. "I did, sir."

A smile spread across his face. "Excellent. Well, best of luck to you tonight."

"Thank you, sir," I replied, managing a smile in return despite my nerves.

The Great Hall was abuzz with excited murmurs and apprehensive glances toward the goblet in the center of the room. I kept my head down during dinner, Henry nudging my knee with his from time to time. I wasn't nervous, necessarily, at least not the way I had been the night before, but to say I was cool, calm, and collected would be a complete lie.

In time, the plates were cleared, and Professor Dumbledore commanded the attention of the entire room.

“Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision! I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions’ names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber, where they will be receiving their first instructions.”

I swallowed hard, nerves beginning to crawl up my throat. I instinctively inched closer to Henry; he was always the person I looked to for a foundation when my world turned upside down. He inched closer to me too, until our thighs were pressed up against each other under the table. The physical reminder of Henry, alongside me as always, helped to still my shaking hands and slow my racing mind. What was done was done. All that remained was the Goblet of Fire's decision.

Professor Dumbledore extinguished the torches with a wave of his wand. I locked eyes with Cho for half of a second, her beautiful face complemented nicely by the blue glow of the flames. She smiled encouragingly, and I smiled back. I then turned to Lucy, who looked nearly as nervous as I felt. Still, she offered me a smile and a thumbs up, which I returned as optimistically as I could.

Suddenly, the Goblet of Fire burned red and ejected a piece of parchment. I stiffened as Professor Dumbledore snatched it from the air, but it wasn't for Hogwarts.

“The champion for Durmstrang will be Viktor Krum!”

I joined in the thunderous applause that shook the Hall as he disappeared from the room.

The Goblet flashed red again, and ejected another piece of parchment.

“The champion for Beauxbatons is Fleur Delacour!”

"That leaves Hogwarts!" Archie announced, kicking me under the table.

I nodded, my hands suddenly slick with cold sweat. I stared unrelentingly at the Goblet of Fire, holding my breath, waiting for it to turn red a third time, to decide who would represent Hogwarts...

The blue flames turned red. A final piece of parchment shot into the air. I watched as Professor Dumbledore reached forward... grabbed the paper... adjusted his glasses... opened his mouth...

“The Hogwarts champion is Cedric Diggory!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this insight into why Cedric Diggory (in my canon, anyway) decided to enter the Triwizard Tournament!
> 
> Thank you all for reading! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! See you next chapter for Lucy's reaction to the events that unfold next!


	56. Dream Away These Fears

_The fear that we feel in our troubled hearts  
Is told to be what will make us last  
We'll prove that we are strong  
Though our lines are bleeding through  
We are becoming whole, slowly now  
We just need some sleep  
To dream away these fears  
We just need some time  
To clear our crowded minds_

_"Slowly, Now"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

“The Hogwarts champion is Cedric Diggory!”

The room exploded as Cedric headed into the chamber with Fleur Delacour and Viktor Krum.

 _You did it, Ced,_ I found myself thinking, smiling and clapping along with everyone else. _Now you have the chance you said you wanted._

When the uproar was finally reduced to excited whispers, I made eye contact with Henry across the room and flashed him a thumbs up. He sent one right back.

"Party?" he mouthed. "Our common room?"

I nodded. "I'll be there!"

“Excellent! Well, we now have our three champions!" Professor Dumbledore said. "I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real-”

The Goblet of Fire suddenly flared red... a fourth time. Every student in the room watched, transfixed, as a fourth piece of parchment emerged, and Dumbledore reached up a fourth time to grab it out of the air. He stared the name, blinked, and stared at it some more. A fourth champion?

Professor Dumbledore's deep voice filled the silent hall. "Harry Potter."

I felt as if I'd been punched in the gut. I turned to face Harry. His face was pale, and he looked just as stunned as everyone else. He looked at Ron on his left, then Hermione on his right, then at me across the table.

“I didn’t put my name in. You know I didn’t.”

I nodded. But Ron and Hermione only stared at Harry, as if they had reason to doubt him. I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry, and tried to find the words to say, but before I got the chance, I was interrupted by Professor Dumbledore.

“Harry Potter! Harry! Up here, if you please!”

“Go on,” Hermione hissed, shoving him up from the table. He sent me one last despairing look before walking to the front of the room.

When Harry had disappeared into the same chamber that we had all watched Viktor and Fleur and Cedric walk through, Professor Dumbledore addressed the hall with only a fraction of his typical confidence.

"Well... that concludes the selection of the Triwizard Champions! You are now all free to return to your dormitories, carriages, and ships."

"Harry did it!" Fred shouted as the Great Hall erupted with hundreds of voices at once. "I think this calls for a party! Hey, without Quidditch, we need _something_ to celebrate!"

The masses of Gryffindors around us cheered, but I couldn't shake the fear that had wrapped itself around my stomach.

The twins were so caught up in their rushed party preparation I was able to fall to the very back of the crowd without them noticing. Thankfully, no one else noticed either, so I followed everyone up to the common room in silence. 

When everyone else jumped through the portrait hole, though, I turned on my heel and started heading down the stairs to the Hufflepuff common room, suddenly jolting from my stupor and remembering I had promised Henry I'd be there at Cedric's party.

Halfway down the first flight of stairs, I stopped. I needed to talk to Harry first.

_He must be terrified._

I sat down where I was on the steps, pulling my knees to my chest and burying my head in my arms.

My mind was racing. 

I knew Cedric would be alright. He was smart, and brave, and strong, and capable of handling whatever the tasks threw his way. And above all of that, I understood that he was doing the Tournament for the right reasons. The Tournament was his way of proving to himself that he was worth more than his reputation. I understood that, and I was ecstatic for him.

But... but Harry.

He was smart and brave and strong, just like Cedric, but he was fourteen. Cedric was seventeen. And on top of all that... I recalled all too well our conversation at four in the morning after the Quidditch World Cup attacks. He had told me he just wanted to be Harry. Not Harry Potter, the boy who saved the Philosopher's Stone. Not Harry Potter, the boy who killed the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets. Not Harry Potter, the boy Sirius Black escaped Azkaban for. Not Harry Potter, the legendary Boy Who Lived. He just wanted to be Harry.

"Just Harry, Quidditch player?" I had asked, smiling because I knew just how much he --- _we_ \--- loved Quidditch.

I had heard the smile in his voice when he replied. "Yeah. Just Harry, Quidditch player. _That's_ a title I wouldn't mind."

I felt my chest tighten. Harry couldn't even have _that_ much, because of the Tournament. I didn't know what had happened with the Goblet, but whatever it was, it wasn't _fair_.

I lifted my head when I heard distant footsteps beginning to head up the stairs. They were soft; Harry's no doubt. 

I understood in that moment why he walked so softly, as if he were afraid of being heard. The Dursleys made him that way. He was afraid of being heard on Privet Drive, and the habit never left him, even at Hogwarts. The thought of the Dursleys made a familiar fiery anger flare in my chest. Having to continue to live with those horrible people every single summer was yet another part of Harry's life that was completely unfair.

When Harry appeared at the base of the flight of stairs I was sitting on, his head was bowed and his shoulders were slumped. It was the unmistakable posture of defeat, and my heart broke ever so slightly at the sight of it. 

I waited until he had nearly reached me to call out to him. "Harry?"

His head snapped up, and there was a wild, wild fear in his green eyes as they met mine. "Lucy." The way he said my name, tampered with equal parts desperation and relief and terror, made my heart break even more.

"Want to sit with me for a minute, before heading up to your party?" I asked softly. "A chance to catch your breath?"

"Party?" he managed after a moment's hesitation.

I nodded. "Everyone's amazed, trying to figure out how you did it."

"I didn't! Lucy, I swear, I-"

"I know," I interrupted, feeling my own emotions swell as I watched him begin to lose control over his. "I believe you."

He lowered himself next to me on the step, staring straight ahead and not meeting my gaze. "Does anyone else believe me?"

"I don't know."

He made a small sound of frustration in response.

We sat in silence for about a minute, each lost in our own thoughts, before Harry spoke again.

"I don't want to do this, Lucy."

"I know."

"Cedric was nice enough about the whole ordeal," he said uneasily. "He remarked that we'd be competing against each other again, just not on the Quidditch Pitch this time. And... he asked how I put my name in."

"I'm heading down to the Hufflepuff common room, I'll tell him you didn't. I'll tell _everyone_ you didn't."

"You believe me? You really do?" 

The honest surprise in his voice made me turn my entire body to face him. "Harry..." He stared straight ahead still. "Harry, look at me." He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye, nothing more, so I reached out and turned his face to mine with a gentle touch. I shyly returned my hand to my lap, careful not to break eye contact. "You've never lied to me before, at least not as far as I know."

He shook his head. "I've never lied to you, Lucy."

"So why should I doubt you now?"

Harry hesitated. "I don't know. Are you upset because I stole Cedric's spotlight?"

"No, not at all. It's not your fault that..."

"That I'm Harry Potter?"

I looked down at my hands, fingers awkwardly intertwined in my lap. "I guess you could put it that way," I whispered.

He rose to his feet, rubbing the back of his neck. "I should let you go. I could hear Cedric's party from where he and I talked in the hallway; sounds like it'll be fun."

I glanced up to see that he was offering me a hand up, which I accepted. I tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ear as I met his eyes again. "Your party should be fun, too," I said, painfully aware of my own awkwardness. "I'll come up before curfew and catch some of it." As soon as I said it, the gravity of what the next year would hold hit me all at once. Cedric _and_ Harry... in the Triwizard Tournament... 

Some of my anxiety must have shown on my face, because Harry's brow furrowed in concern. "What is it, Lu?"

I blinked hard. Harry, of all people, didn't need to worry about _me_ on top of everything else. I smiled. "Nothing. I'm alright. Go enjoy your party, Harry, and I'd recommend asking around to see if anyone has firewhisky. It really does help with headaches, believe it or not."

"I didn't say I had a...? How did...?"

"You rubbed the back of your neck," I said, face turning slightly red as I said it. I really _did_ pay a little too much attention to Harry. My smile faded. "It's not your scar, is it?"

He shook his head quickly. "No. It's not. I promise. Just..."

"Stress?"

He nodded, sighing. "Yeah. I guess."

"I understand. I'll be back soon. Try to enjoy the party, okay?"

He nodded again, turning and heading up to the Fat Lady. I raced down the stairs, taking them three at a time, realizing I had talked to Harry far longer than I intended to.

By the time I reached the Hufflepuff common room, the party was in full swing. I fought my way through the crowd to Cedric.

"Ced!" I screamed over the music, launching myself at him. "You did it! I'm so proud of you! Are you excited?"

"Yeah, I am," he replied, grinning from ear to ear.

"I was wondering when you'd show up, Little Diggory!" came Archie's voice from behind me.

I whirled around to see him striding toward me, Cam clinging to his arm and trying to keep up. "Archie! Cam! Hi!"

"You look like you need a drink," Archie declared, grabbing me by the elbow and dragging me deeper into the party. I shot an apologetic glance at my brother, who laughed and waved as he disappeared behind a massive wall of people dressed from head to toe in black and yellow. Even Archie and Cam were in on it, each sporting yellow and black face paint.

Archie didn't let go of my elbow until I was standing in front of a massive table of drinks. I looked at the line of various cups and bottles apprehensively.

"They don't bite," Cam said, nudging me forward. 

"How do you know which ones are spiked?" I asked. "None of the bottles have caps, and the cups have all been sitting here unattended for Merlin knows how long."

Archie laughed. "You spend too much time with Gryffindors. These are all perfectly fine, Diggory. I recommend the purple one, personally, it's plum-flavored butterbeer."

"What?"

He reached for a cup of it and placed it in my hand. "Just trust me."

I hesitantly lifted it to my lips and took a sip. My eyes widened. "This is actually good."

"Actually?" Archie repeated, sounding very offended. " _Actually_? What do you mean, _actually_? Of _course_ it's good, it's my recommendation, isn't it?"

I laughed. "Alright, alright, you're right. It's good, of course it's good." I looked between Archie and Cam. "So are you two...?"

"Yup!" Archie enthusiastically threw an arm around Cam's shoulders and pulled her closer, kissing her temple.

Cam smiled, looking a bit sheepish. "Can you believe it?"

"Cam, he's been mad about you since first year," I chuckled. "Yes, yes I can."

Cam blushed, and before she could reply, we were swarmed by all of the Hufflepuffs in our year, bursting with excitement over Cedric.

About half an hour before curfew, I found Cedric again. He and Cho and Henry and Bea were sitting in the corner talking, seemingly enjoying the relative calm.

"Good night, everyone! I'm going to head back to my own common room," I said. 

He rose from his seat and wrapped me in one last hug before I left. "You know I wouldn't be here without you."

"You would be," I replied, "but for the wrong reasons. Dad's, not yours."

"You know... you're right," he said as we pulled away. "I think I like my reasons better."

I laughed. "I can support your reasons. Dad's... not so much. G'night, Ced."

"G'night, Lu."

I practically ran all the way up to the Gryffindor common room. I had the feeling I'd be making the trip back and forth between the common rooms quite a bit the next several months.

Fred's face was the first I saw when I stepped through the portrait hole.

"Oi, there you are!" he shouted, dragging me into the room. "Where have you been?"

"Down at Cedric's party, sorry," I said. 

"Ah, it's just as well. Harry's left, anyway."

"He left? Where did he go?"

"Up to their dormitory," George answered from my other side. "Ron and Hermione headed up to their dormitories straight away, too."

I frowned. What had I missed?

Fred cocked his head. "What's bothering you? You have the most reason to be excited out of all of us, your brother and your-"

"-best friend," George cut in, looking at Fred meaningfully, for which I was grateful.

"-your 'best friend' who will eventually become your-"

"Anyway," George interrupted. "Two of your favorite people in the world-"

"-aside from us of course-"

"-are Triwizard Champions! How bloody cool is that?"

"It would be cooler if Harry had _meant_ to enter," I mumbled, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Oh, you don't _believe_ him, do you?" Fred asked with a roll of his eyes.

"Though I am surprised he didn't tell you how he did it," George added. "If he would tell anyone, we would think it would be you."

"I believe him," I said in an even softer voice. "Why would Harry _want_ to enter?"

"Why _wouldn't_ he?" Fred countered.

"Because he... he just wouldn't. Trust me on that."

"Alright," George said. He didn't sound convinced --- rather, he sounded like a parent responding to a child who's insisting there's a monster hiding in the closet --- but he at least tried to sound convinced, which I appreciated. "If you believe him, well, that's alright. What's bothering you?"

I forced a smile. "Nothing. It's just been a long day. Not to be a buzzkill, but I'm tired, too, and I need to talk to Hermione. Good night, boys."

I hurried away before giving them a chance to respond, going straight to my dormitory. Hermione was the only one there, and she was staring at the ceiling with a troubled look on her face.

"Hi," I said, going to sit on the edge of her bed.

"Hi," she replied, sitting up and running a hand through her bushy hair. "I'm guessing you were down at Cedric's party?"

I nodded. "I came back up to try to talk to Harry, but the twins said he went to bed already. Where's Ron?"

"The same," she said uncomfortably. She looked away, a sure sign that she was hiding something.

"What is it?" 

"Ron's furious," she burst out. 

"With Harry? Why?"

"He's jealous."

"Jealous? Jealous that Harry's basically just received a _death sentence_?!" I froze, suddenly aware that I was shouting. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be upset. Lots of high emotions today." I sighed. "Did he tell you why he was jealous?"

Hermione shook her head. "No... but he doesn't have to. Think about it, Lucy. Ron’s got all those brothers to compete against at home, and Harry Potter's his best friend, and he's really famous. Ron’s always shunted to one side whenever people see Harry, and he puts up with it, and he never mentions it, but I suppose this is just one time too many."

I absorbed this in silence for a moment. "I understand. Thank you for explaining."

"Of course." She sighed. "Lucy, Ron was... really angry. I don't know if... well... I think it might be like last year again, when Ron thought Crookshanks had killed Scabbers."

"Meaning our group of four will be two and two again?"

"I... I'm afraid so."

I groaned. "Harry doesn't need this, he needs all three of us, now more than ever-"

"I know. But Ron needs someone, too."

I nodded slowly. "You're right. So... so which one of us will... well... who will pair up with who? Merlin, Hermione, this feels so wrong."

"I know," she said, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Lucy, who do you think you can help more? I... I'm not like you. I'm better with books than people, you know that-"

"Hermione-"

"Don't try to deny it, Lucy, I know it's true. Are you going to choose or not?"

I shook my head. "How can I choose a side? I understand both, Hermione. I understand how Ron feels, because I've always lived in Cedric's shadow. But I've never been angry about it, I've just accepted it. And I understand how Harry feels, thrown into a life-and-death experience he never..." My voice trailed off as sudden tears clogged my throat. 

"I think you should take Harry's side, Lucy. You two understand each other more than you and Ron do, and even more than I think you and I do. You'd be able to help Harry more than I would."

A memory, one I hadn't considered in quite a long time, rose to the surface of my mind. Professor Dumbledore's words, spoken so long ago.

_I understand that Harry does not yet trust me as fully as he trusts his friends. As one of his friends, and perhaps as the one who understands young Mr. Potter best, all I ask is that you help him as best you can, whatever may come next._

I nodded, feeling more confident in the decision. "I think you're right." I swallowed hard. "The two of us are still on good terms, right?"

Hermione reached forward and wrapped her arms around my neck. "Of course, Lucy. We're going to need each other, too."

"You know... maybe if you talk to Harry in the morning, telling him what you just told me about Ron... maybe we can fix this tomorrow. Because you don't know yet how Harry reacted to Ron, do you?"

She shook her head. "I don't know, but... I don't feel good about this, Lucy."

"Me neither," I said, "but I want to try."

Hermione nodded. "Okay."

* * *

She did her best the next morning, but to no avail. I was in the Gryffindor common room pretending not to be waiting for Harry when he entered. I could tell from the look on his face that the situation with Ron had very much not been resolved.

His scowl lessened, though, as he made his way over to me. "Lucy, can I borrow Malachi? Hermione thinks I should tell Sirius about what happened last night."

I nodded, tucking my textbook into my bag and rising to my feet. "Of course. Want me to walk with you?"

He nodded. "Please?"

We walked to the Owlery in silence, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Really, it was the most calm I had been since Professor Dumbledore read Harry's name --- the passage of time had helped soften the initial blow, and in that moment, Harry was alive and well and safe, right beside me. In that moment, it didn't matter that I had been too worried to sleep more than a couple hours, and it didn't even really matter that Hermione and Ron were not going to play much of a role in my life for the unforeseeable future. In that moment, I had Harry, and that was all that mattered.

He swore under his breath when we reached the top of the stairs. "I didn't think to grab parchment or a quill. I was too busy thinking about-"

I wordlessly reached into my bag and passed him a quill, then a piece of parchment.

"Thanks," he said, sitting with his back against the wall to write the letter. I whistled for Malachi and stroked his feathers as I waited.

Harry came over after a couple minutes. "Would you mind reading it? I don't want it to be too worrying, since we all know what happened last time I wrote him a letter."

"Sure," I said, taking the letter from his hands.

_Dear Sirius,  
You told me to keep you posted on what’s happening at Hogwarts, so here goes. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the Triwizard Tournament’s happening this year, and last night (Halloween) I got picked as a fourth champion. I don’t know who put my name in the Goblet of Fire, because I didn’t. Nobody really believes me other than Lucy and a couple others. The other Hogwarts champion is Cedric Diggory, from Hufflepuff. He's Lucy's brother.  
Hope you’re okay, and Buckbeak.  
Harry_

"I think it's good," I said as I handed it back to him. "It sticks to the facts."

He nodded absently, still trying to think through a dense fog of worry. "Thanks. I... well, I tried." 

He tried to tie the letter to Malachi's leg, but his hands were trembling too much to successfully tie the thin string.

"I can do it," I offered softly, laying my hands over his and tying the knot.

"Thanks," he said, looking somewhat embarrassed as Malachi took flight. "I-I don't know what's wrong with me. I just can't stop thinking. And Ron not believing me, on top of everything... I thought of everyone, at least _he_ would trust me, but he doesn't." Harry reached out to stroke Hedwig's feathers, but she stiffened and flew away, clearly offended that he had used Malachi instead of her. "First Ron, then you? This isn’t my fault!"

I stood beside him in silence, watching as Hedwig soared to the top of the Owlery. Harry released a heavy sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Lucy, what do you make of all of this?"

I glanced up at him, curious. "What do you mean?"

"Professor Moody thinks whoever entered my name wants me dead."

"I mean... I certainly hope that's not the case," I replied slowly. "But I... can't really think of a _good_ reason for someone else entering your name."

Harry shook his head in agreement. We started to head down the stairs, but like the night before, I sank down onto a step.

He sat beside me without a word, so close to me, I realized, I could have laid my head on his shoulder. Before I could act on this random thought, he pulled his knees to his chest and dropped his head. I could tell that with every passing moment, the shock was wearing off, and the fear was setting in. I reached forward and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, a reminder that I was there, that I'd always be there.

We remained that way for a long time, undisturbed by any of our fellow students. Little did we realize exactly how precious that solitude was.

The next morning, it became immediately clear how the rest of the school felt about Harry being chosen as champion --- that is to say, they hated him for it. 

First came the Hufflepuff hostility in Herbology. Then the Slytherin hostility in Care of Magical Creatures. Then the Ravenclaw hostility at lunch. It was a vicious, demoralizing cycle.

For what it was worth, Hagrid believed Harry didn't put his name in, bringing the grand total to six: Hermione, Hagrid, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Moody, and myself.

Our first double Potions of the week was Tuesday, which was nothing short of horrible for both of us. Draco Malfoy made sure he and Pansy Parkinson were our partners at the table, and it was a verbal bloodbath. It started with Draco reminding Harry that he thought Harry would die within the first ten minutes of the Tournament, and reminding me that Cedric would always be the superior Diggory. Pansy didn't offer much original criticism herself, but she encouraged Draco at every turn with her high-pitched giggles and additional supporting comments. Whenever I defended Harry, they would start attacking me. Whenever Harry defended me, they would start attacking him again.

We headed to Defense Against the Dark Arts in silence, neither wanting to talk about the horrible things that had been said. I wanted to say something to help him feel better, but I was coming up empty. I was beginning to feel defeated, too, and terribly stressed. Every passing day meant the first task was drawing nearer.

As bad as Tuesday's double Potions was, Friday's was even worse.

It seemed everyone in our year in Slytherin (except Archie and Cam, who were standing off to the side with matching murderous scowls directed at Draco) was waiting outside the Potions classroom, wearing identical badges.

Draco swaggered over to the pair of us with a smile. “Like them, Potter?”

Written on the badges in red letters were the words "Support CEDRIC DIGGORY, the REAL Hogwarts Champion!"

"Did Cedric approve those badges?" I asked, wrinkling my nose. "Because I can't imagine he did."

Draco ignored me, stepping closer to Harry. “This isn’t all they do, look!”

He pressed the badge with his finger, and the words changed to "POTTER STINKS" in luminous green letters. One by one, the other Slytherins changed their badges so the whole dungeon glowed green. 

I was too angry to speak, so I instead stepped closer to Harry and laid my left hand on top of his right --- consciously or otherwise, he was reaching for his wand, and the last thing we needed was a confrontation.

“Oh _very_ funny, really _witty_.” Hermione had broken her silence, coming to stand on Harry's other side. Harry and I both glanced back at Ron; he was standing off to the side, not helping, but he wasn't laughing, either.

Draco offered Hermione a badge. “Want one, Granger? I’ve got loads. But don’t touch my hand, now. I’ve just washed it, you see; don’t want a Mudblood sliming it up.”

Harry and I reached for our wands simultaneously, all precaution forgotten. Draco started to reach for his wand too, but someone spoke first.

"You know how much I hate that word," someone growled. To my surprise, Archie had drawn his wand too, and he was pointing it directly at Draco.

But Draco ignored him, looking only at Harry. “Go on, then, Potter. Moody’s not here to look after you now. Do it, if you’ve got the guts.”

I tucked my wand away in an instant, eyes widening in realization. "Harry, don't, he's trying to goad you into-"

“Furnunculus!”

“Densaugeo!”

“Depulso!”

Harry and Draco's spells bounced off of each other in midair, flying off in opposite directions. Archie's, however, hit its mark --- Draco flew several feet backward and hit the ground with a soft thud.

"Nice shot," I muttered to Archie, looking around to see who had been hit by the stray jinxes. I saw Goyle's face first, covered in boils.

“Hermione!” Ron cried, rushing in her direction. Harry and I hurried over too.

Her hand was pressed to her mouth, and Ron and I worked together to gently pry it away. Her teeth were growing rapidly, already past her chin.

I gripped her shoulder. "I'll take you to the Hospital Wing, let's g-"

“And what is all this noise about?” came Snape's voice.

Everyone in the corridor seemed to try to talk at once, so Snape pointed at Malfoy, who was already on his feet, for an explanation.

“Potter attacked me, sir, and he hit Goyle, look!”

“We attacked each other at the same time!” Harry protested.

Snape looked at Goyle. “Hospital wing, Goyle.”

“Malfoy got Hermione! Look!” Ron yanked her hands away from her mouth for Snape to see.

He studied her for a second. “I see no difference.”

Hermione's eyes swelled with tears, and she sprinted away. Harry and Ron immediately began shouting at the top of their lungs as I chased after her.

“Get back here, Diggory!” Snape called.

I stopped dead in my tracks and turned around slowly, trembling from head to toe with anger. First he insults Hermione, then he won't let me follow her? "I was just going to accompany her to the Hospital Wing, sir."

“I trust that she can find it on her own at this point." He turned to Harry and Ron. "Let's see... fifty points from Gryffindor and a detention each for Potter and Weasley. Now get inside, or it’ll be a week’s worth of detentions.”

I remained frozen in place for half a second longer before following the boys. I sat next to Harry, as always, but to my surprise, Ron sat on my other side.

"Hey," I said, looking at him shyly, "she'll be okay. Madam Pomfrey can fix it."

He nodded. "But she can't take back what Snape said." 

"I know," I whispered. 

I knew all too well how Hermione felt. I remembered all too well what he had said to me during our first-ever Potions lesson. I recalled all too well how his words cut to the bone. 

_You don't belong in Gryffindor. You think you can come to Hogwarts and have your every whim catered to, but that isn't the case. By all rights, you don't belong here, and you know it. If not for the pity of the Headmaster, you wouldn't even be standing in my classroom right now, daring to defy me. It would be wise for you to learn to control the monster within you in the future. For now, I fear it's already too late._

“Antidotes!” Snape said loudly, surveying the classroom with those horrible eyes of his. “You should all have prepared your recipes now. I want you to brew them carefully, and then, we will be selecting someone on whom to test one.”

Harry stiffened as Snape's horrible eyes landed on him. I fixed my nastiest glare on Snape, hoping my message was clear. _If you hurt Harry, I will hurt you._

A knock at the door interrupted whatever Snape was about to say next. Colin Creevey smiled at Harry as he walked in.

“Yes?” Snape asked.

“Please, sir, I’m supposed to take Harry Potter upstairs.”

“Potter has another hour of Potions to complete. He will come upstairs when this class is finished.”

“Sir... sir, Mr. Bagman wants him. All the champions have got to go, I think they want to take photographs.”

It was Ron's turn to stiffen. He looked in the opposite direction of Harry, his jaw clenched.

“Very well, very well. Potter, leave your things here, I want you back down here later to test your antidote.”

“Please, sir, he’s got to take his things with him. All the champions-”

“Very _well_! Potter, take your bag and get out of my sight!”

Harry didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed his bag and quickly followed Colin out of the room.

Snape stared after them for a second before snapping back to reality. "Brew your antidotes, then we'll test one on somebody in this room."

The absence of Harry and Hermione meant that Ron and I were alone for the first time in a week. I had missed him, a lot, but I knew better than to try to force him to make up with Harry. It would happen when the time was right, and not a moment sooner.

"Ron?" I asked after we had been working in silence for about a minute.

"Yeah?"

I bit my lip. _What should I say?_ "I just... well, I wanted you to know I miss you."

"Aren't you on Harry's side?"

"There aren't any sides, the way I see it," I replied. "Ron, I understand exactly how you feel-"

"No, you don't."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Ron, my brother is Cedric Diggory. And Harry's my friend, too. I understand."

He started grating his ingredient so quickly I grew concerned he was going to take off part of his finger. "No, you don't understand. You don't have five older brothers who are so much better than you, you only have the one, and you two are practically the same person-"

"Tell that to my dad, then."

He froze.

"You were there that morning," I continued in a softer voice. "You heard him. You're right, I don't understand _exactly_ how you feel, but I reckon I understand how you feel better than Harry does. Better than Hermione, too, but don't tell her I said that. I'm alright with letting her think she's the best."

Ron managed a small smile at that, but it faded. "But if you understand, then why...?"

"Because Harry needs someone too," I said gently. "Ron, I know you don't believe that he didn't enter. And that's alright, I know that's what you believe and I know I can't change your mind, but the fact of the matter is, Harry's in the Tournament, and he's terrified. Surely you've seen that much?"

He hesitated for one second... two seconds... three seconds... then nodded. "Yeah. I have."

"I'm not going to ask you to try to make it up to him," I said, starting to crush my ingredients again. "But I know Harry misses you, and I know that you miss Harry-"

"I don't," he snapped.

I shrugged. "Keep telling yourself that, but I know the truth."

We worked together in silence for the rest of class, but it was alright. We both really needed to focus, and the air was clear between the two of us.

With fifteen minutes left in class, Snape got everyone's attention. "Longbottom, bring your antidote to the front of the room."

Neville gulped, hurriedly filling a small flask with the contents of his cauldron. He walked over to where Snape was standing, trembling from head to toe.

"It is now time to see if even Longbottom has somehow grasped how to brew an antidote. Diggory, join me at the front, if you will."

"No, not Lucy!" Neville burst out, sending a fearful glance in my direction.

Snape narrowed his eyes at Neville, a small smirk quirking his lips. "Is there a problem, Longbottom?"

"There's no problem, Professor," I said, hopping off of my stool and smiling.

"Lucy, no!" Ron hissed. "It's Neville's!"

I ignored him and stepped to the front of the room, meeting Snape's gaze defiantly, keeping my smile glued to my face. He looked somewhat taken aback by my confidence at first, but then his small smirk gave way to an undeniably sinister expression. 

Snape pressed a cold vial into my hand. "I trust you are familiar with this particular poison?"

I studied the bluish substance. It was a wolfsbane ingredient. My smile disappeared in an instant. Merlin, I hated Severus Snape. "This is aconite fluid, Professor."

"You will have about thirty seconds to drink the antidote, brewed by Longbottom. There's a bezoar in that cabinet, just in case," he said, gesturing with his wand, "so if something goes wrong, hopefully someone here can find it before it's too late."

Poor Neville looked as if he were about to faint. I didn't feel great, either, knowing I was about to literally consume poison. I looked out at the class one more time, which ended up being a terrible mistake. Cam was gripping Archie's hand tightly under their table, her olive skin significantly paler than usual. Archie offered an encouraging nod, but I could see the thinly-veiled fear in his eyes. And Ron... Ron looked like he was resisting the urge to rush to the front of the room and smack the poison out of my hand and throttle Snape in the same motion. Harry and Hermione were off in distant parts of the castle, completely unaware of what I was about to do. And Cedric... well, I'd just have to hope he never heard about this.

I popped the lid off the aconite and downed it. Neville's hands trembled violently as he passed me the antidote. I grabbed it from him as calmly as I could muster and sent the contents down my throat in a single swallow.

And then I waited. I closed my eyes as a cold sweat broke out on my forehead. I shuddered, making the whole class gasp.

But after about ten seconds... I was alright. I opened my eyes and turned to Snape.

"I think it works, Professor," I said, hoping he heard the biting edge to my voice. I smiled at Neville and softened my tone. "Good job!" I turned back to Snape, hardening my expression. "May we return to our seats, Professor?"

He nodded stiffly. "Class dismissed."

Ron grabbed me by the shoulder as soon as I was within reach. "What were you _thinking_?"

"I was thinking better me than someone else," I replied with a shrug. "It worked out in the end, didn't it?"

He stared at me for a second, mouth moving but no words coming out. He sighed and dragged his hand over his face. "I can't believe Snape just..."

"Tried to poison me?" I finished for him. "Yeah, I know. Well, remember last year when we thought he poisoned Lupin but it was actually just wolfsbane? I don't think he would have let me die today... well, at least I hoped he wouldn't."

"You gambled your life on a _hope_?"

I pursed my lips and slung my bag over my shoulder. "Isn't that what we do every day, if you think about it?"

Ron hesitated, then sighed again. "I guess. I'm going to check on Hermione. Maybe you should come with me... just in case."

I nodded. "Couldn't hurt. I really do feel alright, though."

"Yeah, well... can't be too careful. C'mon."

I followed Ron out of the dungeons and up the stairs to the Hospital Wing. Hermione was sitting up in bed, and she smiled dazzlingly when we walked in.

"Hey, you two are together!"

"Well, without you and Harry, we needed partners," Ron explained, sitting at the foot of her bed. "And we talked things out. Besides, I was never mad at Lucy anyway. Not her fault she keeps company with... anyway. How are you?"

"Madam Pomfrey wants me to stay overnight, just in case my teeth start growing again. But I'm alright, really," she insisted. She offered me a particularly toothy grin, and I noticed all of her teeth were the same size now. "Better than alright."

"Looks good," I commented. 

Ron glanced at me, still looking concerned. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Hermione turned to look at me, brow furrowing in confusion. "What is he talking about? What did you do?"

"This is my cue to leave," I said, walking backwards toward the door. 

"What? Lucy!" Hermione protested.

I laid my hand on the knob. "Ron can fill you in. I really should go ask Cedric how the pictures went. Bye!"

I slipped out of the Hospital Wing and headed down to the Great Hall. Harry was sitting by himself, looking rather forlorn, so I slid in next to him.

"Sorry I'm late," I said quickly. "How were the pictures?"

"Those I could have lived with," he muttered. "But Rita Skeeter... _Merlin_. She's the worst. How's Hermione, by the way?"

"She's alright, don't worry."

"Lucy!" Neville sat down across from me. "Thank Merlin. I saw you heading to the Hospital Wing with Ron, and I thought, well, something had gone wrong!"

Harry looked at me, bewildered. "Hospital Wing? With Ron? Wait, Neville, what do you mean 'gone wrong?'"

"I went to visit Hermione in the Hospital Wing," I explained, glancing between the boys. "I'm alright, really. And I was Ron's partner in class today since you and Hermione were both gone for the whole period. But Neville, don't worry, I'm completely fine."

"Why wouldn't you be?" Harry pressed. His face fell. "Lucy, you're not sick again, are you?"

I shook my head. _Not yet..._ I thought to myself. "Well, with you taking pictures, I was the test. Snape had me drink poison, then Neville's antidote. And it worked perfectly."

Harry's hand whitened as he gripped his fork. "I hate him. I _hate_ him."

"Just think of him in Neville's grandmother's clothes," I suggested, managing a small smile. "That always helps me get over the anger."

Neville chuckled. "Seeing that was one of the best moments of my life, I swear on the name of Godric Gryffindor himself."

Harry and I joined in on the laughter. We spent the rest of dinner with Neville, actually, and it was quite enjoyable. We headed up to the common room together, and the boys headed up to their dormitory shortly thereafter. I lingered in the common room, curling up in the window seat to take a moment just to breathe and reflect on the chaos of the past week. I had grown a little over the summer, meaning the window seat was a slightly tighter fit than it had been the last three years, but I still fit.

I hadn't been there more than five minutes when Harry headed back down the stairs and held out a piece of parchment. "From Sirius," he said. "Thought you might want to read it."

I nodded, scanning the letter quickly.

_Harry —  
I can’t say everything I would like to in a letter, it’s too risky in case the owl is intercepted --- we need to talk face-to-face. Can you ensure that you (and Lucy, if you want her there --- I haven't been properly introduced yet) are alone by the fire in Gryffindor Tower at one o’clock in the morning on the 19th of November?  
I know better than anyone that you can look after yourself and while you’re around Dumbledore and Moody I don’t think anyone will be able to hurt you. However, someone seems to be having a good try. Entering you in that tournament would have been very risky, especially right under Dumbledore’s nose.  
Be on the watch, Harry. I still want to hear about anything unusual. Let me know about the 19th of November as quickly as you can.  
Sirius_

"One in the morning next Saturday. Er, technically Sunday. I can do that."

Harry smiled a bit. "I don't know what exactly he has in mind for, ah, introductions, but I thought you'd like to meet him after all this time."

I laughed. "Yeah, that'd be nice." I moved over to create some space on the window seat. "If you want to sit here with me for a while instead of having to deal with Ron, you can."

He nodded gratefully. "Sounds great."

We sat quietly together for quite a while that night. After a week of dirty looks and vicious comments left and right, it was nice to be alone. I pointed out my favorite constellations to him, with extra emphasis on Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, of course, since my patronus was a bear.

In that moment, we weren't Harry Potter and Lucy Diggory, a Triwizard Champion and Sister of a Triwizard Champion. We were just Harry and Lucy, looking up at the stars and wondering what they held in store for each of us.


	57. What Sort of Secrets

_“I wonder which is preferable, to walk around all your life swollen up with your own secrets until you burst from the pressure of them, or to have them sucked out of you, every paragraph, every sentence, every word of them, so at the end you're depleted of all that was once as precious to you as hoarded gold, as close to you as your skin --- everything that was of the deepest importance to you, everything that made you cringe and wish to conceal, everything that belonged to you alone --- and must spend the rest of your days like an empty sack flapping in the wind, an empty sack branded with a bright fluorescent label so that everyone will know what sort of secrets used to be inside you?”  
Margaret Atwood_

* * *

**November 14, 1994**

**RITA SKEETER INTERVIEWS HARRY POTTER**

**You know his name. You know his story. But what you may not know yet is that Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, is the youngest Triwizard Tournament Champion in the history of the prestigious event!  
An ugly scar, souvenir of a tragic past, disfigures the otherwise charming face of Harry Potter. Though the Trwiwizard Tournament was supposed to be limited to witches and wizards seventeen years of age and older, it seems there is nothing that can stand in the way of our determined twelve-year-old hero.  
He would not reveal to me exactly how he managed to enter his name, a mystery that continues to confound yet awe everyone who comes into contact with the young Potter, but it is obvious that only a very powerful wizard could have achieved such a feat. Surely, we can expect to see great things from him in the Tournament, the first task of which will be taking place on November 22.  
Tears filled those startling green eyes as our conversation turned to the parents he can barely remember.  
"I suppose I get my strength from my parents," Harry confided in me. "I know they’d be very proud of me if they could see me now. Sometimes at night I still cry about them, I’m not ashamed to admit it."  
Moved with sympathy, I then asked if he were afraid of the tournament, being so young. The tears in his eyes disappeared, and he straightened up bravely as he said, "I know nothing will hurt me during the tournament, because they’re watching over me."   
Perhaps it was this same fearlessness that motivated the young Harry Potter to enter so recklessly into a tournament meant for older witches and wizards of far more ability, strength, and intellect. Whatever the case may be, Harry will be far from alone.  
His close friend, Colin Creevey, says that Harry is rarely seen out of the company of Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley, and Lucy Diggory. Unfortunately, all three of them were unavailable for comment at the time of my interview with Harry, but I hope to speak to them in the months to come.  
I was able, however, to speak to other members of the Gryffindor House, to which all four members of this quintessential quirky quartet belong. Hermione Granger, described as stunningly pretty, has been at the top of her class the past three years and counting, despite being Muggle-born. Ronald Weasley was described by his peers as first and foremost the best wizard's chess player at Hogwarts, a title extending back to his first year, as well as having quite the sense of humor. Lucy Diggory's role in this small group, however, remains largely a mystery to all. While most of those I interviewed were quick to call her sweet, as well as somewhat intelligent and very reserved, several expressed concern for what dangerous secrets may lie lurking beneath the horrific and horrifying scars that are rumored to cover her entire body.  
What does this all mean for Harry? Well, while he certainly has the challenge of a lifetime in from of him, and we can hope that with a combination of his own inner strength and the strength of those around him, his name will not be added to the list of competitors who have died in this tournament.  
Other competitors in the Triwizard Tournament include Victor Crumb of Durmstrang and Flor Dellacore of Beauxbatons.**

* * *

I crumpled the newspaper in my hands as soon as I finished the article and jumped up from the Gryffindor table.

"What? What is it?" Harry asked, looking somewhat startled.

"I'll be right back," I said. I marched out of the Great Hall and didn't stop until I was in a deserted hallway. I threw the ball of paper on the ground and pointed my wand directly at it.

"Lucy, what is it?" Harry reached forward and caught my hand. He laughed quietly. "What did that newspaper ever do to you?"

I sighed and lowered my wand. "I suppose I'll let you read what Rita Skeeter had to say before I burn it. Accio newspaper."

I guided it into Harry's hands, and his eyes skimmed the article. His face grew increasingly crimson as he read further and further. As soon as he was done, he threw it down onto the ground. "Burn it."

"Incendio!"

We stood side-by-side, watching the paper burn to ashes.

"You do actually plan on preparing for the tournament instead of relying on some heavenly protection, right?" I asked in an attempt to lighten the mood. "Because don't get me wrong, I'm sure your parents are watching from wherever they are and they're definitely very proud of you, but I'm also quite sure there's not much they'll be able to do."

Harry snorted. "Yeah, I'm planning on preparing. Merlin, what a horrible woman. I know for a fact you don't have any 'dangerous secrets.'"

I managed a laugh and changed the topic quickly. "Ron should be happy, Rita Skeeter described him as being both funny and the best wizard's chess player in the school."

"Yeah, well, guess we'll have to see if that's good enough for him." He straightened up and adjusted his glasses on his face. 

"I hate to be a pessimist, but I think this is going to be a long day," I remarked. "We can't burn all of the _Daily Prophet_ s in the school."

Harry sighed. "I hope Cedric's not offended that he wasn't mentioned."

"I'm sure he'll be alright with it, honestly. He hates being the center of attention."

I was right; Cedric didn't mind. In fact, _he_ asked how _I_ was doing, like the ever-caring older brother he was. I offered a smile and said I was fine.

I would have been a lot better if I weren't _actually_ hiding a dangerous secret. A secret that was harder to hide than ever, given how much time I was spending with Harry and only Harry.

The night before the full moon, Harry was working on a star chart for Astronomy and I was reading over his Divination work when he glanced up.

"I feel like I've asked you this before, but which constellation is this again?"

I smiled a bit when I saw which one he was pointing to. "You asked me that in our first ever Astronomy lession. It's Gemini."

He stared at it for a second longer, then grinned at me. "That's your star sign, isn't it? For May 23?"

I blushed at that. "Yeah. It is."

"That was the night you taught me lumos, wasn't it?"

"I'm glad you remember that," I replied, "because the main thing I remember is that we sprinted across the castle because we were so afraid of being caught by Mrs. Norris."

"Simpler times," he commented. 

"Yeah... I wish that was our biggest fear now." I glanced down and read the last sentence he'd written, holding out his parchment to him. "It looks good to me. How unfortunate that Peeves will drop a crystal ball on your head next week."

"Lucy," he said softly, "why are your hands shaking so much?"

"Oh, I..." My voice trailed off. What could I say? _The full moon is tomorrow night. The first task is five days from now. We still have no idea what it will be. You've been mercilessly bullied all week because of Rita Skeeter's stupid article and I couldn't do anything to help. I would be amazed if my hands were still._

He took the parchment back, then looked up at me with those emerald eyes of his I loved so much. It was like he could see straight through me. I quickly retreated back into myself, putting up a front as soon as I realized how close I had been to telling the truth.

I smiled. "I guess I've just been writing a lot tonight. My hand gets tired after a while."

He started to nod, then stopped. He slowly reached forward and laid a hand on my forehead.

_Damn._

I backed away from his touch. "Don't let Neville see," I muttered. "I don't want him thinking it's his fault, after last Friday."

"Lucy, it might be-"

"It's not." I looked away and rubbed the back of my neck, panic flaring in me as I tried to keep my story straight. "I-I don't know what it _is_ , but it's not that."

He nodded fully this time, looking down at his homework. "Maybe you should go to the Hospital Wing."

"I'm alright, really."

"Lucy, don't lie to me. Please."

I froze. I didn't know how to respond.

"I understand that you don't know what it is, I understand that this is somehow normal for you, but don't try to tell me you're alright when I can feel how hot your forehead is before my hand even touches it."

I nodded, feeling something deep within me giving way. Like a little piece of the dam I'd built to keep my secret from him had broken off. "I won't. I'm sorry."

"Lucy-" He shifted a stack of homework to come sit next to me rather than across from me. "You don't have to be sorry. I just... want you to know you don't have to hide from me, either."

"Alright." The nearness of Harry was nearly overpowering... but not in a bad way. Chocolate and broomsticks and grass and smoke. I was tempted to lean further into it, tempted to lean into him, but the familiar reservations held me back.

I was a werewolf. I was a monster. I chided myself for even thinking such insane things. I could never let Harry get that close to me; he was much too important.

"So you're not going to the Hospital Wing?"

I shook my head. "Tomorrow, if I don't feel better."

"Promise? I need you, Lucy, I don't know what I'd do if my only friend right now got seriously sick right before the first task."

"Promise," I replied, daring to glance up. He gave me a small smile, then returned to where he was sitting and reached for his star chart again.

"Gemini," he whispered to himself, tracing the constellation with his finger.

* * *

_It was just before midnight when George Weasley realized something._

_He and Fred were sitting on the floor of the Gryffindor common room, heads bowed low over yet another draft of a letter for their unintentional pen pal, Ludo Bagman._

_"Where's Lucy when you need her?" George muttered, half to himself and half to Fred. "She always knows what to say in these bloody things."_

_"Sick, apparently. I heard Harry telling Colin earlier."_

_George sighed and glanced at the window seat Lucy so often occupied. As he did so, he couldn't help but notice the way the bright moonlight shone on the red cushions._

_Something clicked in that brilliant mind of his._

_He jumped up and hurried to the window, glancing up at the night sky. Yeah, it was a full moon, alright._

_"What is it?" Fred inquired, following his twin to the window._

_"Freddie, when was she last gone at night?"_

_"Er... I don't know. But she wasn't there on Hermione's birthday. That was September... nineteenth?"_

_George nodded. "Yeah. The nineteenth. Was that a full moon, too?"_

_The twins exchanged a glance, and they didn't need to use words to communicate the epiphany they had just shared. They moved as one up the stairs to their dormitory, and Fred bounced impatiently on the balls of his feet and George rifled through the chest at the foot of his bed for astronomy notes, trying to be as quiet as possible so they didn't wake their sleeping roommates._

_Once the piece of parchment was acquired, the twins rushed back downstairs and confirmed that, yes, September 19 was a full moon._

_"Do you think she really is?" Fred asked in a hushed voice._

_"She must be," George replied. "That, or it's a hell of a coincidence."_

_"So we ask in the morning."_

_George shook his head. "She has enough to worry about right now. We'll ask once things settle down."_

_"I really want to know for sure, though."_

_"So do I, but... I think we should wait. Think about it. Lupin resigned the same day everyone figured out he was a werewolf. That must be why she's kept it a secret so long."_

_"Yeah... you're right." Fred sighed. "I feel stupid for not realizing this sooner."_

_"You and me both. Do you want to keep working on the letter, or-"_

_"Call it a night," Fred answered, not even needing to hear the rest of the question to know his answer. "Suddenly, Ludo Bagman seems incredibly unworthy of our time and attention."_

_Because, just before midnight, the Weasley twins realized that their Cub might be a werewolf._

* * *

_It was just after midnight when Henry Furls realized something._

_He was in the middle of a recurring nightmare. Professor Trelawney was predicting the death of his best friend over and over again in Divination class, but in each repetition of the nightmare, some new and horrible fate befell Cedric. An army of rogue trolls, a group of giant basilisks, a swarm of dementors, even a raging fire that suddenly swept through the classroom yet managed to kill only Cedric. This same nightmare had haunted Henry for three years, but that didn't make it any less terrifying._

_That night, Cedric had just been killed by a brilliant flash of green --- just like they had seen in Professor Moody's class. Henry's horror jerked him back to consciousness. He heaved for breath as he ripped the eye mask off his face and immediately faced Cedric's bed._

_His heart nearly stopped when it was empty, but then he sighed. Prefect duties. It was Cedric's patrol night._

_Henry knew in that moment he could never lose Cedric._

_Henry was an intensely private person. He was more than content to play the role of the supportive best friend in public, not wanting any part of the attention Cedric received. But he never had any reason to hide anything from Cedric, and Cedric never had any reason to hide anything from Henry. Cedric was a surprisingly private person, too, keeping a lot of his insecurities and doubts and worries buried deep inside. But Henry had learned how to bring the best out in his best friend, the same way Cedric had always brought out the best in everyone else around him._

_They balanced each other so well they could communicate effortlessly without even speaking. Henry could detect the slightest tremor of Cedric's hands. Cedric could tell when Henry's self-doubt was about to get the best of him. Henry could notice from a mile away the dazzling smile that informed him Cedric had passed a test he thought he'd fail. And Cedric could always say just the right thing to make sure Henry knew how much their friendship meant to him._

_Cedric and Henry were best friends. Everyone knew that._

_But no one knew about the way Henry was thinking about Cedric in that moment. And at first, neither did Henry._

_But then, in the darkness, he recalled with a rush the way Cedric had jumped into Henry's arms after dropping his name in the Goblet of Fire. He recalled the swooping feeling in his stomach that he pushed away._

_And suddenly, that same swooping feeling was upon him again. Because in that moment, he had made a horrible realization._

_Henry had never kept a secret from Cedric before. Cedric knew Henry better than Henry knew himself._

_But this was one secret he would sooner die than share with Cedric._

_Because, just after midnight, Henry realized he might be in love with his best friend._

* * *

The morning after the full moon, I just laid on the soft ground for a moment, trying to reorient myself. I was somehow even more exhausted than usual, and it was nice simply having a moment of solitude.

And then everything rushed back to me.

_The first task is in three days, Cedric and Harry are both competing in it, Ron still hasn't talked to Harry, and... wait! I'm going to Hogsmeade for the first time today! Alright, that's reason enough to get up._

With that very happy thought in mind, I pushed myself off the ground and rubbed at my eyes as I staggered to the door.

Cedric was leaning up against the other side of the hallway, arms crossed over his chest and smiling. "Good morning! How are you?"

"More tired than usual," I admitted, stifling a yawn with my hand. "But I get to go to Hogsmeade today!"

"You and Harry?" he asked, somewhat suggestively.

"And Hermione," I said. "She... well, she's missed Harry. Apparently Ron wants to spend the day with the twins and Lee Jordan, meaning Hermione's free to hang out with Harry and me."

Cedric shook his head sadly. "Hopefully Harry and Ron sort it out soon. I mean, if _I'm_ not upset with Harry, I don't understand why everyone else is."

"You _would_ have the most reason to be," I said with a sigh. "And to think, a month ago was the day you first told everyone you were planning on entering."

"Yeah, you're right," he said, smiling. "Time flies, I guess."

And so it did. Before I knew it, I had downed my wideye potion, taken a shower, and returned to the common room, where the twins were already awake and speaking to each other in low tones.

"Isn't it a little early on a Saturday morning to be considering blackmailing an influential sports figure?" I asked, sitting on the couch next to George.

"Never too early," Fred replied, grabbing me by the arm and yanking me over George until I was sitting in between them. "Want to read the letter before we send it off?"

"Happy to be your editor! Hand it over, my favorite muppets."

"Watch who you call a muppet, Cub," George said, passing me the letter. He rested his head on top of mine as I read. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah, I am, thanks. Now shut up, I'm reading," I added teasingly.

There were no typos, so I had no real corrections to offer. But something was off about the twins themselves. George kept his cheek pressed to the top of my head, and Fred's eyes kept flickering back and forth between the page and my face. They seemed... worried. Which was an expression I had never really seen on their faces before. It kind of unnerved me. I had to do something about it.

"It's good, except for one thing." 

"The one thing being?" Fred asked.

"You spelled Bagman wrong," I said.

"You're bloody kidding." Fred snatched the letter from my hands before bursting into laughter. "I hate you."

I giggled, somewhat relieved to see that at least Fred stopped looking worried. "You know I can never miss an opportunity to mess with you two."

George laughed, too, sitting up and draping his arms over the back of the couch. "Thanks for reading that over. We're going to go steal Pigwidgeon from Ron, but see you in Hogsmeade, maybe?"

"Maybe," I replied with a grin. "I'm not quite sure what Harry and Hermione have in mind for the day. I know where you two will be, though, so I'll try to convince them to swing by Zonko's."

"You know us too well," Fred said. 

"You're predictable!" I fired back as they left the common room.

"Well, you're not," said a voice behind me.

I whirled around, braids whipping my face with how quickly I moved. "Harry! Hi!"

"Hi yourself," he replied, coming to fill in the spot to my right previously occupied by George. "How are you? Better?"

"I'm excited for Hogsmeade," I said with a smile, praying I wasn't blushing. I reckoned I was too cold to blush, anyway; the November common room was freezing even with Cedric's magic shirt. "Are you?"

He nodded. "Just so you know, I'm planning to wear the Invisibility Cloak."

"Don't want to deal with Rita Skeeter?"

"I was thinking about Ron, actually," he admitted, looking somewhat sheepish. "But I wouldn't want to run into her, either, come to think of it."

I smiled. "Did you and Hermione talk at all about what you want to do?"

"It's your first trip, Lu. What do _you_ want to do?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. But I know Hermione will know, so I'm planning to follow her lead."

Harry laughed. "You know what, I think you might be onto something."

Surely enough, Hermione knew exactly where to go, but she wasn't thrilled with Harry's Invisibility Cloak idea.

“I hate talking to you in that cloak, I never know if I’m looking at you or not,” she complained as we walked down the street. “Come on, please just take off your cloak for a bit, no one’s going to bother you here.”

“Oh yeah? Look behind you.”

Hermione and I turned around just as a photographer and a blonde woman exited the Three Broomsticks.

"A photographer?" I asked hesitantly.

"That's Rita Sk-"

Before Harry could finish her name, Rita Skeeter herself spotted me. A flicker of recognition crossed her beady eyes, and I felt my heart begin to beat a little faster in my chest as she approached me.

"Hermione, do something!" Harry hissed.

"Like what?" Hermione hissed back. 

"Like this."

Suddenly, my Magpies hat was yanked down over my eyes. 

"Pretend that was Angelina and Alicia," Harry whispered in my ear. "Casting a spell from behind you. Then duck into the second shop on the right, they just walked in there."

I laughed and spun in half a circle. "Hey!" I ripped my hat off and hurried down the street. "There are other ways to get my attention, you know!"

The second shop on the right proved to be none other than Honeydukes Sweetshop. I grinned widely as I looked around the multi-colored shelves.

"Thanks, Harry, that was brilliant," I whispered, ducking deeper into the shop.

"You _did_ follow us in, right?" Hermione muttered as she walked behind me.

Harry chuckled. "Wish you could have seen the look on her face. It was satisfying, to say the least."

We poked around Honeydukes for a while longer, giving Rita Skeeter ample time to lose interest and give up the chase. Once we were satisfied, the three of us --- or, as it appeared to the rest of the world, the two of us --- headed to the Three Broomsticks. Ron smiled and waved when he spotted Hermione and me, and the twins soon followed suit. We smiled and waved back, then I went with Harry to get a table in the corner while Hermione ordered the drinks.

"Wish I could have given Ron a nice poke in the back of the head," Harry said moodily.

"Be nice," I chided him, trying not to move my lips too much so it didn't look like I was talking to myself. "He'll come around soon enough, just give him time to be angry."

A heavy sigh was my only reply as Hermione returned with the drinks. I slipped Harry's to him under the table, and Hermione plopped the S.P.E.W. notebook onto the table with a flourish.

"Since you haven't been able to help lately, I was thinking now would be a good time to catch you both up on the recent occurrences within the organization. Last Wednesday, I was able to recruit Neville..."

I listened to Hermione as she talked, or at least I tried to, but butterbeer straight from the tankard was distractingly delicious. But a new arrival at the door caught my attention.

“Look, it’s Hagrid!” Hermione said.

I smiled and waved, and he headed our direction. To my surprise, Professor Moody headed over to us as well, his magical eye focused very intently on the supposedly empty seat next to me.

"Hello Hermione, Lucy," Hagrid said in a voice that suggested he knew Harry was there, too.

Professor Moody stooped over to inspect the S.P.E.W. notebook. After a second, he said in a low voice, "Nice cloak, Potter."

“Can your eye- I mean, can you-?”

Professor Moody grinned. “Yeah, it can see through Invisibility Cloaks. And it’s come in useful at times, I can tell you. I'm sure your mother has told you about those, eh, Diggory?”

"Er... she doesn't tell very many stories, sir," I admitted, the odd feeling settling in my stomach that I had experienced when he instructed me to tell Mum he'd be keeping an eye on me. I had done so, albeit reluctantly, and she replied very positively to that word from her former coworker, so I had tried to force away any senses of unease around him. But they kept crawling back, no matter how hard I tried to push them away. 

Before Professor Moody could reply, Hagrid bent down to pretend to look at Hermione's notebook too. In a voice he clearly hoped only Harry would hear, he whispered, “Harry, meet me tonight at midnight at me cabin. Wear that cloak.” But, being a werewolf so fresh off the full moon, I heard him loud and clear. Just as soon as he had spoken, he straightened up again, bid Hermione and me farewell, and followed Professor Moody out of the Three Broomsticks.

“Why does Hagrid want me to meet him at midnight?” Harry wondered aloud.

Hermione blinked hard. “Does he? I wonder what he’s up to? I don’t know whether you should go, Harry... it might make you late for Sirius.”

"I can go," I offered in a low voice, "assuming you don't mind lending me the cloak, that is. You can't afford to miss Sirius, Harry, but I'm sure I can handle whatever Hagrid needs you to do."

A brief silence followed.

I cracked a grin. "If you're nodding, Harry, I can't see you."

"Oh, right, sorry. I was. Of course I trust you with the cloak, Lucy, as long as you're sure you don't mind."

"When have I ever minded a trip down to Hagrid's?"

"Touché." Harry paused, then chuckled. "You know... I was wondering why Hagrid didn't wave back. I realize now that I was waving from under the cloak as if he could see me."

The three of us enjoyed the rest of our Hogsmeade visit well enough. We were all somewhat preoccupied, each wondering what Hagrid had in store. Well, and not to mention the fact that Harry was under the Invisibility Cloak and Ron wasn't there. But all that being said, my first trip to Hogsmeade was a good one, though I did find myself looking forward to (I hoped) more normal visits in the future.

Harry and I formed a plan after dinner for how to get me down to Hagrid's under the Invisibility Cloak without arousing any suspicion. Half an hour to midnight, it was time for the show to begin.

Hermione was the only one in our dormitory while I prepared.

"You're sure this plan will work?" she asked worriedly.

"Sure it will." I shoved the Invisibility Cloak under my robes as I talked. "You really have the hardest job of all."

"Will you ever tell me how in Merlin's name you managed to nick two Dungbombs off of the Weasley twins in broad daylight?"

I grinned. "Oh, Hermione, where's the fun in me telling you?" I dropped them into her hand. "Now remember, if the common room isn't deserted by one o'clock, put one in front of the portrait hole and one in front of the fire and activate them from the stairway to avert suspicion."

"I really hope everyone's tired tonight so I don't have to do this," she groaned. "Honestly, me? Dungbombs?"

I clapped her on the shoulder, my grin widening. "That's exactly why you were nominated for this task. You're trustworthy, and not at all suspicious!"

She managed a small smile. "Well... you're not wrong. Good luck tonight. Wake me when you're back and tell me everything."

"Will do." I wrapped my arms around my midsection and stooped over slightly. "Is this convincing? Like I've got an actual stomachache?"

Hermione nodded. "Perfect. It helps that you're already pale since the full moon was last night. Now go, you've only got half an hour now."

I stumbled from the dormitory and made my way down the stairs. As soon as I reached the crowded common room, my eyes found Harry, who was sitting in the corner nearest the portrait hole by himself, pretending to read a book. I made my way over to him, arms firmly secured around my stomach.

"Harry?" I asked softly, for the benefit of anyone who may be listening in.

In accordance with the script, he glanced up and looked concerned. "What is it, Lu?"

"I-I don't feel good," I stammered. "Too many sweets from Honeydukes. Will you walk with me to the Hospital Wing?"

He jumped to his feet and laid a supporting hand on my shoulder. "Of course. Let's go, and quickly. You don't look too good."

We made our way through the portrait hole together, then as soon as it closed behind us, we hurried down to the dark and deserted History of Magic classroom. 

"Smashing performance, Mr. Potter," I chuckled quietly as we closed the door behind us. 

"Not so bad yourself," he replied. "I was worried for half a second that you weren't kidding."

I dropped my arms and let the cloak fall to the floor. He scooped it up off the ground and draped it over me. In that moment, I let myself stare. He couldn't see me, after all. The moonbeams filtering in through the window caught his brilliant green eyes just right, and I couldn't help but notice how gently and carefully he arranged the folds of the fabric around me.

"Well... how do I look?"

Harry grinned at the obvious irony of my question. "You look perfect. As in, you don't really _look_ any way at all."

"Any advice before I leave? Tricks of the trade?"

"I know you'll be just fine. I'll tell anyone who asks where you went that you weren't feeling well so I walked you to the Hospital Wing, but that you'd be back by morning. You gave Hermione the Dungbombs?"

"She wasn't thrilled about it, but yes, I did. Let's hope we don't have to use them." I took a deep breath and extended a hand for him to shake. "Well, good luck, Harry."

"Good luck," he said, nodding and turning on his heel.

I felt affronted for half a second, then I started laughing.

He turned back around, confusion written all over his face. "What is it?"

"I was wondering why you didn't shake my hand." I was very glad he couldn't see how much I was blushing. "As if you could see me under this."

He chuckled, then extended his own hand. "How about you come to me?"

"Perfect." I reached forward and officially shook his hand. "Well, good luck starting _now_."

"Good luck."

We crept out of the classroom together. He headed back up the stairs in the direction of the common room, whereas I headed down the stairs in the direction of Hagrid's hut. 

Hagrid opened the door as soon as I knocked. 

“You there, Harry?”

I slipped inside the hut and pulled the cloak off. "Actually, Hagrid, it's me. Harry wasn't feeling well, so I offered to come down instead. I reckoned you didn't want him being sick all over your floor. Too many Honeydukes sweets, we think."

Hagrid nodded understandingly. "That c'n happen if yer not careful! Well, ter be honest, Lucy, it's just as well that yer the one here. I was plannin' on showing yeh this sometime."

"Show me what, Hagrid?" I asked. I studied him more closely, and I could see that Hagrid had put more effort than usual into his appearance; his hair was brushed, and a flower was pinned to his chest. I grinned knowingly. "Is Madame Maxime coming as well?"

"As a matter of fact, she is," he replied. "But never mind that. Come with me, keep quiet, an’ keep yerself covered with that cloak. We won’ take Fang, he won’ like it."

Curiosity thoroughly piqued, I threw the cloak over my head and followed Hagrid outside. He initially led me to the Beauxbatons carriage, but I soon realized it was just to pick up Madame Maxime.

She opened the door and smiled. “Ah, ’Agrid, it is time?”

“Bong-sewer,” he replied happily, extending an arm to her, which she gladly took.

“Where is it you are taking me, ’Agrid?” she asked as we headed in the direction of the Forbidden Forest.

“Yeh’ll enjoy this, worth seein’, trust me. On’y... don’ go tellin’ anyone I showed yeh, right? Yeh’re not s’posed ter know.”

“Of course not!”

I had to run to keep up with the very tall pair. If Hagrid was half-giant, I was convinced Madame Maxime was at least three-quarters giant... if that were somehow possible. I forced the thought from my mind and tried to focus on where we were going without tripping on anything on the ground and compromising the entire mission.

A sudden shout split the quiet night. I followed Hagrid and Madame Maxime as they took shelter behind a clump of trees. A blast of orange illuminated the world around me, and my jaw dropped.

Dragons. Four amazing dragons, right on Hogwarts grounds.

 _But wait,_ I found myself wondering, _why would Hagrid want to show Harry the dragons before me? Hagrid knows better than anyone how much I love dragons..._

Another one blasted off, and I could clearly see a Common Welsh Green, a Swedish Short-Snout, a Chinese Fireball, and... oh _Merlin_. A Hungarian Horntail. All four were in an enclosure of sorts, though I was worried for its structural integrity --- to be fair, very few structures in the world would have been able to contain four dragons, especially dragons like those.

Someone hanging off of the fence, whose voice I recognized as belonging to Charlie Weasley, called, “Keep back there, Hagrid! They can shoot fire at a range of twenty feet, you know! I’ve seen this Horntail do forty!”

“Is’n’ it beautiful?” Hagrid gushed.

I found myself nodding emphatically in agreement, knowing and not caring that he couldn't see me. The dragons were incredible, but... why had Hagrid wanted to show Harry first, and not me?

“It’s no good! Stunning spells, on the count of three!” another wizard yelled. "One... two..."

"STUPEFY!"

The four dragons collapsed to the ground, causing something of an earthquake, and the dragon keepers eagerly set to work securing them to the ground. Hagrid and Madame Maxime moved closer, and I followed eagerly. Dragons, real dragons, at Hogwarts! I couldn't believe my eyes.

Charlie came over to the two of them, grinning and panting. I noticed he had a new pink burn on his cheek. “Alright, Hagrid? They should be okay now, we put them out with a Sleeping Draft on the way here, thought it might be better for them to wake up in the dark and the quiet. But, like you saw, they weren’t happy, not happy at all!”

“What breeds you got here, Charlie?” Hagrid asked with boyishness excitement.

He pointed to each as he spoke. “This is a Hungarian Horntail. There’s a Common Welsh Green over there, the smaller one. And a Swedish Short-Snout, that blue-gray. And a Chinese Fireball, that’s the red.”

Madame Maxime broke off suddenly, hurrying toward one side of the enclosure for a closer look.

Charlie turned back to Hagrid, frowning. “I didn’t know you were bringing her, Hagrid. The champions aren’t supposed to know what’s coming. She’s bound to tell her student, isn’t she?”

Hagrid's reply was upbeat --- “Jus’ thought she’d like ter see ’em!” --- but a realization like a stunning spell nearly knocked me to the ground. _The champions aren't supposed to know what's coming_... the dragons were for the first task.

“Really romantic date, Hagrid,” Charlie quipped.

“Four... so it’s one fer each o’ the champions, is it? What’ve they gotta do, fight ’em?”

_Oh Merlin, no, please no._

Charlie shook his head. “Just get past them, I think. We’ll be on hand if it gets nasty, extinguishing spells at the ready. They wanted nesting mothers, I don’t know why, but I tell you this, I don’t envy the one who gets the Horntail. Vicious thing. Its back end’s as dangerous as its front, look.”

Charlie pointed at its tail --- which did in fact look just as dangerous, if not more so, than its fire-breathing front end --- just as a group of Charlie's fellow dragon keepers placed a crate of eggs next to the stunned dragon. Hagrid groaned, clearly yearning for an egg of his own.

“I’ve got them counted, Hagrid." Charlie grinned, then his grin faded. "How’s Harry?”

“Fine,” Hagrid answered, not blinking as he stared at the eggs.

“Just hope he’s still fine after he’s faced this lot... I didn’t dare tell Mum what he’s got to do for the first task; she’s already having kittens about him. She was in floods after that _Daily Prophet_ article about him, saying she never knew he still cried for his parents and the like.” 

If I hadn't felt such overwhelming dread coursing through me, I might have found that funny. Harry didn't cry for his parents anymore, of course he didn't. But... I sure felt like crying, looking at the dragons. Knowing that on Tuesday, my brother and my --- well, Harry --- would be going against them. 

"Well, I'd better go and help," Charlie said. "Nice seeing you, Hagrid. And don't get any ideas about the eggs, you hear?"

"Yeah," Hagrid replied, clearly still wonderstruck by the creatures before him. The same way I had been, before I found out what their true purpose was.

I reached forward and tugged on Hagrid's sleeve, trying to jerk him back to reality.

"Dragons?" I squeaked.

"Yeah," he said in the same misty voice. "Beautiful, aren' they?"

I looked one more time at the sleeping beasts. "Yeah," I heard my voice saying, "they are. Listen, Hagrid, I need to head back up to the castle, but thanks for the heads-up, okay?"

"Sure."

I wrenched my eyes away from the dragons and ran as fast as my legs could carry me.

Terror surged through my veins. I needed to tell both Cedric and Harry. Madame Maxime would surely tell Fleur, and as I ran, I spied Karkaroff heading in the same direction from which I had just come, meaning Viktor would know too. I couldn't let my two favorite people in the entire world enter the first challenge completely blind, rules be damned. If Beauxbatons and Durmstrang were going to bend the rules, so could I.

I reached the Fat Lady in what seemed like no time at all. 

"Balderdash," I panted.

"If you say so," she said. The hole swung open, and I launched myself inside.

Harry was so deep in conversation he didn't hear me come in.

"Ron doesn't believe me, Sirius." His voice was high and strained, and the magnitude of Ron's lack of trust in his friend seemed to hit me all at once. Harry was _hurting_. "I thought he was my best friend, but Lucy's the only one who's stuck with me through all of this. I-I don't know what I'd do without her."

I couldn't stand to eavesdrop helplessly anymore. I tore the cloak off and rushed to Harry, kneeling beside him and grabbing him by the shoulders. "Dragons. Harry, the first task is dragons."

"W-What?" he stammered.

"Hagrid wanted you to see them tonight," I said, gasping after such a long and hard run. I brushed my sweaty hair from my face with my sleeve. "Charlie said you didn't have to fight them, necessarily, but there are four dragons, one for each champion."

"You must be the famous Lucy," came a voice from the fire. I jumped a bit and turned, offering a shaky smile.

"That I am. You must be the famous Sirius."

"Infamous, more like," he replied with a dry bite of sarcasm. "Harry, listen, dragons we can deal with, but we’ll get to that in a minute. I haven’t got long here. I’ve broken into a wizarding house to use the fire, but they could be back at any time. There are things I need to warn you two about."

I nodded, inching closer to the fire. "We're listening."

“Karkaroff. He was a Death Eater. He was caught, he was in Azkaban with me, but he got released. I’d bet everything that’s why Dumbledore wanted an Auror at Hogwarts this year, to keep an eye on him. Moody caught Karkaroff. Put him into Azkaban in the first place.”

“Karkaroff got released? Why did they release him?” I asked, feeling as if I would explode from the onslaught of anxiety the night continued to pile upon my shoulders.

“He did a deal with the Ministry of Magic. He said he’d seen the error of his ways, and then he named names. He put a load of other people into Azkaban in his place. He’s not very popular in there, I can tell you. And since he got out, from what I can tell, he’s been teaching the Dark Arts to every student who passes through that school of his. So watch out for the Durmstrang champion as well.”

Harry's voice shook when he spoke again. “Okay, but... are you saying Karkaroff put my name in the Goblet? Because if he did, he’s a really good actor. He seemed furious about it. He wanted to stop me from competing.”

“We know he’s a good actor, because he convinced the Ministry of Magic to set him free, didn’t he? Now, I’ve been keeping an eye on the _Daily Prophet_ , and reading between the lines of that Skeeter woman’s article last month, Moody was attacked the night before he started at Hogwarts. Yes, I know she says it was another false alarm, but I don’t think so, somehow. I think someone tried to stop him from getting to Hogwarts. I think someone knew their job would be a lot more difficult with him around. And no one’s going to look into it too closely; Mad-Eye’s heard intruders a bit too often. But that doesn’t mean he can’t still spot the real thing. Moody was the best Auror the Ministry ever had.”

"My dad thinks he's off his rocker, but my mum thinks the world of him," I said. "They worked together a fair amount in their day."

“But what does it all mean?” Harry asked. “Karkaroff’s trying to kill me? But... why?”

“I’ve been hearing some very strange things. The Death Eaters seem to be a bit more active than usual lately. They showed themselves at the Quidditch World Cup, didn’t they? Someone set off the Dark Mark, and then... well, did you hear about that Ministry of Magic witch who’s gone missing?”

I nodded. “Bertha Jorkins.”

“Exactly. She disappeared in Albania, and that’s definitely where Voldemort was rumored to be last. And she would have known the Triwizard Tournament was coming up, wouldn’t she?”

“Yeah, but it’s not very likely she’d have walked straight into Voldemort, is it?” Harry asked.

“Listen, I knew Bertha Jorkins. She was at Hogwarts when I was, a few years above your dad and me. And she was an idiot. Very nosy, but no brains, none at all. It’s not a good combination, trust me. I’d say she’d be very easy to lure into a trap.”

"So you think Voldemort knows about the tournament?" I inquired, inching closer to the fire still. “You think Karkaroff might be here on his orders?”

“I don’t know, I just don’t know... Karkaroff doesn’t strike me as the type who’d go back to Voldemort unless he knew Voldemort was powerful enough to protect him. But whoever put your name in that goblet did it for a reason, Harry, and I can’t help thinking the tournament would be a very good way to attack you and make it look like an accident.”

I swallowed hard, trying to push down the terror crawling up my throat.

Harry forced a laugh that was devoid of any humor whatsoever. “Looks like a really good plan from where I’m standing. They’ll just have to stand back and let the dragons do their stuff.”

Sirius's head jerked in the fire, and he began talking rapidly. “Right. These dragons. There’s a way, Harry. Don’t be tempted to try a stunning spell, because dragons are strong and too powerfully magical to be knocked out by a single stunner. You need about half a dozen wizards at a time to overcome a dragon, but you can do it alone. There is a way, and a simple spell’s all you need. Just-”

"Someone's coming!" I hissed, hearing distant footsteps on the stairs.

Harry threw his arm around my shoulders and draped the Invisibility Cloak over the top of us in a single fluid motion. "Go, Sirius, go! Someone's coming!"

Sirius's head disappeared with a pop, and Harry and I huddled under the cloak in silence. I could feel how badly he was shaking as he pulled me close to him; I was shaking too.

Ron emerged after a few more seconds, looking half-asleep but curious. When he didn't see anybody, he turned on his heel and headed back up the stairs.

"Maybe you should stay under here," Harry whispered once Ron's footsteps had faded to nothingness. "Can't risk anyone seeing you here before morning."

"Stay with me," I whispered back. "N-No sense letting someone see you talking to the air. People already think... w-well, you know."

He released my shoulders and nodded, carefully keeping the cloak secured around us as he sat cross-legged across from me, so close our knees were touching.

"S-So dragons?" 

I nodded slowly. "Dragons."

"Do you have any idea what Sirius might have been about to say? Lucy, if anyone knows anything about dragons, it's you."

"I..." I tried to take a deep breath and think, but I drew a complete blank. "I..." I tried again to take a deep breath, but I failed a second time. My entire body trembled. I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, digging my nails into my palms. The pain cleared my head, and I was able to take a deep breath on the third attempt. "Harry, I don't know right this second, but I promise you we'll figure it out before Tuesday."

He glanced away, a number of emotions flickering across his face in rapid succession. He blinked a couple of times, then met my eyes again. "Okay."

I pressed my forearms to my stomach in an attempt to quell the anxiety churning there. "Our little ruse doesn't feel like much of a ruse anymore."

"I'll walk with you to the Hospital Wing for real, if you want."

I shook my head, sighing shakily. "I'm alright. I can't even b-begin to imagine how you're... how you're... oh, Harry, are you alright?"

He blinked once. Then twice. "Yeah. Just stunned. At least Sirius was able to tell me not to use stunning spells. I-I guess."

"I could have told you that. I-I saw them do it. A whole team was needed to take down the four dragons. Oh, and Fleur and Viktor will both know. Madame Maxime was there, and Karkaroff was on his way as I was leaving, I nearly ran into him." I bit my lip. "Harry, do you mind if I use the cloak one more time tonight? To sneak down to the Hufflepuff common room and warn Cedric?"

"Go ahead," he replied immediately, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm going to head to bed. You can keep it in your trunk for now; I'll take it back in the morning."

"Thanks, Harry," I said. I tossed the cloak off of us and pushed myself to my feet. I shyly tucked a loose piece of hair behind my ear. "Are you sure you're alright? We can try to brainstorm tonight, if you think it would help."

He shook his head slowly. "Go warn Cedric. We won't come up with anything tonight. We're too..."

"Tired?" I suggested. "Shell-shocked?"

"Yeah... yeah, something like that."

I nodded. "I promise we'll figure it out, Harry."

He nodded once. Twice. "Okay. G'night, Lucy."

"G'night."

I tossed the cloak over myself and disappeared through the portrait hole again.

My feet remembered well the path to the Hufflepuff common room, which was good, considering how distracted I was by the dragons and the Death Eater and... everything else.

The Hufflepuff common room was deserted, which I was glad for, but then came the task of figuring out where Cedric's dorm was. I took the stairs on the right, praying for the best, and tried to make out the names on every door. I found the one bearing Cedric's name and pushed the door open with no shortage of timidity.

Fortunately, Cedric's bed was the one closest to the door, just like mine. If I weren't so terrified, I might have found that sweet and a little bit funny. We really were siblings, though we weren't related by blood.

I crept to his bedside and exposed just my head. I reached forward and gently shook his shoulder.

"Cedric," I whispered. "Cedric. Cedric, it's me, Lucy."

He opened his eyes slowly at first, then they snapped open.

"Lu? What are you- how are you-"

"Please just come with me to the common room, I'll explain everything," I whispered desperately, feeling panic beginning to flood me anew.

He blinked, then pushed himself up. "Okay."

I quickly pulled the cloak back over my head and tiptoed down the stairs to the common room. Once I confirmed that the coast was clear yet again, I pulled the cloak off completely and turned to face Cedric.

"An Invisibility Cloak?" he asked. "Where did you-"

"It's Harry's," I replied. "Please don't tell anybody. He said I could borrow it to come talk to you. And you... you want to hear what I have to say."

He looked more confused than ever, but he nodded. "Okay. What do you know?"

I sank down onto the couch, suddenly crippled completely by my anxiety. Telling Harry in the heat of the moment was one thing --- telling my brother, after the shock had started to wear off, was a different matter entirely. 

Cedric settled on the couch next to me. "Lu?"

"The first task is dragons," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I saw them with my own eyes. I know what you're probably thinking, but Fleur and Viktor will know by morning. You and Harry ought to know too, so it's an even playing field. There are four dragons, one for each of you, and you have to get past them."

"Dragons?" Cedric repeated. 

It was the panic in his voice that caused my attempt at a confident facade to crumble completely. I didn't cry, but I didn't need to. Cedric just knew, and immediately pulled me into a tight hug.

I hugged him back, pressing my ear to his chest. The reassuring sounds of life comforted me, even in the face of such danger only two days ahead. I closed my eyes, not wanting to watch the way the fire danced in the fireplace, seeing too much of a similarity to the dragon fire I had seen less than an hour prior.

"I'm sorry," I said hoarsely a couple minutes later. "I feel like _I_ should be comforting _you_. You're the one facing the dragon on Tuesday, not me."

"It's okay," Cedric replied, though I could tell from the way his heart was beating faster every passing minute how scared he really was. "We'll be okay, Lu. I promise."

I nodded, because of how desperately I wanted to believe he was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey everyone! Just a short PSA to let you all know that I don't think J.K. Rowling looked at a calendar once while writing this book. Sirius and Harry supposedly talk on Sunday, November 22, but November 22 was a Tuesday in 1994. Which is funny, because the first task is supposed to take place on Tuesday, November 24. I had this same problem in Prisoner of Azkaban, where the person reading Buckbeak's execution letter says something like "on the date of June 6," even though the full moon in June 1994 occurred on June 23. I'll admit it's frustrating trying to write with the level of detail that I do when so many dates in the books are literally wrong, but I do my best. :)
> 
> TL;DR --- I'm convinced that JKR never once looked at a calendar, but I have to because of the full moon, so some of the dates might be a little screwy. I'm sorry in advance if it gets a tiny bit confusing in the future. I'll do my best to construct my own independent timeline that makes a little more sense for my story.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I actually had planned for Harry to be the one to tell Cedric about the dragons, first thing on Sunday morning before Lucy was even awake (just to show that he really cares a lot about Cedric and also so it somewhat remains true to the book), but I actually had a dream last Tuesday where I WAS Lucy and I was in the Hufflepuff common room doing exactly what Lucy does in this chapter, so I ended up writing it with Lucy being the person to tell Cedric about the dragons because I just thought my dream was so darn sweet. 😂 I hope you thought it was sweet, too, as well as the whole, er, Henry situation. Have fun unpacking all of that!
> 
> Thank you so much for reading, and I'll see you all next chapter! Please feel free to leave comments, because I absolutely love hearing from you all. :)


	58. Under the Rain

_Hey, I know we've both been afraid  
_ _But we can't run from the wind and the thunder  
When we're dancing under the rain_

_"Rain"  
_ _Ben Platt_

* * *

LUCY:

I don't know what time I finally dropped off to sleep that night, but despite my exhaustion, anxiety woke me at the crack of dawn.

I had always loved dragons. I recalled with fondness my memories of Norberta from my first year.

Yet I had never feared any magical creature more than I feared dragons in that moment.

After about ten minutes of staring at the ceiling, I couldn't handle being still a moment longer. Casting a number of silencing charms, I crawled out of bed and got myself dressed for the day. Then I tucked my wand into my pocket, threw my broom over my shoulder, and hurried to the Quidditch Pitch.

It appeared that a storm had rolled in overnight. Dark clouds obscured what would have been the sunrise, and it was beginning to drizzle. But quite frankly, I couldn't have possibly cared less. I just needed to escape all of the pressures of the ground, as soon as possible.

As soon as my feet hit the lush grass of the field, I jumped onto my broom and kicked into the sky in a single fluid motion. I drew my wand and pointed in the direction of the ground.

"Accio Quaffle!"

A few seconds later, a Quaffle flew into my hands. I tore off in the direction of one set of goal hoops, weaving through invisible opponents, and launched the Quaffle clear through. In the same motion, I dove toward the ground and caught the ball before heading off in the direction of the goal hoops across the field.

The rain fell harder with every lap around the field, but with every Quaffle through a goal hoop, it seemed I was throwing a piece of my anger away, too.

Dad's comments in front of my friends the morning of the Quidditch World Cup. Dead center.

The attack on our tent and the return of the Death Eaters. Dead center.

Ludo Bagman cheating the twins. Dead center.

Professor Moody's first lesson, with all three Unforgiveable Curses. Dead center.

Professor Moody's continued unsettling comments, too. Dead center.

Everything about the Tournament. I'll admit, I was so mad about the Tournament that my first shot was slightly off center. Still clean through the hoop, though. I shook my head and forced myself to channel my anger.

Harry being chosen. Dead center.

Next to nobody believing he hadn't entered. Dead center.

Ron especially. Dead center.

Rita Skeeter not mentioning Cedric. Dead center.

Rita Skeeter lying about Harry. Dead center.

Harry has to fight a dragon. Dead center.

 _Cedric_ has to fight a dragon, and fire is his greatest fear. I threw the Quaffle with every remaining ounce of anger and strength I possessed. Dead center and clear out of the Pitch.

I streaked through the rain after it, and I managed to catch it before it reached the ground. When I returned to the Pitch, I saw that I was no longer alone.

"Lucy, what the hell are you doing out here?" Harry called.

"What are _you_ doing out here?" I fired back.

"Why are we shouting?"

"Good point!"

We met in the middle of the Pitch.

"What are you doing out here?" I repeated at a much more normal volume.

"Following you, Lu. What else would I be doing out on the Quidditch Pitch in the pouring rain at 7 o'clock on a Sunday morning?"

"I guess you have a point."

"The twins went down to the Hospital Wing to see you, apparently, and when you weren't there, they had me check the map. I thought you'd still be asleep, but when you were here, I figured I'd come drag you out of the rain before you got yourself sick again."

"I appreciate the concern, but I won't get sick, Harry. And if I do, Pepperup will clear it up in a second. Remember how we lived on the stuff our second year?"

"Yeah, I do, and I would like to not repeat the experience again," he chuckled. "What are you doing out here, anyway?"

I tossed the Quaffle back and forth between my hands. "I needed to clear my head. Being in the sky helps."

"I'll admit I feel better up here than I did down there," Harry said.

I glanced up. "Really?"

He nodded. "I still feel plenty worried-"

"Me too."

"-but it's better up here."

"It is." I held the Quaffle with both hands and studied it for a moment. If being in the sky helped Harry as much as it helped me... maybe we needed to stay up there just a bit longer. We would think better if we felt better. I looked up at Harry, smiling mischievously. "You know, Harry, when we played over summer... you were a good Chaser, but I think I could give you a few pointers."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh yeah?"

I nodded. I certainly had his attention; I could see a competitive fire sparking to life in his eyes, chasing away the worry that had clouded them just moments prior. I tossed the Quaffle back and forth a couple of times, then suddenly shot it his way. He managed to catch it, with his quick Seeker reflexes.

"Not bad," I said, "but it was clumsy. Look at your hands."

He glanced down, curious. "What's wrong with my hands?"

"Without adjusting your fingers at all, try holding it one-handed."

As I expected, the ball started to slide from his fingers. He grabbed it with his second hand in the nick of time, laughing at himself. "Okay, I see what you mean. Fix me."

"See how your palms are flat against the flat parts of the ball?"

"Mhm?"

I flew closer to him and arranged his hands in the proper grip. "You want your palms to naturally curve around the rounder parts of the ball, so when you hold it one-handed, you have a more secure grip. It comes in handy when throwing, too, because you usually throw with one hand."

He nodded, studying his fingers. "Okay. What's the best way to throw it?"

"Well, it depends on the situation," I replied. "It would be easier to show you than to try to explain."

"Alright." He grinned. "I'm up for learning if you're up for teaching."

I grinned right back. "I'm always up for Quidditch. So if you're throwing it a short distance, say, to a teammate, what you want to do is..."

The rain came down harder and harder as I taught Harry how to be a proper Chaser, but it wasn't until we saw lightning crack across the sky (neither of us fancied the idea of being electrocuted) that we returned to the ground.

"Want to head up to the castle?" I called over the boom of thunder that shook the stadium.

"Not particularly!"

"A staircase then?"

"Sure!"

As soon as we were under the cover of the staircase, Harry shook his head back and forth like a dog.

"Harry! You got me wet!" I complained in the whiniest teasing voice I could muster.

"Oh no, you were so dry before," he replied sarcastically, wringing out one of his robe sleeves over my head. "Oops!"

I laughed, squeezing all the water I could out of my braids. "I hate you."

"Love you too," he chuckled.

Thankfully, he chose that time to pull his soaking-wet outermost sweater over his head, so he couldn't see how flustered that casual comment made me. I composed myself after a second, shrugging off my heavy water-laden robe.

"Good thinking," I said. "Want to just wait out the storm?"

"Sounds good to me," he replied, lowering himself onto a stair. He sighed, drew his wand from his pocket, and glared at it. "Lucy, how in Merlin's name am I supposed to stand against a dragon with just this? What could this possibly do to give me a chance against it?"

"I don't know yet," I admitted. "But I promised we'd figure it out before Tuesday, and I'll keep that promise. We just need to think."

He nodded silently, holding the Quaffle in his hands as if it were a crystal ball that would show him a solution.

After a couple minutes, he spoke again. "Where did you find the Quaffle? I thought only captains had access to the equipment storage."

"I summoned it. I wasn't totally sure if it would come, but the spell we've been practicing in Charms is actually a fairly powerful one, if used properly."

"You mean the spell I still can't do after two weeks of practice?"

"Hey, don't be so hard on yourself," I chided. "In case you haven't noticed, you've had a lot on your plate lately. Besides, summoning is a skill we'll be able to practice a lot in the future, so I know you'll figure it out once things settle down."

Harry suddenly gripped the Quaffle a bit tighter. "Lucy... do you think if I summoned something... during the task... I'd be allowed to use it?"

I blinked. "I don't see why not. You're allowed a wand, after all. What were you thinking about summoning?"

"If I hit a dragon right between the eyes with a Quaffle, it would knock her out?"

"I don't know," I replied uneasily. "I doubt even one of the Irish Chasers would be able to throw it that well. You'd have to get extremely lucky and throw it extremely hard."

"Well, you know as well as anyone how wonderful my luck is," he muttered. "I'd rather not have to count on my luck in a life-or-death situation. A Quidditch match, sure, but I also have my broom in Quidditch matches-"

Harry and I immediately sat up straight and looked at each other, having had the exact same thought.

"Lucy, can you teach me how to summon objects by Tuesday?"

"Only one way to find out." I drew my wand from my pocket and jumped to my feet. "Let's get started."

* * *

Harry and I remained in that same stairwell for so long on Sunday we nearly missed dinner. We were planning on just grabbing a couple of bites and finding an abandoned classroom to keep going, but the twins needed answers first, and rightly so.

"Where have you two been?" Fred asked, glancing back and forth between Harry and me.

"We were at the Quidditch Pitch," I explained around a mouthful of mashed potatoes. (Yes, with a bit of pumpkin juice drizzled over the top.)

"That whole time?" George inquired incredulously. "What were you doing, practicing drills for next year?

Harry nodded. "We weren't in the air that whole time, but Lucy did teach me how to play Chaser."

"So in other words, whoever is playing against Harry and me in the next Weasley family Quidditch match is going to lose," I laughed. "Sorry, boys, lots of work to do. See you in the morning!"

Harry and I rose from the table in unison and hurried out of the Great Hall.

"We're staying up until you learn it tonight," I said. "You're going to need as much sleep as you can get tomorrow night, and honestly, it'll be easier to sleep if you're already exhausted."

"Fine by me. Let's get the Invisibility Cloak and find a classroom."

"History of Magic? For old times' sake?"

"Yeah, sounds good. I wish a patronus would work against a dragon."

"My bear, maybe, but your deer? Not a chance," I teased.

He laughed. "Shut up, don't bash the deer."

"Do you reckon it's possible to have a dragon patronus? I reckon that's the only one that would actually stand a chance against a real dragon."

"That or a whale. It could flatten the dragon."

We both laughed at that until he disappeared up to his dormitory to get the Invisibility Cloak. Once he returned, we made our way down to the History of Magic classrooms and got back to work. It went well until about half past midnight, when Peeves appeared and starting throwing chairs at us, thinking that's what Harry wanted.

"We should get out of here before Mrs. Norris rats us out," I hissed to Harry. "The common room should be empty by now, we can work on it more in there."

He nodded and threw the Invisibility Cloak over the two of us. We hurried up to the common room, which was in fact empty.

"Let's give it another hour or so," I suggested, curling up in an armchair to watch. I had helped all I could; now it was just up to him to practice until he got it. "We still have tomorrow, too, if you need it."

"Alright." He tossed me a rune dictionary from the nearest bookshelf. "Accio dictionary!"

The book flew three-quarters of the way there, which was a significant improvement from the one-quarter with which we had started.

"Yes!" I exclaimed softly, feeling a surge of relief. "Yes! Try again."

Six tries later, the dictionary flew into his hands. I pumped my fists in the air.

"Yes! Try with something else!"

He leveled his wand at a table.

"Accio quill!" The white feather flew into his hand. He set it on the ground and pointed his wand at an armchair.

"Accio book!" Someone's Divination textbook flew into his hand.

"Accio Gobstones! Accio sweater! Accio book! Accio parchment! Accio book!"

One by one, each object soared through the air and into his hand. Once the ground around Harry's feet was littered with all kinds of trinkets, he pointed his wand at me.

"Would it work on you?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so. But let's not push your luck tonight. Try summoning one last thing, though, something closer to the size of your Firebolt."

He considered this for a second, then pointed his wand at the chair I was curled up on. "Accio chair!"

Surely enough, the chair --- and me along with it --- soared across the room straight to him. I managed to not fall off the chair, but barely.

He grinned. "Close enough to summoning you."

I grinned back. "If you say so." I shifted on the chair so there was room for him next to me. (It was a massive armchair, okay?) "Come on, you've been on your feet all day."

Harry collapsed into the chair and twirled his wand between his fingers. "Well, now we know what to do next time I can't manage a spell."

"Practice it for an entire day?"

"Well, that _could_ work. But I think threatening me with a dragon would be more effective," he chuckled.

I giggled. "Well, let's hope this is a one-time occasion. I'm not particularly fond of the idea of this becoming a regular occurrence."

"I thought you liked dragons."

"Not when my brother and my best friend are going up against them!"

I froze. I'd just called Harry my best friend.

It wasn't a lie. I loved Hermione, of course, but she just... didn't understand me the way Harry did. As much as I missed her and Ron, the past three weeks with Harry had been nice. Really nice. Even though we'd been through a lot --- a lot of teasing, a lot of criticism, a lot of stares, a lot of anxiety --- we'd been through it together. I realized in that moment that I couldn't have asked for a better person to have by my side the past three weeks.

I'd always love Hermione, but Harry was the best friend I'd ever had.

If Harry thought anything of what I had just confessed, he didn't acknowledge it. He just sighed. "Yeah, I can imagine that'd take away a bit of the appeal."

I released the breath I hadn't realized I was holding and laughed. "Yeah, it really does." I impulsively rested my head against his shoulder. "I think you've got it down now, Harry."

"Just as long as it works on Tuesday. The Firebolt's going to be much farther away than the stuff in here, it's going to be in the castle, and I'm going to be out there on the grounds-"

"Don't worry, Harry, that won't matter. You just have to concentrate properly, and it'll come. To paraphrase what you said earlier, the threat of a dragon should certainly give you the proper incentive to focus."

He nodded. "You're right, as always." He sighed again. "You really think I stand a chance of making it out alive, Lu?"

"You better," I said firmly. "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's when Draco Malfoy is proven correct. He predicted you wouldn't last ten minutes, so I expect you to get past the dragon in nine."

Harry rested his head against mine, and I could hear the smile in his voice as he replied. "I'll do my best."

* * *

Monday night, Harry and I retired to our dormitories early with the intent of getting a full night's sleep after being up so late both Saturday and Sunday. But the second we parted ways, the fear that I had forced away while helping Harry practice came rushing back with a vengeance.

Lavender and Parvati came to my rescue as soon as I set foot in the dormitory.

"Lucy! There you are!" Lavender exclaimed, waving me over to where she was sitting with Parvati in front of the fire. "So, Parvati and I were talking, and we thought you'd be really, really, really nervous tonight. Are you?"

"Y-Yeah," I admitted sheepishly, nodding.

"No need to look embarrassed!" Parvati called.

"We definitely understand," Lavender said. "That's why we were thinking tonight was a good night to choose our dresses! Are you in?"

For a second, I wanted to say no. I wanted to take a shower then curl up in bed and try to force all of my anxiety away again. But I knew deep down that no such thing would happen. I would shower, then go to bed, then toss and turn all night and give up on sleep around three in the morning and wait for sunrise in the common room and be even more anxious.

So instead, I smiled and said, "I'm in."

Lavender squealed. "Great! Now get over here. We already decided on Hermione's, on Saturday night when you were sick, and Parvati chose hers last night, but I haven't decided yet, so we can both choose tonight!"

I nodded bravely and sat between the two girls. "Alright. I haven't the slightest clue what I want for mine. Which one is yours, Parvati?"

Parvati reached for a magazine and flipped to one of the last pages. She pointed to a bright pink dress and smiled. "That one. And Padma's going to wear the same dress but in orange."

"That's so pretty!" I gushed.

"Do you like that style?"

I took a closer look. It was a pretty dress, but it was sleeveless, and with my scars... "I think it will be beautiful on you, but I don't know about me. I should probably have a dress with sleeves, and a higher neckline."

Lavender gave me a knowing side-eye. "Lucy, if you're worried about your scars, don't be. First of all, they're not as bad as they used to be. Second of all, whoever your date is shouldn't care about them if he really cares about you. And third of all, we can cover them with make-up anyway. I know you don't like to do it on a day-to-day basis --- because, quite frankly, it would be a lot of work --- but for one night? I think it would be worth it."

"So do you like that style?" Parvati repeated. "Completely ignoring the scars?"

My face felt like it was on fire. "I-I do. But I don't want to copy you, so let's keep looking."

Lavender reached for another magazine and flipped open to the center. "Ooh! I like this one! Do you think mint green would be a good color on me?"

Parvati glanced from her friend to the dress, then back to her friend. "Mint green, no, but pistachio green, yes."

"Is there a difference?" I asked shyly.

"Mint green is a light green, with a bit more blue than yellow. Pistachio green is a light green, with a bit more yellow than blue," Lavender explained. "I think you're right, Parvati. Since I'm blonde, the green with more yellow might match better."

"In this style?"

"This one, or..." Lavender reached for a third magazine and flipped to the third page. "This one. I like them both, but I can't decide! Which one do you two like more?"

"This one," Parvati said, pointing to the first dress. "You know, you'd probably look good in purple too. Like this one."

"But my name is Lavender! I can't wear a lavender dress! We talked about this!"

"It says it's lilac!" Parvati protested.

"Maybe a dark purple?" I suggested.

She considered this for a moment. "You know... you might be right. Urgh!" She launched the magazine she was holding into the air. "Too many choices! So many pretty dresses! Can we look for yours first, Lucy? It might be easier."

"Er, sure," I replied. I held my arms out to the sides. "Well... here I am. What should I do?"

Parvati drummed her fingers against her chin. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Lav?"

"Blue?" Lavender asked.

"To match her eyes?"

"Exactly."

"I think I saw one in this magazine..." Lavender reached to the other side of the rug to grab the one in question. She flipped through a couple of pages, then folded the magazine in half and held it up to the side of my face. "Hm, it's not as close of a match as I thought."

Parvati passed me a little hand mirror. "I'd have to agree, but what do you think, Lucy?"

I studied the color of the dress versus the color of my eyes. "I think it's a little too light, if we want to match my eyes exactly."

"It doesn't have to be quite exact, but you're right." Lavender flipped through a couple more pages, then gasped. "Ooh, this one is really pretty! It's not blue, but I think it would suit you. What do you think?"

I glanced over curiously. It _was_ a pretty dress even if it wasn't blue.

"I like the flowers," I said. "They're pretty. I want a pattern, probably, instead of just a solid color."

Parvati snatched up a magazine and flipped to another page. "What about one? Gryffindor red!"

"Would I look good in red?" I asked shyly. "Er, I guess I should ask _do_ I?"

Lavender nodded enthusiastically. "You do! Ooh, wait, but what about this one?"

"Oh, you know I love the stars," I said. "Let's look a little longer, but if nothing jumps out at us, I like that one."

"How about _you_ look?" Parvati passed a magazine into my hand. "Now that you've had our opinions. It's your dress, after all."

I took a deep breath and turned to the back. "Okay." I flipped through a couple of pages, then froze. "I think I've found it."

I lifted the page up to my face and looked between Lavender and Parvati.

"It matches your eyes so well!" Lavender squealed.

"It's a yes from me!" Parvati said, nodding enthusiastically.

"I'm going to go ask Hermione's opinion, really quick," I said. "I'll be right back."

I hugged the magazine close to my chest and hurried back down to the common room. Hermione and Ginny were doing homework together in front of the fire. _Perfect_. I hurried over and dropped to my knees beside them.

"I've been looking for dresses with Lavender and Parvati, and I think I've found one!" I whispered excitedly. "But I need your opinions."

Ginny tossed her parchment aside. "Show us!"

I opened the magazine and pointed. "That one. What do you think?"

"It's perfect!" Hermione exclaimed. "Do it!"

"Do it, do it, do it!" Ginny echoed. "It's gorgeous!"

I smiled. "Lavender and Parvati were excited about it, too. You really think so?"

"It matches your eyes perfectly," Hermione commented.

"Decision made, then," I said, my smile growing. "I'm glad you two like it. Now we just need to find Lavender a dress, but she's indecisive, so it might be a while."

"I'll head up soon enough," Hermione replied. "I might be able to help once I finish this essay. But you three have fun."

"Will do!" I singsonged, darting back up the stairs. I burst into the common room and spun in an excited circle. "Hermione and Ginny both approved! I've found the dress!"

The next hour was one of the giggliest of my life. Once Lavender decided on a dress (which took a very, _very_ long time), we flipped through another set of magazines looking for --- and trying out --- hair ideas.

Since I was the least experienced when it came to actually styling hair, I was the test subject for each hairstyle. Braids, buns, twists, curls, you name it. We didn't definitively commit to any one style that night, but it wasn't for lack of trying.

Miraculously, when I went to bed that night, I didn't think about the first task. My mind buzzed with wishful thoughts of Harry, looking at me like I was the only girl in the world. I found myself wondering if he'd notice that my dress matched my eyes the same way his dress robes would match his. As I slipped off to sleep that night, I didn't worry about the dragons. Rather, I let the Harry James Potter of my imagination twirl me into the land of dreams, a smile on my face and a lightness in my heart that I hadn't felt for several weeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Eek! I hoped you enjoyed reading that chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! You all know by now how much I love writing about Harry and Lucy's relationship, but I love writing moments like these with Lavender and Parvati too. I really wanted to include this scene to a) give Lucy a break from the stress and b) showcase their emotional sensitivity, something you wouldn't get to see from Harry's perspective, or Hermione's either, honestly. 
> 
> Thank you all for reading!


	59. To Celebrate a Fleeting Moment

_“To love someone fiercely, to believe in something with your whole heart, to celebrate a fleeting moment in time, to fully engage in a life that doesn’t come with guarantees --- these are risks that involve vulnerability and often pain. But I’m learning that recognizing and leaning into the discomfort of vulnerability teaches us how to live with joy, gratitude and grace.”  
Brené Brown_

* * *

LUCY:

The sense of miraculous calm I had felt the night before disappeared the second I opened my eyes Tuesday morning. My hands shook violently as I tried to get dressed. 

_You have to keep it together, Lucy,_ I told myself sternly as my trembling hands attempted to button my bookbag. _You can't let Cedric or Harry see how scared you are. You need to be strong, for their sakes. You being nervous will just make them even more terrified than they already are._

And so I did my best to appear unfazed. I stuck close to Harry throughout the morning, smiling at the people who wished him good luck and glaring at the people who continued to mock him. He stuck out from the crowd, wearing a special set of robes and a jacket reading POTTER in large red letters across the back. When I passed Cedric on our way to Herbology, I could see he was wearing the same robes in yellow with DIGGORY across the back. I offered him a reassuring smile, but I could see the apprehension in his eyes even as he smiled back.

When lunch came around, I found myself incapable of eating a single bite. I sipped occasionally on the cold water in my goblet, but I doubted my stomach could support much else.

Professor McGonagall approached the place where Harry and I were sitting alone ten minutes later. “Potter, the champions have to come down onto the grounds now. You have to get ready for your first task.”

Harry dropped his fork with a loud clatter. "Okay."

"C-Can I come too, Professor?" I asked, seeing Professor Sprout leading Cedric from the Hufflepuff table. "I won't go into the tent, but- but can I walk down with them?"

Professor McGonagall followed my gaze and nodded. "Of course. Quickly, now."

I jumped up from the table as the three of us hurried over to Professor Sprout and my brother. I positioned myself firmly between Cedric and Harry, Cedric to my left and Harry to my right, trying to ignore the way my heart felt like it was trying to burst out of my chest.

We walked down to the edge of the forest in silence, a frigid wind whipping around us. I found myself wishing I had grabbed a scarf, then chided myself for thinking of something so trivial as my two favorite people in the entire world were about to face dragons.

Soon enough, we reached a tent that had been erected sometime between Saturday night and Tuesday morning. Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout turned to their respective champions, and I wrapped my arms around my waist as I stood in between the two halves of who I was. My brother on my left, my best friend on my right. The Hufflepuff I used to think I was and the Gryffindor I now knew myself to be. My foundation on my left, my future (I hoped) on my right. Torn apart by the knowledge that one --- or Merlin forbid, _both_ \--- might not make it through the hour. I felt sick, but I had to hold it together just a moment longer, because suddenly, Harry was turning to me.

"Good luck," I squeaked, hugging him tightly. He hugged back, shaking. As we pulled away, I managed a small smile. "Nine minutes, you hear me?"

He tried to smile back, but it died instantly on his lips. "I'll do my best."

"That's all I ask," I whispered as he headed in the direction of the tent.

I spun on my heel and flung myself at Cedric. He hugged back with equal ferocity.

"Go out there and prove yourself, yeah?"

He nodded as he released me, finding a smile a little more successfully than Harry. "That's the plan. Love you, Lu."

"Love you too," I replied. As soon as he turned in the direction of the task, my smile faltered, and I wrapped my arms around my waist again. 

Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout laid a hand on each shoulder.

"The stands are just beyond the tent," Professor McGonagall said gently. "Your peers should be on their way now. You can go find a seat."

I nodded, forcing out a weak "Okay." Arms still pressed firmly to my midsection, I bowed my head against the biting wind and hurried in the direction of the dragon enclosure. As I crested the hill and laid my eyes on it for the first time in broad daylight, I was nearly overcome with vertigo.

All four dragons, larger than life, were pacing around the enclosure. I could see the figures of Charlie and his fellow dragonologists --- small, so small in comparison --- trying to usher the Hungarian Horntail, the Welsh Green, and the Chinese Fireball into massive cages beneath the stands, meaning the Swedish Short-Snout would be first.

I must have remained there, paralyzed, for a couple of minutes, because I was suddenly aware of shouts and giggles almost directly behind me. I turned around just as the crowd reached the base of the hill, and two redheaded figures wrestled their way to the front.

"You look like you've seen a ghost, Cub," George said. "What is-"

He fell silent as soon as he saw the dragons.

"Wicked!" Fred exclaimed. "Dragons are the first task! C'mon, Cub, let's get good seats!"

I let them steer me back in the direction of the stadium, my entire body buzzing with nervous energy. I was glad I hadn't eaten anything at breakfast or lunch, because I surely would have thrown it all up.

Ron and Hermione wedged themselves between Fred and me as soon as we found seats. Not that we were sitting, I was much too nervous for that --- we would watch the task on our feet. 

"Dragons?" Ron asked, his eyes wide with fear.

I couldn't bring myself to reply out loud, so I merely nodded and stared straight ahead.

"I-I think someone's trying to do Harry in after all," he said. "He wouldn't- he-"

"Took you long enough!" Hermione snapped.

Henry and Cho slid into the row in front of us.

"Doing alright, Lucy?" Henry asked, looking nearly as terrified as I felt.

I managed a nod. "P-Probably better than Ced. You?"

Cho pressed her gloved hands to her cheeks. "Oh Merlin, Cedric's so scared of dragons and fire. He must be..."

"He'll be okay," Henry assured her. "He always is."

Archie and Cam slid in next to Henry, Padma and Parvati and Lavender slid in next to Cho, Angelina and Alicia found seats next to Fred, and Seamus and Dean and Neville filed in on the other side of George. I was glad to be surrounded by so many friends, but knowing that Cedric and Harry were only with the other champions in that tent... knowing that they'd face dragons alone... I couldn't stifle the moan of fear that escaped me.

Hermione reached down and grabbed my hand --- I noticed she was already holding Ron's. "They'll be okay," she said, though I could tell from how hard she was squeezing that she was scared, too.

George grabbed my other hand. "Don't worry, Cub. They won't let anything terrible happen."

"I sure hope not," I whispered.

Not a second later, Ludo Bagman's disembodied voice filled the stadium.

"The champions' first task is to collect the golden egg from these very protective mother dragons! First up, with the Swedish Short-Snout, is CEDRIC DIGGORY!"

George and Hermione squeezed my hands tighter, but I ripped them out of their grips and pressed my knuckles to my mouth, jumping down to the next row to stand between Henry and Archie. It only seemed right.

"There he goes," Henry said in a strangled sort of voice as Cedric emerged from the tent, wand at the ready and a fierce look of determination on his face.

My brother offered a smile to the crowd, that cheered in response. I couldn't bring myself to join in; not because I didn't want to support him, but because I couldn't lower my hands from my face.

Cedric edged along the enclosure at first, sizing up his opponent. As if he could somehow hear my thoughts, I tried to tell him everything I knew about Swedish Short-Snouts. Before I could even get through an entire sentence, however, the dragon suddenly arched its back and sprayed fire directly at him. He dove out of the way just in the nick of time, but the entire stadium screamed at once. Again, except for me --- I was paralyzed by fear.

“Oooh, narrow miss there, very narrow!” Ludo Bagman said. 

Cedric rose to his feet and extinguished the nearby fire with a jet of water from his wand. He then ducked behind a rock as a second blast of fire came.

This dance between Cedric and the dragon continued for about five minutes, as Cedric methodically tested the range of the dragon by inching further and further away and drawing its fire.

"Come on, Cedric!" Archie shouted impatiently. "Just go for it!"

Cam swatted his arm. "He knows what he's doing! Let him think!"

"He can't hear me anyway," Archie protested.

It seemed as if Cedric might have actually heard Archie, because he jumped from his hiding spot and pointed his wand at the dragon. A flock of birds exploded from his wand, and they started pecking at the dragon's face. He tried running in the direction of the egg.

“He’s taking risks, this one!” Ludo Bagman announced, sounding incredibly impressed.

However, the dragon ate all of the birds within about ten seconds and began pursuing him. Cedric, sensing the danger, hurdled over a rock and crouched down just as the dragon sent another fireball his direction.

“ _Clever_ move, pity it didn’t work!”

"Yeah, thanks for that, Bagman," Fred spat loudly. If I weren't still so terrified, I might have laughed --- the twins had yet to make progress with the swindling Quidditch star.

But Cedric wasn't out of tricks yet. He tried the birds again, this time casting the spell three times, trying to buy himself even more time. He got closer to the egg, but he had to duck out of the way of the fiery blast once again.

He rose to his feet, but this time, he pointed his wand at a nearby rock instead of at the dragon. Before our eyes, the rock became a Labrador, drawing quite a few "Awww"s from the crowd. 

"He's trying to distract the dragon!" someone nearby shouted. "That's brilliant! Look, the dragon's chasing the dog instead of Cedric!"

Surely enough, it was. Cedric seized advantage of the distraction and sprinted toward the golden egg, but just as he reached it, the dragon whirled its head to face my brother.

I was instantly broken from my stupor when I saw its throat glow orange. 

"CEDRIC, LOOK OUT!" I shrieked. The crowd joined my desperate shout, and he turned his face as soon as the dragon blasted him.

The crowd screamed, fearing the worst, but after a second, once the fire receded, Cedric rose from the rock, holding the golden egg above his head.

"Oh, Merlin," Henry said, pressing a hand to his mouth.

Cedric didn't look good. The entire left side of his face was burned, and the left side of his robes were tattered and smoking, but he was alive. 

"He's alive," I whispered, watching with relief as the dragon tamers rushed forward, immediately subduing the dragon, and Cedric staggered back to the tent. "That's what matters."

I felt a little bit better knowing Cedric had made it out alive, but I was still terrified for Harry.

Once Cedric had received his score --- 38 points --- I stepped back up to stand between George and Hermione, who automatically stepped closer to me. I twirled my ring around my finger, purple on purple, as Fleur entered the stadium.

"Next up, with the Welsh Green, is FLEUR DELACOUR!"

Her round with the dragon passed in a haze for me. She tried to put the dragon to sleep, which was only minimally effective. It took her longer to get the egg than Cedric, but she escaped with only a small burn on her skirt. She scored a 38, too, probably because she took more time but was less injured.

"Next up, with the Chinese Fireball, is VIKTOR KRUM!"

"That... that means Harry has the Horntail!" I choked out. "The most dangerous dragon here!"

George reached for my hand again and squeezed it hard. "He'll be alright, Cub. He's Harry Potter. If anyone can handle it, it's him. No offense to Cedric, of course. Squeeze as hard as you want, by the way. I don't mind."

I nodded numbly, squeezing his hand back a bit.

"I'm insulted. Squeeze harder, I swear I can handle it."

"N-Not yet."

Viktor stepped out into the stadium and immediately fired a curse right at the dragon's eyes without so much as a glance at the crowd.

“Very daring!” Ludo Bagman declared.

The dragon roared in pain and staggered backward, stepping on some of the non-golden eggs.

"Oh no," I whispered. "Th-Those are real eggs. Merlin, that's horrible."

Viktor seemed focused however, and sprinted forward, securing the egg in a matter of seconds. He received a score of 40, which made me incredibly mad.

"He wasn't supposed to hurt the real eggs!" I protested. "Why did he score higher than Cedric and Fleur?"

"Look at Karkaroff's score," Henry said, pointing at the perfect 10 among the sea of 7s and 8s. "Just a case of bias."

My anger faded the second Ludo Bagman's voice filled the stadium again. Harry was all that mattered.

"FINALLY, FACING THE HUNGARIAN HORNTAIL, WE HAVE HARRY POTTER!"

I squeezed George's hand so hard I was worried about hurting him. But when I glanced up, he was laughing. 

"Told you I could handle it," he said. "Now come on, here he comes. GO HARRY!"

The stadium roared, and to my surprise, a lot of it sounded rather supportive. I guess, like Ron, everyone seemed to realize Harry wouldn't have signed up for this himself.

Harry lifted his wand straight into the air. "ACCIO FIREBOLT!"

One second... two seconds... three seconds...

"There it is!" Hermione gasped, pointing. Everyone around us followed her finger, and surely enough, there was the Firebolt, soaring straight to Harry. 

He mounted it immediately and kicked into the air.

"YES!" I screamed, wrenching my hand free from George's grip and cupping my hands around my mouth. "GO HARRY GO!"

He soared straight into the sky, then turned around to survey the ground. Unbelievably, there was a smile on his face. And, with a jolt, I realized I was smiling, too.

He dive-bombed the dragon, then dodged its blast and shot straight back up, circling above the Horntail in an increasingly tight spiral.

Ludo Bagman was astounded. “Great Scott, he can fly! Are you watching this, Mr. Krum?”

"Who cares?" George called. "He's _our_ Seeker!"

Harry dove down again at the dragon, then missed its fire, but he was unable to dodge the spiked tail. It caught him by the shoulder, and my hands flew to my mouth in horror as Hermione screamed loudly.

"He seems alright!" Fred said loudly, over the sound of everyone's groans. "Look!"

Surely enough, he was still weaving around the dragon, looking completely unfazed. He climbed higher and higher into the sky, and it became clear what he was trying to do.

"He'll lure her off the ground," I said, half to myself and half to the people around me. "Then once she takes flight-"

She lifted off the ground, and Harry turned sharply.

"He'll dive!"

Harry snatched up the golden egg and soared out of her way, turning a circle over the stands.

He had done it. He was alive.

The stadium shook with screams and cheers.

"Come on!" Ron shouted at Hermione and me. "Let's go meet him down there!"

"I need to see Cedric, too!" I shouted back as we pushed our way through the crowd and wrestled our way down to the tent.

A first aid tent had been erected too, and Harry was just about to enter when we arrived.

I sprinted forward, running as fast as I could, and threw myself at him, adjusting at the last second so I didn't hit his injured shoulder.

"You did it!" I gasped.

"In less than nine minutes, no less," he panted.

I gave him one last squeeze and pulled away. "I need to go see Cedric, but I brought company," I said, gesturing over my shoulder. He looked up curiously, before breaking into a smile as Hermione flung herself at Harry, too. I ducked into the tent and rushed to my brother's side, grabbing his unburned hand. 

"Are you alright?" 

He grinned through the orange goop covering the burned half of his face. "I'll be completely alright, Lu, don't worry."

"Good. You weren't supposed to get hurt!" I scolded. I then squeezed his hand harder between mine. "But you were brilliant just the same."

"Absolutely smashing," Henry agreed from behind me, patting Cedric's shoulder. 

Cho pressed a kiss to the cheek not covered in orange. "We're so proud of you."

He turned red. "Thank you. I did my best. What did everyone else do?"

Harry sat in the chair next to Cedric as Madam Pomfrey examined his shoulder. "I summoned my Firebolt and got it to follow me off the ground. Once it was flying, I dove down and got the egg. What'd you do?"

"I tried distracting my dragon with a couple flocks of birds, but she ate them all," Cedric chuckled. "Then I transfigured a rock into a Labrador, and went for the egg once she started chasing it instead of me. I had just gotten the egg when she blasted me, and well, you can see the rest."

"That Fleur girl tried this sort of charm, I think she was trying to put it into a trance," Ron piped up from Harry's side. "Well, that kind of worked too, it went all sleepy, but then it snored, and this great jet of flame shot out, and her skirt caught fire. She put it out with a bit of water out of her wand. And Krum! You won’t believe this, but he didn’t even _think_ of flying! He hit it with some sort of spell right in the eye. Only thing is, it went trampling around in agony and squashed half the real eggs --- they took marks off for that, he wasn’t supposed to do any damage to them."

"Come on, Harry, let's go get your score," Hermione said, grabbing him by his uninjured arm and leading him out of the tent. "Are you coming, Lucy?"

"You three go ahead!" I called back as they ducked out of the tent. 

"You can go with them, Lu," Cedric said.

I shook my head. "The three of them haven't really talked in three weeks. I'll let them have this." I glanced up at Henry. "Party in the common room?"

Henry grinned. "You bet."

"The champions have to go to a quick meeting," Cedric said, pushing himself with some effort off the chair, "then I should probably clean up a bit. But I'll be there as soon as I can."

"We'll wait outside for you," Cho said, gesturing to Henry.

I, on the other hand, continued gripping Cedric's hand as we walked together into the champions' tent, not wanting to let go of Cedric after what he had just been through. Fleur and Viktor were already waiting in the tent when we arrived.

"You must be Lucy," Fleur said with a kind smile.

I nodded, offering a smile. "That would be me."

"I have heard you love Quidditch," Viktor commented. "Were you the one on the Pitch in the rain? This Sunday?"

I burned bright red as I nodded. _Viktor Krum had seen me playing Quidditch?!_ "That would be me, too."

Before he could say anything else, Harry entered the tent, Ludo Bagman just behind him. 

He beamed around at the four champions. “Well done, all of you! Er, the four of you, though I did hear _your_ cheers and screams louder than just about anyone else's," he said, winking at me. "Now, just a quick few words. You’ve got a nice long break before the second task, which will take place at half past nine on the morning of February the twenty-fourth, but we’re giving you something to think about in the meantime! If you look down at those golden eggs you’re all holding, you will see that they open... see the hinges there? You need to solve the clue inside the egg --- on your own, mind you --- because it will tell you what the second task is, and enable you to prepare for it! All clear? Sure? Well, off you go, then!”

"I'll catch up with you in a bit," I told Cedric, finally letting go of his hand. "Take care of him, will you, you two?"

Cho quickly grabbed Cedric's hand and nodded, leaning into his shoulder. "Of course."

I smiled and hurried to catch up with Harry and Ron. Now that the burning anxiety was beginning to fade, I couldn't help but shiver in the November chill.

"Cold, Lu?" Without waiting for a response, Harry untied the jacket part of his uniform and slipped it around my shoulders.

"Thanks," I said through chattering teeth, pulling my arms through the sleeves and wrapping my arms around my waist, this time with cold and not with nerves. "I d-don't know if I'm c-c-cold necessarily, but..." I sighed. "It's b-been a stressful three weeks."

"We get three months off now," Harry assured me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me closer. 

"And it won't just be you two anymore," Ron said softly, sounding somewhat sheepish. "Mione and I will be there too."

We had nearly gotten past the forest when Rita Skeeter jumped out from behind a tree. Her quick eyes absorbed the scene, and she flashed a smile at Harry.

“Congratulations, Harry! I wonder if you could give me a quick word? How you felt facing that dragon? How you feel _now_ , about the fairness of the scoring?”

Harry nodded stiffly, cutting her off. “Yeah, you can have a word: _Good-bye_.”

Harry tightened his arm around my shoulders, and the three of us headed up to the castle together, trying desperately to hold our laughter in. Hermione caught up with us a couple minutes later and suggested Harry write to Sirius and let him know he survived the dragon. I took that as my cue to head down to the Hufflepuff common room for Cedric's party.

It was already in full swing when I ducked through the barrel. Cho spotted me immediately and waved me over to where Cedric and a group of other people had their heads bowed low over a table.

"Found her!" she exclaimed. 

"Oh, perfect!" Cedric glanced up from the table, grinning. He had wiped all of the orange off of his face, which had fully healed. "Want to be on my team, Lu? We're playing Scrabble, and I remember you _demolished_ us all in Tahoe."

I grinned sheepishly and perched myself on the arm of his chair. "Yeah, you bet. Whose turn is it?"

"Cedric's," Henry said from Cedric's other side. "You came just in time."

I leaned closer to look at Cedric's board, grinning even wider when I recognized a high-scoring word. "Are we counting wizarding words in this game?"

Cho nodded. "Yes! It makes it more fun."

"In that case, you're all going down." I reached forward on Cedric's board and arranged the letters to ABRAXAN.

"Oh!" Cedric immediately scanned the board for an open S. "You know, that's a lot better than what I was going to do."

"What were you going to do?" I asked as he started laying down ABRAXANS. 

"I don't even want to say out loud," he replied with a chuckle. "Alright, Cho, your turn."

"You know, I would complain more about you and Lucy tag-teaming," she said sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him, "but considering I'm going to win this game anyway, I'll let it slide."

Cedric raised his eyebrows. "Oh? What makes you say that?"

She continued smiling sweetly as she laid down her letters to spell QUIXOTRY.

"This is why you never play Scrabble with a Ravenclaw!" Archie exclaimed, pushing himself back from the table and laughing. "Bloody hell, and to think I was proud of WITCH last round."

"Is that even a word?" Hannah Abbott asked tentatively. "Quixotry?"

Cho smirked. "Check the dictionary."

"I will," Zacharias Smith said, reaching forward and flipping through pages until he reached the Q section. His jaw dropped. "It's a real word. 'A romantic or quixotic idea or action.'"

"Like this?" Cedric leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to Cho's cheek.

She blushed and nodded.

"Aw, come on, Cedric, you missed!" Archie called. " _This_ is quixotry." He turned to Cam and pulled her face swiftly to his, making everyone at the table either whoop or throw popcorn at the pair. 

"Should I tell Archie he pronounced it wrong?" Cho whispered just loud enough for Cedric, Henry, and me to hear.

"Let him have his fun," Cedric said, waving it off. "Maybe you could teach me how to say it properly?"

"I'd prefer a practical approach," she replied, this time tilting her face toward his. 

I glanced away as they kissed, shooting Henry an amused glance. He smiled a bit back at me, but... was that _pain_ in his eyes? I brushed it off quickly, guessing it was just residual anxiety. His best friend had nearly been killed by a dragon a mere hour earlier, so it was understandable.

Cho made good on her bold declaration, wiping the floor with the rest of us in that game as well as the next, when I played on my own team. It was funny, really --- as smart as Cedric was, he was really terrible at Scrabble.

"You okay, Lu?" Cedric asked as Henry packed up the game. "You look overwhelmed."

He wasn't wrong. The common room was getting louder by the minute, and the friendly rays of sun streaming through the windows were too bright. The dragons were in the past, but my heart wouldn't stop racing. There was some other fear deep inside of me, something I couldn't yet name. I was panicking, for no good reason at all.

"Just a bit," I replied, chalking it all up to the post-full-moon sensory sensitivity. "I'm okay, it's just a little loud, after..."

His eyes widened in realization, and his mouth made a small O. "Do you want me to go somewhere dark and quiet with you?"

I smiled and shook my head. "Stay. Enjoy your party. You've earned it. I should probably head up to Harry's party, anyway."

Cedric nodded, reaching forward and grabbing my hand. "If you need anything, just come back down, okay? I'm your brother first and foremost, and certainly before I'm a school champion. You know that, right?"

"I know," I said softly, looking down at our hands. "Thanks, Ced. But enjoy your party. I'm okay."

I freed my hand and hurried from the common room, taking a deep breath of cool air as soon as I stepped into the hallway. Time for Harry's party.

I hurried up the stairs to the Gryffindor common room.

As soon as I stepped through the portrait hole, a horrendous screeching sound nearly sent me flying back out onto the staircase. I clamped my hands over my sensitive ears and squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the screaming to stop. I lowered my hands shakily once it went quiet, looking around the room.

I realized Harry must have opened the golden egg, because everyone was staring at it as if it were a lit firework that would explode at any second.

Seamus broke the silence first. “Sounded like a banshee. Maybe you’ve got to get past one of those next, Harry!”

“It was someone being tortured! You’re going to have to fight the Cruciatus Curse!” Neville squeaked.

“Don’t be a prat, Neville, that’s illegal,” Fred said, shaking his head.

“They wouldn’t use the Cruciatus Curse on the champions," George added. "I thought it sounded a bit like Percy singing, maybe you’ve got to attack him while he’s in the shower, Harry.”

I giggled at that, making everyone turn to look at me.

"When did you get here, Cub?" Fred asked.

"Right when Harry opened that bloody egg! I thought you were all just disappointed to see me!" I replied with mock indignance.

"Never disappointed to see you," George chuckled, holding out a plate to me. "Jam tart?"

I eyed them apprehensively. "I know better than to take food directly from a Weasley twin."

“It’s alright, we haven’t done anything to them," Fred said, taking the plate from George and popping one into his mouth for emphasis. "It’s the custard creams you’ve got to watch-”

Neville, who looked like he was making his way over to say hi to me, choked on the custard cream he had just eaten and stared with wide eyes at Fred.

“Just my little joke, Neville,” Fred said, laughing. "I saw you take a bite and couldn't resist."

Hermione appeared suddenly at my side, taking a jam tart and fixing Fred with her best smile. “Did you get all this from the kitchens, Fred?”

“Yep! The house elves are dead helpful. They'd get me a roast ox if I said I was peckish.”

“How do you get in there?”

“Easy! Concealed door behind a painting of a bowl of fruit. Just tickle the pear, and it giggles and... wait a minute, why?”

“Nothing!”

George smiled knowingly. “Going to try and lead the house-elves out on strike now, are you? Going to give up all the leaflet stuff and try and stir them up into rebellion?”

"I've been trying to convince her to take a more from-the-ground-up approach," I cut in, talking over the sound of people laughing. "We're still trying to figure out the best way to tackle something so universally accepted."

Hermione inhaled sharply through her nose. "Lucy, I said we should-"

Before she could say another word, Neville turned into a canary.

I clapped a hand over my mouth, torn between secondhand embarrassment and hysterical laughter. I reached forward and held out a hand.

"Here, Neville," I said as he hopped into my hand and up my arm, "I know how they charmed it. I helped them over summer. You should be back to normal in a minute or two."

Once he was securely on my shoulder, Fred apologized loudly. “Oh, sorry, Neville! I forgot, it _was_ the custard creams we hexed!”

Surely enough, after a minute and a half, Neville reappeared, back to normal, red in the face but also laughing.

Seeing he was okay and that their product actually worked very, very well, Fred and George took this opportunity to advertise, shouting, “Canary Creams! We invented them! Seven Sickles each, a bargain!”

Just like the Hufflepuff common room, the party only got louder and louder and louder. It started with Neville turning into a canary, then someone firing up the record player, then shouts of "LET'S PLAY SPIN THE BOTTLE!" 

"There is no way in heaven or hell or anywhere in between I am playing spin the bottle," I said out loud to no one in particular.

"It's not really my speed, either," someone behind me replied.

Of course it was Harry who overheard me.

I jumped a foot in the air and turned around to see Harry and Ron both doubled over laughing. "Merlin, Harry, I can only take so many jump scares in one day!"

"Sorry, sorry," he said in a teasing voice that suggested he was more amused by my reaction than sorry. He opened his mouth to say something else, but a shout from the spin the bottle group interrupted him.

"Oi, you quintessential quirky quartet, get over here!" Fred called.

I closed my eyes and groaned. "I am _not_ playing!" I shouted without turning around.

"And why not?" George asked.

"George Weasley, I swear to _Merlin_ -"

"You know what, we should head down to Hagrid's," Harry suggested, prompting emphatic nods from the other three of us. 

"We're going down to visit Hagrid!" I announced as I led the way to the portrait hole. "But you all have fun."

The group assembled started booing, and we laughed as we jumped through one by one. 

Just before we were about to knock on Hagrid's door, we heard a voice that was clearly not Hagrid's inside.

"Rita Skeeter!" I hissed. "She can't see us!"

"Come on," Harry whispered, darting in the direction of the forest.

We ducked behind trees and waited. It had been easy to hear what was said on that warm June evening, with the windows open and the gentle late spring breeze pushing their voices over to where Harry, Hermione, and I were hiding. But it was late November now, and the windows were closed.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," I muttered.

"It's hard to have a _good_ feeling around that woman," Harry replied, shuddering. 

"Where'd Hermione go?" Ron wondered aloud.

I shook my head. "Off to the kitchens, I reckon. She'll catch up with us later."

Even as I spoke, Rita emerged from Hagrid's hut, looking quite grumpy. The three of us slipped from our hiding spot and made our way to Hagrid's front door.

"Harry an' Ron are together again!" he exclaimed happily. "Come in! I was afraid yeh were her again."

I laughed, shaking my head. "Not at all. What did she want, anyway?"

"Well, she said she wanted ter feature the skrewts in zoological column this Wednesday, but she didn’ seem very int’rested in magical creatures, ter tell yeh the truth," he replied. "She jus’ wanted me ter talk about you, Harry. I told her we’d been friends since I went ter fetch yeh from the Dursleys. ‘Never had to tell him off in four years?’ she said. ‘Never played you up in lessons, has he?’ I told her no, an’ she didn’ seem happy at all. Yeh’d think she wanted me to say yeh were horrible, Harry."

Harry sighed. "'Course she did. She can’t keep writing about what a tragic little hero I am, it’ll get boring."

“She wants a new angle, Hagrid. You were supposed to say Harry’s a mad delinquent!” Ron said.

Hagrid looked offended. “But he’s not!”

“She should’ve interviewed Snape,” Ron muttered.

“Yeah, he’d give her the goods on me any day," Harry replied. He dropped his voice to mimic Snape's. "'Potter has been crossing lines ever since he first arrived at this school.'"

The rest of us couldn't help but laugh, but Hagrid still looked confused. “Said that, did he? Well, yeh might’ve bent a few rules, Harry, bu’ yeh’re alrigh’ really, aren’ you?”

Harry grinned. “Cheers, Hagrid.”

The three of us stayed and talked to Hagrid until there was a very persistent knock at the door. 

"If that's Rita Skeeter, I swear," I said under my breath as Hagrid opened the door.

Thankfully, it was Hermione.

“Hi, Hagrid!" she said breathlessly, coming and grabbing Harry by the arm. "Harry, you’ve got to come! You’ve _got_ to come, the most _amazing_ thing’s happened, please-”

“What’s the matter?”

“I’ll show you when we get there --- oh, come on, quick!”

Ron jumped up and started following them. "Are you coming, Lucy?"

"You know, I think I'm going to sit this one out," I said. I was too comfortable curled up in Hagrid's massive armchair, and the exhaustion of the past few weeks seemed to finally be catching up with me. "You three have fun."

He shrugged and followed the three of them out. Hagrid chuckled as he shut the door behind them.

"The four o' yeh are always up ter somethin' new, eh?"

"Yeah, I guess we are," I replied, realizing how true that statement really was.

Hagrid grinned, settling into a chair at the table and turning to face me. "So, I gotta bone ter pick with yeh, Lucy."

I raised my eyebrows and grinned back. "Oh? Is it about the dragons? I still think they're plenty neat, I just didn't like that they tried to kill Cedric and Harry today."

"No, not about the dragons. Why didn' yeh tell me about you an' Harry?"

I choked on my own laughter. "What? Me and- _what_?"

"You an' Harry!" he repeated. "I mean, yer wearin' his jacket."

"Oh, Merlin." I pressed my hands to my burning cheeks. "I forgot I was wearing this! I went to _Cedric's party_ wearing this!"

Hagrid continued smiling at me. I shook my head back and forth vigorously.

"Harry and I- no, we aren't, I- no. I was cold heading back up to the castle after the task because I forgot my scarf because I was so anxious this morning and I shivered and Harry gave this to me. The twins would have both given me their jackets, Cedric would have given me his, Harry was just the closest to me, and-" I stopped to breathe for the first time and lowered my hands from my face. "Harry and I are just friends. And never anything more. It'd be impossible."

"There's no need to say 'never' an' 'impossible,' now," he said, growing serious. 

"It's true."

"Well, what makes yeh think so?"

"Hagrid, he... he doesn't even know my secret." An odd buzzing sound attracted my attention, and I noticed a window was open. I closed it with a flick of my wand, shuddering in the slight breeze. I pulled the hood of the jacket over my head, leaning into the warmth and trying to ignore the fact that it smelled strongly of Harry. I forced the thought from my mind. "And I'm not planning on telling him," I added with a sense of finality.

"Why not?"

"Why not?" I repeated, somewhat incredulously. Involuntary tears started clawing their way up my throat, raw and panicked and nearly hysterical. "I can't- Harry-" I swallowed my tears and tried again. "I care too much about Harry to tell him. He can't know, he wouldn't want to."

Hagrid leaned back in his chair. "Yeh know, I reckon Harry cares too much about you ter stay in the dark much longer."

I sighed shakily, unable to find a verbal response.

There was another soft buzzing sound to my left, and I watched as a beetle crawled over the back of the chair and settled itself on an armrest.

Hagrid took a drink of whatever was in his teacup (I doubted it was tea) and sighed. "Well, even if yeh aren' together yet-"

I managed a smile. "There's no 'yet,' Hagrid."

"Jus' keep tellin' yerself that," he replied cheekily, taking another sip. "I mean, look at me!" He laughed and slammed his cup down. "I never thought I'd find a beautiful woman who I could tell _my_ secret!"

"You told Madame Maxime? Is she a half-giant too?"

"Well, she denied that she was and walked off all in a huff," he said, deflating slightly, "but I told her I was, the night Charlie an' the others brought the dragons. I told her about me mum and me ol' dad, too."

My smile widened. "I'm proud of you, Hagrid, even if she didn't respond as well as you hoped she might. I know how scary it is."

"Point bein', of course," Hagrid said, growing serious again, "if I could do it, so can you. Besides," he added with a mischievous twinkle in his eye, "I happen ter know fer a fact he cares more about yeh than yeh probably think."

I furrowed my brow in confusion. "What do you mean, Hagrid?"

"Well, yeh can't have expected him to spend a night in the common room by himself, now could you?"

"You mean, he came _here_? Last time I...?"

Hagrid nodded, working very hard to not to smile. "Seemed ter think I'd need some help with the skrewts since yeh had been spendin' so much time keepin' him company after that awful article made everythin' worse fer him."

I blinked. "Wait, let me get this straight... Harry came _here_ to help you with the skrewts that night?"

"Seemed ter enjoy himself, too."

I couldn't help but smile. "Really?"

"Really," Hagrid said, nodding. "I believe yeh about the jacket, but I don't believe yeh when yeh say Harry wouldn't want ter know."

"I don't suppose he said anything to you about me that night?" I asked with just an inkling of hope mingled with my curiosity.

"He didn' have to. I think the fact he came says enough."

I wrapped my arms around myself yet again, this time trying to suppress the butterflies that had suddenly erupted in my stomach. "I'm afraid you're right."

"Don' be afraid. Remember what yeh told me that first night yeh came ter help with the skrewts?"

I closed my eyes and tried to recall what I could have possibly said that was so memorable. "It feels like forever ago, Hagrid, sorry. I haven't slept well in three weeks. The Tournament has been consuming every waking thought. I can't remember."

"Well, I do," he said. I opened my eyes as I heard his chair creak. He had leaned forward, and was looking at me with an intensity I rarely saw from him. It was the same type of look Professor Lupin used to give me. It was almost... fatherly. "Yeh said it never mattered ter you what I was because yeh liked who I was. And I know fer a fact Harry likes who yeh are, so I don't see why he'd care what yeh are."

"I'd still rather not take that risk," I replied softly. "Our friendship means too much to me."

"An' that's yer decision, of course," he said.

A pregnant pause followed.

"But...?" I prodded, looking at the setting sun out the window rather than directly at him.

"But yeh can't always run an' hide. He'll catch yeh eventually, because he wants ter know."

I sighed heavily. "You're right. Secrets never stay secrets forever, do they?"

Little did I know at the time the irony of what I'd just said. If I had known... Merlin knows what could have happened.


	60. Doesn't Somebody Want to be Wanted?

_I'm runnin' free but I don't want to be  
I couldn't take another day like yesterday  
I'm dead on my feet from walkin' the street  
I need somebody to help me find my way  
I've gotta get out of this town  
Before I do, I'll take a last look around, though  
Doesn't somebody want to be wanted like me?  
Where are you?  
Doesn't somebody want to wanted like me, just like me?_

_"Doesn't Somebody Want to be Wanted"  
The Partridge Family_

* * *

**November 23, 1994**

**DUMBLEDORE’S GIANT MISTAKE**

**Albus Dumbledore, eccentric Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has never been afraid to make controversial staff appointments, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. In September of this year, he hired Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody, the notoriously jinx-happy ex-Auror, to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, a decision that caused many raised eyebrows at the Ministry of Magic, given Moody’s well-known habit of attacking anybody who makes a sudden movement in his presence. Mad-Eye Moody, however, looks responsible and kindly when set beside the part-human Dumbledore employs to teach Care of Magical Creatures.  
Rubeus Hagrid, who admits to being expelled from Hogwarts in his third year, has enjoyed the position of gamekeeper at the school ever since, a job secured for him by Dumbledore. Last year, however, Hagrid used his mysterious influence over the headmaster to secure the additional post of Care of Magical Creatures teacher, over the heads of many better-qualified candidates.  
An alarmingly large and ferocious-looking man, Hagrid has been using his newfound authority to terrify the students in his care with a succession of horrific creatures. While Dumbledore turns a blind eye, Hagrid has maimed several pupils during a series of lessons that many admit to being “very frightening.”  
“I was attacked by a hippogriff, and my friend Vincent Crabbe got a bad bite off a flobberworm,” says Draco Malfoy, a fourth-year student. “We all hate Hagrid, but we’re just too scared to say anything.”  
Hagrid has no intention of ceasing his campaign of intimidation, however. In conversation with a _Daily Prophet_ reporter yesterday, he admitted breeding creatures he has dubbed “Blast-Ended Skrewts,” highly dangerous crosses between manticores and fire-crabs. The creation of new breeds of magical creature is, of course, an activity usually closely observed by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Hagrid, however, considers himself to be above such petty restrictions.  
“I was just having some fun,” he says, before hastily changing the subject.  
As if this were not enough, the _Daily Prophet_ has now unearthed evidence that Hagrid is not --- as he has always pretended --- a pure-blood wizard. He is not, in fact, even pure human. His mother, we can exclusively reveal, is none other than the giantess Fridwulfa, whose whereabouts are currently unknown.  
Bloodthirsty and brutal, the giants brought themselves to the point of extinction by warring amongst themselves during the last century. The handful that remained joined the ranks of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and were responsible for some of the worst mass Muggle killings of his reign of terror.  
While many of the giants who served He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named were killed by Aurors working against the Dark Side, Fridwulfa was not among them. It is possible she escaped to one of the giant communities still existing in foreign mountain ranges. If his antics during Care of Magical Creatures lessons are any guide, however, Fridwulfa’s son appears to have inherited her brutal nature.  
In a bizarre twist, Hagrid is reputed to have developed a close friendship with the boy who brought around You-Know-Who’s fall from power --- thereby driving Hagrid’s own mother, like the rest of You-Know-Who’s supporters, into hiding. Perhaps Harry Potter is unaware of the unpleasant truth about his large friend --- but Albus Dumbledore surely has a duty to ensure that Harry Potter, along with his fellow students, is warned about the dangers of associating with part-giants.**

* * *

HARRY:

With the first task in the past, Ron and Hermione by my side again in the present, Dobby safe and happy in the Hogwarts kitchens, and the second task months in the future, life was nearly normal again. It was as if nothing had ever been amiss.

Until the next morning.

Lucy and Hermione had gone in 50-50 on a subscription to _The Daily Prophet_. As much as we all hated Rita Skeeter, they figured it was good to stay on top of whatever she was spreading. Hermione usually read it first, front to back, then gave it to Lucy. That morning, however, she stared at the front page for ten seconds before passing it to Lucy.

Lucy looked confused at first, but the more she read, the more her hands shook. By the time she lowered the newspaper from her face, she was paler than perhaps she'd ever been.

"This is bad," she choked out.

"What is?" I asked.

She didn't seem to hear me as she passed the newspaper back to Hermione. "I need to go talk to him."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"No, don't, I- he- she somehow- I need to do this alone."

Not offering another word of explanation, Lucy snatched up her bag and stalked out of the Great Hall. Ron and I both looked to Hermione for explanation. 

"Let me read the rest of this first," she muttered, holding up a finger. About two minutes later, she shoved the newspaper into my hands, a groan of frustration escaping between her teeth. "Just read it."

Ron read the article over my shoulder. By the time we were done, I was as angry as Lucy. I jumped up from the table, marched over to Malfoy, and slammed the article down next to him.

“What d’you mean, ‘we all hate Hagrid’? What’s this rubbish about Crabbe getting a bad bite off a flobberworm? They haven’t even got teeth!”

Malfoy looked startled for half a second before laughing. “Well, I think this should put an end to the oaf’s teaching career. Half-giant... and there was me thinking he’d just swallowed a bottle of Skele-Gro when he was young. None of the mummies and daddies are going to like this at all, they’ll be worried he’ll eat their kids.”

"When did you talk to her? How did she find out?"

"Oh, I don't know how or when she found out, but she seemed rather keen on finding me last night. She said since I had been most helpful with her article about you she hoped I wouldn't mind giving a statement for this one as well." He sighed, smiling. "Reckon he'll be too ashamed to show his big, ugly face. Come to think of it, Rita mentioned something about Lucy as well." He glanced over toward the Gryffindor table and pouted. "Aw, is Lucy too scared to show her ugly face, too?"

"Of course not," I snapped. "Lucy knows better than to listen to what people like _you_ think of her. I know what you did to her last year, Malfoy, and if you ever think about bullying her like that again, if you ever think about bullying her the way you've bullied Hagrid all these years, you had better watch your back."

I snatched up the newspaper and returned to the table, seething.

"Well, this day is off to a great start," Ron commented sarcastically.

Hermione glanced at me, looking somewhere between disturbed and concerned. "What'd Malfoy have to say? You look murderous."

"Just Malfoy being Malfoy," I spat, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of having his words repeated.

The rest of the meal passed in tense silence, except for when the twins came over to ask where Lucy was.

"Went down to Hagrid's," Hermione replied. They nodded and settled across from us. Their attempts at conversation were met with minimal response, so they ended up shouting down the table at Angelina and Alicia.

"Reckon Lucy will just meet us in Herbology?" Ron asked as we got up and grabbed our bags.

Hermione and I nodded, but when we arrived, Lucy was nowhere to be seen. We kept glancing toward the door during the lesson, expecting her to come bursting in, but she never did. 

Care of Magical Creatures was next, and the three of us were the first ones there by a mile. Lucy slipped out the door of Hagrid's hut and closed it quietly behind her.

"He's not listening to me," she whispered. "I've been at it for hours now. He can't believe Rita Skeeter- _I_ can't believe Rita Skeeter- will you three please try to talk to him?"

"Of course, Lu," I said, and Ron and Hermione nodded their agreement.

"Thanks," she said, tugging her hat down lower over her ears. "I'll get the skrewts out for everyone, so the lesson is ready as soon as he is. Good luck."

With that, she turned on her heel and darted off into the snow. Hermione began pounding on the door, wasting no time.

“Hagrid! Hagrid, that’s enough! We know you’re in there! Nobody cares if your mum was a giantess, Hagrid! You can’t let that foul Skeeter woman do this to you! Hagrid, get out here, you’re just being-”

The door creaked open, so we all stepped inside. Hagrid looked terrible. His eyes were red and swollen from crying, and a half-empty tankard of what smelled like firewhisky explained the rest of his bedraggled appearance.

I realized with a jolt we weren't alone with him. Lucy had forgotten to mention that Dumbledore was in there, too, though that did explain why she had missed Herbology.

Hermione had turned rather shy all of a sudden. “We --- er --- we wanted to see Hagrid.”

“Yes, I surmised as much. Did you by any chance hear what Miss Granger was shouting, Hagrid?”

Hagrid grunted noncommittally as the door closed behind us.

“Hermione, Harry, and Ron still seem to want to know you, in addition to Lucy, judging by the way they were attempting to break down the door.”

I stared incredulously at Hagrid. “Of course we still want to know you! You don’t think anything that Skeeter cow- er, sorry, Professor.”

“I have gone temporarily deaf and haven’t any idea what you said, Harry. Though I do think your friend Lucy will be most upset to hear she missed that line. Cow was not one of the animals she considered.”

I had to stop and stifle a laugh at the thought of Lucy calling _anyone_ a cow, or worse. I quickly composed myself and continued, making a mental note to ask Lucy about it later. “Er, right. I just meant... Hagrid, how could you think we’d care what that woman wrote about you?”

Hagrid made no reply, but a tear trickled down his cheek.

“Living proof of what I’ve been telling you, Hagrid. I have shown you the letters from the countless parents who remember you from their own days here, telling me in no uncertain terms that if I sacked you, they would have something to say about it,” Dumbledore said. 

“Not all of ’em. Not all of ’em wan’ me ter stay.”

“Really, Hagrid, if you are holding out for universal popularity, I’m afraid you will be in this cabin for a very long time. Not a week has passed since I became headmaster of this school when I haven’t had at least one owl complaining about the way I run it. But what should I do? Barricade myself in my study and refuse to talk to anybody?”

“Yeh... yeh’re not half-giant!”

“Hagrid, look what I’ve got for relatives! Look at the Dursleys!” I burst out.

“An excellent point. My own brother, Aberforth, was prosecuted for practicing inappropriate charms on a goat. It was all over the papers, but did Aberforth hide? No, he did not! He held his head high and went about his business as usual! Of course, I’m not entirely sure he can read, so that may not have been bravery...”

At that moment, Lucy poked her head in the door. "Hagrid, I got the skrewts all ready for you."

“Come and teach, Hagrid, please,” Hermione said.

Hagrid didn't reply, but began crying harder. Lucy came a little further in the door and stood shyly behind Hermione. "You might want to come sooner than later, Hagrid. Smokestrike is trying to eat Murksting again."

“I refuse to accept your resignation, Hagrid,” Dumbledore said, walking to the door. “I do believe I hear the rest of your class coming, so I recommend you get out there and separate dear old Smokestrike and Murksting. See you at lunch in the Great Hall!”

As soon as he left, Hagrid wiped his face with his sleeve. "Lucy, d'yeh mind startin' class? I want ter show these three the picture I showed yeh Saturday."

Lucy smiled. "Happy to. See you in a moment."

She ducked back out of the hut while Hagrid rose to his feet and rifled through a dresser looking for the picture. It was an odd picture really, but a sweet one --- his dad was perched on his shoulder. Based on the looks of it, Hagrid was probably seven feet tall, but he had no beard.

“Tha’ was taken jus’ after I got inter Hogwarts. Dad was dead chuffed... thought I migh’ not be a wizard, see, because me mum... well, anyway. ’Course, I never was great shakes at magic, really, but at least he never saw me expelled. Died, see, in me second year... Dumbledore was the one who stuck up for me after Dad went. Got me the gamekeeper job, trusts people, he does. Gives ’em second chances. Tha’s what sets him apar’ from other heads, see. He’ll accept anyone at Hogwarts, s’long as they’ve got the talent. Knows people can turn out okay even if their families weren’... well... all tha’ respectable. But some don’ understand that. There’s some who’d always hold it against yeh... there’s some who’d even pretend they just had big bones rather than stand up an’ say I am what I am, an’ I’m not ashamed. ‘Never be ashamed,’ my ol’ dad used ter say, ‘there’s some who’ll hold it against you, but they’re not worth botherin’ with.’ An’ he was right. I’ve bin an idiot. I’m not botherin’ with _her_ no more, I promise yeh that. Big bones... I’ll give _her_ big bones.”

The three of us exchanged a confused look. Since Lucy had stayed with Hagrid when we all went to visit Dobby in the kitchens, maybe she was the one Hagrid was talking to when Rita Skeeter somehow overheard his secret... it would explain Draco's odd comment, too... no, Lucy was tiny, she didn't have "big bones," that reminded me of Madame Maxime... 

Before I could think on this further, Hagrid smiled at me. “Yeh know wha’, Harry? When I firs’ met you, you reminded me o’ me a bit. Mum an’ Dad gone, an’ you was feelin’ like yeh wouldn’ fit in at Hogwarts, remember? Not sure yeh were really up to it, an’ now look at yeh, Harry! School champion!” He sighed, smiling even wider. “Yeh know what I’d love, Harry? I’d love yeh ter win, I really would. It’d show ’em all yeh don’ have ter be pureblood ter do it. Yeh don’ have ter be ashamed of what yeh are. It’d show ’em Dumbledore’s the one who’s got it righ’, lettin’ anyone in as long as they can do magic.”

I smiled back. "I'll do my best. Now come on, Hagrid, you've got a class to teach."

Oh, the look on Draco Malfoy's face when he saw Hagrid walk out of his hut smiling was priceless. Lucy's reaction was the complete opposite --- she looked as if she'd melt with relief.

"So what exactly happened this morning?" I asked as we started working.

"We... we were just talking last night," Lucy replied quietly. "He told me about telling Madame Maxime he was half-giant, which that absolute _anteater_ of a woman must have somehow overheard-"

Ron snorted. "Anteater?"

Lucy snorted back. "Yeah, always sticking her nose where it doesn't belong."

"Harry called her a cow in front of Dumbledore," Hermione commented.

As Dumbledore expected, Lucy was disappointed to hear she had missed it. Her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a laugh. "I can't believe I missed it! Did you really?"

"Not my finest moment," I mumbled, "but yes, I did."

"That's the best thing I've heard all day," Lucy chuckled. "I'm glad Hagrid's feeling better. Good job, by the way. How'd you manage?"

"It was Dumbledore, really," I whispered back. "And me mentioning the Dursleys helped a bit, I think."

"Just goes to show that your personality matters more than your species," Hermione said, softly but pointedly.

Lucy nodded, not replying out loud.

Though it was clear that she was relieved Hagrid didn't take what Rita Skeeter said to heart and kept teaching, Lucy grew a bit quieter after that day. A bit more reserved. Part of me wondered if it was just because Ron and Hermione were around again, and she didn't need to try to fill both of their roles. But part of me just instinctively knew that something about that Rita Skeeter article struck a chord with her. I knew how much she loved Hagrid, and creatures. After losing Professor Lupin, it made sense that the fear of losing Hagrid for nearly the same reason would be unsettling. 

But for the time being, the crisis was averted. Or at least... _that_ crisis was.

* * *

The thought of the Yule Ball was just fine at first. 

It all started one Thursday afternoon, toward the end of Transfiguration. Professor McGonagall ended the lesson a few minutes early to address the class.

“The Yule Ball is approaching, a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests," she said. "Now, the ball will be open only to fourth years and above, although you may invite a younger student if you wish. Dress robes will be worn, and the ball will start at eight o’clock on Christmas Day, finishing at midnight in the Great Hall.”

The classroom erupted with whispers and giggles, and Professor McGonagall silenced every sound with a single stern look before continuing.

“The Yule Ball is of course a chance for us all to --- er --- let our hair down.”

Another brief wave of giggles flooded the room, and I understood why. The thought of Professor McGonagall with her hair down was almost as funny as the thought of Professor Snape in Neville's grandmother's clothing --- nothing would _ever_ be funnier than that.

“But that does NOT mean that we will be relaxing the standards of behavior we expect from Hogwarts students. I will be most seriously displeased if a Gryffindor student embarrasses the school in any way.”

The bell sounded, but something held me back. Professor McGonagall's voice above the rest. “Potter, a word, if you please.”

"I'll save you a seat, mate," Ron said, clapping me on the shoulder before heading out of the room. 

I headed up to Professor McGonagall's desk, unsure of what to expect.

“Potter, the champions and their partners-”

“Partners?” I repeated incredulously.

She looked at me like I was crazy before clarifying, “Your partners for the Yule Ball, Potter, your _dance_ partners.”

“Dance p- dance partners? I don’t dance.”

“Oh yes, you do, that’s what I’m telling you. Traditionally, the champions and their partners open the ball.”

I blinked, a vivid image coming to mind of me in a tuxedo and a top hat swooping into the Great Hall with a faceless girl wearing one of Aunt Petunia's frilliest dresses clinging to my arm.

“I’m not dancing, I don't dance,” I stammered, feeling my cheeks beginning to burn at just the thought of it all.

“It is traditional. You are a Hogwarts champion, and you will do what is expected of you as a representative of the school. So make sure you get yourself a partner, Potter.”

And just like that, the Yule Ball was my own personal hell.

"What did McGonagall want?" Ron asked through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"I need a partner for the Yule Ball," I grumbled in response. 

“Got any idea who you’re going to try?”

 _Cho Chang_ , I answered in my head immediately, forcing myself to not let my eyes wander to the Ravenclaw table. Something about the Quidditch match we had played last year... she was pretty, and popular, and smart, not to mention a hell of a good Quidditch player.

I offered a shrug as a response.

“Listen, you’re not going to have any trouble. You’re a champion. You’ve just beaten a Hungarian Horntail. I bet they’ll be queuing up to go with you.”

"You can't go with just anyone, Harry," Fred said from across the table. "You're a champion! Will every girl in the school want to go with you? Yes. Will you need to break a few hearts along the way? Of course! But you need to do it, because the weight of the school rests on your shoulders. Well, half of it, anyway --- Diggory gets the other half."

"Cedric, he means," George clarified, for Lucy had gone very pink.

She cleared her throat and nodded. "Yeah. Right."

"But Fred's right, Harry," George said, turning back to me. "I reckon you'll be asked as soon as tomorrow. Just keep your wits about you, say no, then ask the right girl once you've had time to think about it."

I nodded at the time, but it was far easier said than done. 

I had never before realized the way girls moved in packs. Ron suggested lassoing one, but I didn't think that would be very effective. As the days passed, more and more girls asked me --- a fifth-year Ravenclaw that looked like she'd punch me if I said no, a third-year Hufflepuff who I got the feeling had just been turned down by Cedric, even a starry-eyed second year Slytherin who begged Archie to go with her for emotional support when she went to ask me. 

I knew that no girl in the whole school would have wanted to go with me if I weren't a champion. But still, if Cho asked me... I doubted that would bother me very much. 

The days blurred together in a haze of giggles and rumors and whispers of the Yule Ball. Before I knew it, the night before the last day of term was upon us.

Ron sighed. “Evil, Snape is. Springing a test on us on the last day. Ruining the last bit of term with a whole load of studying.”

Hermione glanced over at this Exploding Snap card tower. “You’re not exactly straining yourself, though, are you?”

"It's almost Christmas, Mione," I said, setting aside _Flying with the Cannons_.

Hermione sent a disapproving look my way. “I’d have thought you’d be doing something constructive, Harry, even if you don’t want to learn your antidotes!”

“Like what?”

“That egg!”

“Come on, Hermione, I’ve got till February the twenty-fourth. That's more than two months away.”

“But it might take weeks to work it out! You’re going to look a real idiot if everyone else knows what the next task is and you don’t!”

“Leave him alone, Hermione, he’s earned a bit of a break,” Ron said. He added another card to his tower, and every last bit of it blew up in his face, making the common room collectively jump then giggle.

“Nice look, Ron!"

"Go well with your dress robes, that will.”

We all glanced up as Fred and George made their way over to us.

“Ron, can we borrow Pigwidgeon?” George asked.

“No, he’s off delivering a letter. Why?”

Fred rolled his eyes. “Because George wants to invite him to the ball.”

“Because we want to send a letter, you stupid great prat,” George said.

Ron cocked his head to the side. “Who d’you two keep writing to, eh? And why do you need to send the letter so urgently?”

Fred whipped out his wand and waved it in the direction of Ron's face. “Nose out, Ron, or I’ll burn that for you too.”

Hermione laughed as Ron's hands flew to cover his nose. Fred grinned, clearly proud of the reaction, and tucked his wand away.

“So, you lot got dates for the ball yet?”

Ron shook his head. "Nope."

“Well, you’d better hurry up, mate, or all the good ones will be gone.”

“Who’re you going with, then?”

“Angelina.”

“What? You’ve already asked her?”

“Good point.” Fred scanned the common room for her, then called, “Oi! Angelina!”

"What?" she called back. Alicia turned to look, too, grinning.

“Want to come to the ball with me?”

"Alright, then," Angelina said with a smile grin, and she and Alicia dissolved into a fit of giggles.

Fred dusted his hands off dramatically and smiled at Ron and me. “There you go. Piece of cake. Well, now that I've shown these buffoons how to ask a girl to the Yule Ball, we’d better use a school owl, George, come on.”

Once they had disappeared through the portrait hole, Ron sighed. “We _should_ get a move on, you know, and ask someone. He’s right. We don’t want to end up with a pair of trolls.”

Hermione's book snapped shut. “A pair of... _what_ , excuse me?”

“Well, you know, I’d rather go alone than with Eloise Midgen, say,” Ron explained with a shrug.

“Her acne’s loads better lately, and she’s really nice!”

“Her nose is off-center.”

Hermione's eyes glinted dangerously as she straightened up. “Oh I see. So basically, you’re going to take the best-looking girl who’ll have you, even if she’s completely horrible?”

“Er, yeah, that sounds about right,” Ron replied.

“I’m going to bed.”

Hermione jumped up and practically ran to the girls' dormitories. Lucy sighed softly. I had forgotten she was even there, since she hadn't said a word the whole night. 

"I'd better follow her," she said, her voice little more than a whisper. "Good night, you two."

"Night," we called after her as she hurried across the room in the same direction as Hermione.

Ron elected to pretend that nothing had happened. “Harry, we’ve just got to grit our teeth and do it. When we get back to the common room tomorrow night, we’ll both have partners, agreed?”

"Er... okay," I said, my stomach squirming at the very thought of it.

That night, my dreams were wild and confusing, and I kept waking up after every single one.

In my first dream, I asked Cho to the ball down on one knee, and she squealed a "Yes!" as she jumped into my waiting arms, and I carried her bridal-style into the Great Hall, but then a loud howl filled the room, and the dream disappeared in a flash of white.

In my second dream, I asked Cho to the ball from below where she stood on a balcony like Romeo calling to Juliet, but no matter how loud I shouted, she couldn't hear me.

In my third dream, I managed to catch Cho alone and ask her to the ball in a deserted classroom, but when she rejected me, the room flooded with people all laughing hysterically at the two of us.

My fourth dream was the most realistic. I found Cho on her own on the castle grounds and approached her shyly. I tripped over my words as I asked her to the ball, and she smiled politely as she turned me down. We went our separate ways, but there was something nagging at the back of my mind, someone I could ask instead, someone I knew would say yes. But before I could find this girl, who I knew would be waiting for me on the other side of the door at the end of the hallway, someone was shaking me awake.

"It's almost time to go," Ron said, throwing my robes at my face.

"Dreaming about your handsome prince, Sleeping Beauty?" Dean called jokingly.

"I wish!" I chuckled.

"You just need to do it, Harry," Seamus said as he pulled his shirt over his head. "I did yesterday, and she said yes right away."

Before I could ask who he asked, Dean held up a finger. "Shut up!" he hissed.

The room fell silent, and the four of us became aware of a soft melody coming from the bathroom. Seamus grinned and crept toward the door, pushing it half an inch open. He pressed a knuckle to his mouth in an attempt to stifle his laughter and waved us over.

Neville was dancing around the room in his pajamas, eyes closed and mouth firm with concentration as he spun in time to the tune he was humming. We watched, transfixed, for about ten seconds before Seamus closed the door and we all exchanged humored glances.

"If Yule Ball mania can get even _Neville_ , we're all doomed," Ron chortled quietly.

"I'll say," I agreed, butterflies filling my stomach again at the thought of asking Cho to the ball at some point that day.

There were too many people around to even _think_ about asking her during breakfast or lunch. And when I saw her in between classes, she was surrounded by at least five other girls, maybe more. I failed my potions exam because I forgot a bezoar, but that seemed inconsequential compared to the task I had in front of me.

As soon as the bell rang, I grabbed my bag, told Ron I'd see him at dinner, and rushed to find her. She was leaving the DADA classroom.

I took a deep breath and called, “Er, Cho? Could I have a word with you?”

Everyone around her giggled, which filled me with an absurd amount of anger. But she merely smiled and nodded, following me until we were alone.

When I faced her, I felt my insides turn to Jell-O. I tried to ask, really I did, but the words got stuck in my throat. She waited patiently, though, looking somewhere between confused and concerned. I swallowed my nerves, and in a flash of glory, asked her.

“Wangoballwime?”

She blinked. “Sorry?”

I swallowed and tried again. “D’you --- d’you want to go to the ball with me?”

I felt my cheeks beginning to grow red. My embarrassment over being embarrassed just made my cheeks turn even redder. _This is how Lucy must feel,_ I thought bitterly to myself. _At least it's cute when she does it, I probably look like a tomato..._

Cho blushed too, and looked genuinely apologetic. “Oh! Oh Harry, I’m really sorry, but I’ve already said I’ll go with someone else.”

It felt like the floor dropped out beneath me. _What now?_ “Oh. Oh, okay, no problem.”

“I’m really sorry.”

“That’s okay.”

“Well-”

“Yeah.”

“Well, bye.”

She started to walk away, but before I really knew what I was doing, I called after her. “Who’re you going with?”

“Oh, Cedric. Cedric Diggory.”

I nodded numbly. "Oh. Right."

She disappeared, and I dragged myself up to the common room, expecting it to be empty. To my pleasant surprise, Lucy was curled up in the corner of the room with a book propped open on her knees. I walked over to her without second thought and sank into the armchair opposite her.

"Oh, hi, Harry," she said as she glanced up, blue eyes meeting mine.

"Hey," I replied.

She studied me, clearly having heard the dullness of my voice. "Everything alright, Harry?"

"I have a question," I said. I looked down at my hands --- they were still shaking from the disastrous encounter with Cho. "I'm embarrassed to ask it, because you might laugh at me, but I don't know who else to ask."

Lucy shut her book quickly and sat up. To my surprise, she started blushing. "You don't have to be nervous, I won't laugh, I promise."

I chuckled a bit. "Why are _you_ blushing? You don't even know what I'm going to ask."

"I'm not blushing!" she insisted, blushing all the more. "It's just warm in here. What did you want to ask me?"

Before I could ask, the portrait hole swung open, and a very-pale Ron was led into the room by Ginny. I jumped to my feet and made my way over.

“What’s up, Ron?”

When he looked up at me, he looked somewhat delirious. “Why did I do it? I don’t know what made me do it!”

"What? Do what?" I looked to Ginny for an explanation.

She fought to keep a straight face. “He, er... just asked Fleur Delacour to go to the ball with him.”

I couldn't help but laugh. “You _what_?”

He started laughing maniacally too, as the story tumbled from his mouth. “I don’t know what made me do it! What was I playing at? There were people all around! I’ve gone mad! Everyone watching! I was just walking past her in the entrance hall, she was standing there talking to Diggory, and it sort of came over me, and I asked her!” He pressed his hands over his face, shaking with humiliated, hysterical laughter. “She looked at me like I was a sea slug or something. Didn’t even answer. And then I dunno, I just sort of came to my senses and ran for it.”

“She’s part veela. You were right, her grandmother was one. It wasn’t your fault, I bet you just walked past when she was turning on the old charm for Diggory and got a blast of it, but she was wasting her time. He’s going with Cho Chang.”

Ron stopped laughing and lowered his hands from his face. "What? How did you find that out?"

I sighed. “I asked her to go with me just now, and she told me.”

“This is mad. We’re the only ones left who haven’t got anyone. Well, except Neville. Hey, guess who he asked? _Hermione_!”

I snapped out of my self-pitying stupor. " _What?_ "

Ron laughed again. “Yeah, I know! He told me after Potions! Said she’s always been really nice, helping him out with work and stuff, but she told him she was already going with someone. Ha! As if! She just didn’t want to go with Neville. I mean, who would?”

“Don’t laugh!” Ginny said loudly as Hermione climbed in through the portrait hole and came over to where I was with Ron and Ginny.

“Why weren’t you all at dinner?” she asked, looking back and forth between Ron and me.

Ginny rolled her eyes. “Because --- oh shut up laughing, you two --- because they’ve both just been turned down by girls they asked to the ball!”

Ron and I instantly stopped laughing.

“Thanks a bunch, Ginny,” Ron mumbled.

It was Hermione's turn to laugh. “All the good-looking ones taken, Ron? Eloise Midgen starting to look quite pretty now, is she? Well, I’m sure you’ll find someone _somewhere_ who’ll have you.”

“Hermione," Ron said, blinking hard as if he'd just seen a light from heaven. "Neville’s right, you _are_ a girl.”

Hermione was suddenly serious again. “Oh, well-spotted.”

“Well, you can come with one of us!”

“No, I can’t.”

“Oh come on, we need partners, we’re going to look really stupid if we haven’t got any, everyone else has.”

“I can’t come with you, because I’m already going with someone.”

“No, you’re not! You just said that to get rid of Neville!”

I knew in that moment Ron had made a grave mistake.

Hermione straightened up, and her words were venomous. (Poisonous? No, venomous was right...) “Oh _did_ I? Just because it’s taken y _ou_ three years to notice, Ron, doesn’t mean no one _else_ has spotted I’m a girl!”

Ron blinked, then smiled. “Okay, okay, we know you’re a girl. That do? Will you come now?”

“I’ve already told you! I’m going with someone else!”

She spun on her heel and marched off toward the girls' dormitories for the second night in a row. I hadn't realized how full the common room had become, but nearly everyone was back from dinner at that point.

“She’s lying,” Ron guessed.

Ginny shook her head. “She’s not.”

“Who is it, then?”

“I’m not telling you, it’s her business.”

“Right. This is getting stupid. Ginny, you can go with Harry, and I’ll just-”

“I can’t. I’m going with Neville. He asked me when Hermione said no, and I thought, well, I’m not going to be able to go otherwise, I’m not in fourth year.” She sighed. “You two are hopeless. The perfect solution is right in front of you, in this very _room_ , and you two... well, good luck.”

With that, she turned and headed off to her dormitory too.

“What’s got into them?” Ron groaned.

"I don't know, but what Ginny said..." I glanced around the room, and my eyes landed on Parvati and Lavender. "Oh! That must be who she meant! Be right back."

I walked up to the pair of them and put on my best smile. “Parvati? Will you go to the ball with me?”

She immediately giggled, then nodded. “Yes, alright then.”

I sighed in relief. “Great, thanks. Lavender, will you go with Ron?”

“She’s going with Seamus,” Parvati informed me, and Lavender joined in on the giggles. Good Godric, giggling was annoying sometimes.

I sighed again. “Can’t you think of anyone who’d go with Ron?”

“What about Hermione?” she asked, cocking her head as if that were obvious.

“She’s going with someone else.”

Her eyes widened. “Ooooh, _who_?”

“No idea... so what about Ron?”

“Well... I suppose my sister might. Padma, you know, in Ravenclaw. I’ll ask her if you like.”

“Yeah, that would be great. Let me know, will you?”

Parvati nodded, and she and Lavender headed up to their dormitory. I collapsed onto the couch next to Ron.

"I'm going with Parvati, and she said she'd ask her twin sister if she'd go with you."

"Her nose is dead center, right?" Ron asked.

I laughed humorlessly. "I'm sure it is."

We stared into the fire for a moment before a paper airplane flew directly in front of our noses and right past us. We both turned to see where it was headed, and the pointed end struck Lucy's forehead, which was the only part of her that was visible above her book. She snatched it out of the air and unfolded it, eyes scanning the note apparently written on it. 

"Shut up!" she called across the room, crumpling the paper into a tiny ball and sending it flying directly at Fred's face. 

Fred laughed. "Shut up? Cub, I didn't say anything!"

Lucy stuck her tongue out at him. "Irrelevant. But fine! You were right! Happy?"

George reached for the piece of parchment, uncrumpled it, and scribbled a note on it before folding it back into an airplane and sending it back to Lucy. She unfolded it, blushed bright red, and looked my direction for half a second before reaching into her bookbag for a quill. She scribbled something of her own and sent it back to George. He smiled, scribbled something else, and sent the paper airplane back her way. She scanned it and fired an incredulous look at George, who nodded and started laughing. Lucy glanced toward us again, and Ron and I quickly looked away at the fire.

"What do you reckon that was about?" Ron asked under his breath.

"I don't know," I replied.

Before Ron could say anything else, Lucy came over and sat cross-legged between us and the fire. "Do you still have a question for me, Harry?" she asked. "I realized you didn't exactly get the chance to ask, with, er, Ron coming in. Sorry about the Fleur thing, by the way," she added to Ron with a straight face --- how she wasn't laughing, I had no idea.

"It's my own fault," Ron muttered. "I don't know what made me do it."

"Her Veela charm," Lucy replied. "I was with Cedric the other day when she tried asking him to the ball the first time. Persistent, that girl. There were three different boys and two different girls who asked her to the ball in the same five-minute period she was trying to talk to Cedric. It's not your fault."

Ron sighed. "Well, I feel a _little_ less stupid now. But only a little."

"Well, that's good," Lucy said with a smile. "Anyway, Harry, did you still have a question?"

I nodded. "I was just wondering when Cedric asked Cho to the ball, since I was apparently too late."

Lucy didn't laugh at me either, for which I was thankful --- I'd had enough people laugh at me for one day --- but I could tell it required quite a bit of effort. An amused smile toyed with the corners of her mouth. "Oh, Harry, they've been dating since August after having mutual feelings for about a year. You would have had to ask her a looong time in advance."

"Oh." I felt myself blushing yet again. "Well, now I just feel dumb."

"Don't feel dumb, it's fine. She was probably glad you didn't know, honestly. They've been trying to keep it on the down low ever since, well, Rita Skeeter. He didn't want to make Cho a target, if Rita ever gets bored of you." Lucy sighed. "I bet he doesn't regret that decision in the slightest, after what happened to Hagrid."

I nodded. "That makes sense. But I still feel stupid. I guess I never questioned why she played Quidditch with us on Cedric's birthday."

Lucy laughed a bit. "Yeah, Harry, that was a bit of an oversight on your part." She lowered her voice and laughed a bit more. "But at least you didn't, er, do what Ron did. Merlin, that poor boy will never live that down."

I couldn't help but laugh, too. "Yeah, thanks, I feel better now."

She winked. "That's what I'm here for. Oh, incoming."

"Incoming?" I repeated. "What do you mean by-"

I was interrupted by George shoving me to one side and Ron to the other so he could sit in between us.

"Whoops, didn't see you two there!" he exclaimed.

Lucy laughed. "I tried to warn them! I tried!"

"'Incoming' was incredibly vague," Ron complained with a chuckle, making Lucy blush.

George swatted Ron's arm. "Shut up, I have very important business to attend to."

"Important business?"

George didn't answer, instead leaning forward until his face was only inches from Lucy's. She seemed to know what was going on, and started smiling.

"No, don't smile!" he said. "You're making this very difficult!"

Lucy tried to stop smiling, but she inevitably started cracking up. "George, I told you, I can just show you what color the dress is-"

"No! I don't want to see it until the ball! You said it matched your eyes, so I need to see what color your eyes are so I can match my tie."

Lucy rose to her feet, still chuckling. "I'll just go get the magazine from my dorm. I won't show you the dress!" she added quickly, sensing a protest. "I'll just cut part of the picture out so you can see the color. I'll be right back."

She disappeared with a swish of her robes, leaving us alone with George, who leaned back on the couch and grinned. "The Yule Ball is going to be great."

I wanted to agree, but I suddenly couldn't speak. Ginny was right --- the perfect solution, right in front of me.

Lucy was a girl. And I was an idiot.


	61. Shining Just for You

_Hush  
I know they said the end is near  
But I'm still on my tallest tiptoes  
Spinning in my highest heels, love  
Shining just for you_

_I want you to know  
I'm a mirrorball  
I can change everything about me to fit in  
You are not like the regulars  
The masquerade revelers  
Drunk as they watch my shattered edges glisten_

_"mirrorball"  
Taylor Swift_

* * *

LUCY:

I dutifully made my way up to the Room of Requirement fifteen minutes before the moon would rise --- or at least, I tried to. The door didn't reveal itself to me.

"I know I'm in the right place," I whispered to myself, looking around desperately. I swore under my breath and reached forward to touch the wall. "Please, not tonight, please. It'll be so cold."

But the door didn't appear, so I tore my eyes away from the wall and started running. I ducked around the corner, and, to my shock, ran smack into someone.

"Sorry!" I squeaked, peeling myself off of... "George? Fred? Wh-What are you doing here? Wait, no, don't answer that, I-I need to go, I'm sorry-"

"Where are you going?" George asked, gripping my arm. "Lucy, it's okay, we know. We know about, well, you."

"You- what?"

"Lucy, where are you going? We'll go with you," Fred said. 

I shook my head. "N-No, don't, you c-can't, I... I'm sorry."

I ripped myself away from George and started sprinting. I would have so much to explain in the morning...

I turned around when my feet hit the grass. They were still following me. I wanted to shout at them to turn around and that I would explain everything in the morning, but I couldn't risk anybody hearing me and also deciding to follow me. So instead, I gestured for them to keep following me and continued my mad dash to the forest. 

As soon as I reached the trees, I sagged against a tree, panting. They caught up a minute later, and I glanced at the setting sun, already beginning to shiver in the December chill despite the raging fever.

"I don't have much time," I said. "Promise me you'll tell me how you figured it out in the morning?"

"Promise," they replied in unison.

"Oh, and would you mind telling Cedric I'm out here and not in the Room of Requirement?"

"The Room of Requirement?" Fred echoed.

"I usually transform there, but it didn't open tonight, as I'm sure you saw." I bit my lip. "I wonder who was in there. Anyway, as soon as the sun sets, you need to get out of here, as fast as possible. Don't let anyone see you, with Rita Skeeter lurking, we can't have any unnecessary questions. She heard me telling Hagrid that Harry doesn't know my secret yet, so I know she'll be trying harder than ever to get to me, and I'm sure she saw us together at the first task."

They nodded.

I managed a laugh. "No need to look so worried. I'm sure she won't ask you questions, I'm just being overly cautious."

"Cub, do you honestly think _that's_ why we're worried?" George asked incredulously. 

I looked down at my shoes. "I'm guessing you didn't figure it out until last month?"

"Yeah. Took us bloody long enough," Fred said.

"There's no need to sound so upset with yourself... Hermione and Cedric are the only other two students in this entire school who know. I... I've tried to keep it that way, but you two are too smart for me." I glanced at the horizon. "I should go. Meet me in the common room tomorrow?"

They nodded again, beginning to back away.

"Be safe, Cub," George said. Fred, for once, couldn't find anything to say.

I offered the best smile I could find. "Always am. See you in the morning."

I turned on my heel and began running directly into the heart of the forest without waiting for a reply. I dropped to my knees as the horrific pain overtook me, knowing I was in for a very long, very cold night.

When the pain launched me back into reality in the morning, I was aware of only three things.

1\. I was freezing cold.

2\. My head was about to split in two.

3\. The twins owed me a long and detailed explanation.

I pushed myself to my feet, immediately staggering backward against a tree. The world around me pitched and rolled, and stars whizzed around my vision. I tried to recall what I had done to earn myself this concussion, but I couldn't remember anything from the night before.

Once the world seemed to balance itself again, I opened my eyes and tried to figure out where I was. I located the first rays of the sun that managed to pierce through the December haze and used that marker to figure out the right way to the castle. I had to stop and crouch to the ground periodically to make the spinning stop, but I eventually made my way to the edge of the woods.

I heard a distant voice say, "There she is!"

I squinted to try to see who shouted, but the ground beneath my feet gave way, and I lost consciousness half a second after I felt strong arms catch me. 

When I opened my eyes again, I was in the Hospital Wing, unsurprisingly, with Cedric perched at the foot of my bed, Hermione on one side and the twins on the other.

Cedric smiled and held out a goblet of wideye potion. "Good morning. Looks like you had an eventful night. How are you feeling?"

"Better now that I'm warm!" I was swaddled in blankets, but I wrestled one arm free to accept the goblet and point a finger at the twins. "Explain."

"Are you _okay_?" they asked in unison, looking utterly baffled and highly concerned.

I shook my head in disappointment. "I'm offended by the fact you think a little knock on the head could take me down."

"It was not a 'little knock,' Lucy!" Hermione said reproachfully. "What hit you?"

"I don't remember." I closed my eyes, searching the events of the night. Now that my head didn't hurt anymore and I was significantly warmer, it was easier to think. I suddenly recalled a flash of headlights, and the roar of an engine. My eyes snapped open. "It was the Ford Anglia! That car hates me. It's gotten me in the past, too." I turned to the twins. "But enough about that, I'm fine now. Explain."

"Good luck, boys," Cedric chuckled. "Hermione, you'd better head up and make sure nobody tries to come down here while they're talking. I'm going to see if Madam Pomfrey needs help with anything, and stick around just in case any blonde reporters decide to make an appearance."

"Good thinking," she said with a nod. She reached forward and squeezed the hand sticking out of my blankets. "See you at breakfast?"

I nodded. "Of course. Thanks for keeping Harry and Ron away."

Hermione and Cedric headed off, leaving me alone with the twins. I tucked my arm back into my blanket cocoon and looked from George to Fred and Fred to George.

"Well... now you know," I said softly after a moment, looking down and away. "My big, terrible secret. I understand if you don't want to be friends with me anymore."

"Are you bloody kidding?" Fred reached forward and tipped my chin up, settling on one side of my bed while George sat on the other. "Prior to watching you crumple like a rag doll this morning, we thought it was wicked! Why in Merlin's name would we not want to be friends with you?"

"Because I... isn't it obvious? I'm a monster."

"No you're not." 

George said this so quickly, so firmly, I found myself taken aback. "You don't understand. I am."

"Yeah," Fred scoffed. "Sure you are. And I'm a house elf. And George is a yeti. And Cedric's a vampire."

Cedric, overhearing our conversation, dramatically pressed a hand to his chest. "How did you know?"

Despite myself, I smiled. "That's not the same. You're not actually-"

"How do you know?" George pressed. "Maybe I shave off all of the thick white hair every morning just to hide my identity. You should see the way all of the house elves get excited when Fred comes around, it's like they're all one big happy family and Fred is just the cool cousin who shows up to reunions sometimes. And who knows, maybe every time we've seen Cedric and Cho snogging, he's actually using it as an excuse to suck her blood."

Cedric, still listening, turned bright red. "I appreciate the point you're trying to make here, but... no."

"Fine, fine, keep your secrets," Fred said, waving him off. "Anyway, Lucy, you're no monster. Whatever happened to make you this way isn't your fault, and since there's nothing you can do to change it, there's no point worrying about it."

I bit my lip. "You're sure you still want to be my friends?" I turned to George. "You still don't mind going to the Yule Ball with me?"

"Of course I don't mind, Cub, what kind of a question is that?" George shook his head, grinning. "Just because Harry missed his chance doesn't mean I'll miss mine."

"What do you see in him anyway?" Fred asked. "I mean, he's cool and all, but he's a little thick. What if he never wakes up and realizes how you feel about him? You'll have to move on eventually, right?"

I felt warmth creep into my cheeks. "I don't know if he'll ever feel the same way about me that I feel about him, but he's worth waiting for."

"But _why_?" George pressed. "In the spirit of vulnerability, go ahead and disclose every last detail. Why Harry James Potter?"

"I'd be interested, too, actually," Cedric said, wandering over and smiling. "You kind of dropped it on me the day I left in June without much explanation."

My face grew even redder as I shook my head. "Another conversation for another time. I don't want to risk anyone overhearing, him least of all."

"Well, if you're blushing, you must be feeling warm now," Cedric commented.

I nodded emphatically, beginning to peel blankets off. "Yeah, let's go to breakfast."

" _Someone_ doesn't like being interrogated," Fred remarked with a laugh.

"Imagine that," I replied dryly. "You're sure you two aren't... well... more bothered? By my secret? I promise I'll understand if you are."

George shook his head, looking more serious than perhaps I'd ever seen him. "The only thing that bothers us is how much it hurts _you_. Trust us, Cub. We aren't going anywhere."

* * *

The Hufflepuff Christmas Eve sleepover was legendary.

The Hufflepuff prefects arranged with the Heads of Houses a Christmas Eve sleepover for anyone who wanted to join in. So, at 10:00 on Christmas Eve, I found myself in a game of Scrabble against Hermione, Viktor, Cedric, Cho, and Ginny, with Hermione and Viktor on a team and Cedric and Ginny on a team --- we all knew Cho didn't need help, and as the person who had come closest to beating her, it was decided I didn't need help either. The game really ended up being Hermione versus Cho; they were unstoppable.

Harry and Ron had opted to spend Christmas Eve with the rest of our house in the Gryffindor common room. They still didn't know Viktor was Hermione's date to the Yule Ball, and the two of us were having fun (too much fun, really) keeping that secret. It was just as well, really, that Hermione, Ginny, and I were the only Gryffindors in the room; there were a surprising number of Slytherins who had hesitantly trickled in with their much-more-excited Durmstrang friends, and I doubted Gryffindors would be terribly thrilled to see them. But the uncharacteristically shy Slytherins were as enthusiastically welcomed by the Hufflepuff hosts as the Ravenclaw students and the Beauxbatons students and the Durmstrang students, and our Christmas spirits were high.

When the clock struck midnight, the couples in the room exchanged a sweet kiss. Including, to my surprise, Hermione and Viktor.

"May I?" I heard him ask in a soft voice as they both looked around and saw the kisses happening one by one.

Hermione nodded, her cheeks glowing bright pink. "Sure," she replied breathlessly.

He tipped her chin up with the knuckle of his index finger, and Ginny and I clapped our hands over our mouths as their lips met.

Hermione seemed equally stunned, suddenly bubbling over with giggles.

"Are we the only ones in the room not kissing?" Ginny wondered aloud.

"Nope," Henry said from behind us. "I don't think you two are missing out on much. You're still young, anyway."

"Younger than you," Ginny pointed out with a teasing wrinkle of her nose as we turned around.

Henry laughed good-naturedly. "I'll be single forever. I'm in no rush."

"I'll be single forever, too. At this rate," I added with a roll of my eyes. "Who're you taking to the ball, Henry? I don't think I've heard."

"Bea asked me," he replied. "Strictly as friends though, which is why I'm sitting here with you two while she's kissing..." He craned his neck to try to see. "Someone from Beauxbatons, judging by the long blonde hair. Anyway." He took a sip of his butterbeer. "How about you two?"

"I'm going with Neville Longbottom, and my brother's taking Lucy."

Henry cocked an eyebrow. "If Ron's taking you, who's going with Harry?"

I shook my head, blushing. "No, not Ron, I'm going with George. Harry and Ron are going with the Patil twins."

Henry exhaled slowly. "Well, they're officially both idiots. Good for George, though. Say, maybe sometime over holiday we could play another Quidditch friendly, if the snow lets up."

"Do you play Quidditch, too?" a deep voice behind us asked. Ginny and I turned to see that Viktor and Hermione had stopped kissing and were now listening to our conversation.

"Yeah, I do," Henry replied, turning slightly pink as he smiled.

"What position?"

"Keeper."

Viktor nodded thoughtfully. "You have the right build for it. You seem to be big enough to block the better part of a hoop while being small enough to be fast."

Henry laughed, gesturing toward me with his chin. "Probably not fast enough for Little Diggory here. We played a friendly in October, and I was very glad she was on my team rather than opposing me. I've seen what she does to every other Keeper."

I blushed bright red as Viktor turned to me with a curious expression.

"You are small for a Chaser. But I did see you in the rain that one day. You have a strong arm." Viktor glanced at Ginny. "You look like you would play Quidditch. What position?"

Ginny shrugged. "Whatever's available. Chaser is my favorite, though."

Viktor nodded thoughtfully. "If you play another friendly sometime, I would love to join you. Perhaps we could have a competition between the schools."

We all liked that idea --- a lot. For a while, we even considered dropping everything to go play in the dark, but we doubted we could play without getting caught. But a tentative plan was made for New Year's Day, weather permitting, and I'll admit I was a bit starstruck. Playing against _Viktor Krum_ in a Quidditch friendly?

But eventually, as expected, discussion returned to the Yule Ball. A number of Durmstrang girls were particularly interested in Hermione, seeing as she was the one going with Viktor Krum. They even offered to help her get ready, an offer she eagerly accepted since she hadn't told Parvati or Lavender who her date was, either.

"Say, you're Cedric Diggory's sister, are you not?" one of the girls asked, turning to me for the first time.

I nodded. "That's me!"

"Ooh, I bet you had all kinds of boys lining up to go with the sister of the most attractive champion," another one said in a low voice. "Who's the boy?"

"George Weasley. But he was the only one who expressed interest," I admitted as I blushed. 

"Wait, really?" Ginny asked. "I thought you were turning people down just in case you-know-who asked you."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Lucy has a crush?!"

"No!" I protested, blushing even more intensely and shooting Ginny a warning look. "No, no, I don't. I just thought someone might ask me because it would have made everything easier- I mean, I would have said an easy yes, since we're friends- if he had asked me, anyway-" 

An older girl laughed. "Why do boys have to make everything so complicated?"

"I don't know!" I replied with a loud laugh. I turned to Ginny. "Bloody hell, why didn't we just go together?"

Ginny slapped her hand to her forehead. "Because we're stupid."

"That's what we're doing," one girl said, leaning her head against another girl's shoulder. "We wanted to go together as friends to try to make the boys we like jealous, but now _they're_ going together as friends!"

The idea of Harry and Ron going to the ball together was a hilarious one, and we all laughed about it for a long time. The conversation soon shifted to how we'd look the next night, and each school happened to have an area of expertise. The Durmstrang girls proved to be excellent when it came to hair, and the Beauxbatons girls were great with makeup, whereas we Hogwarts girls had the best dresses. 

All in all, it was an incredibly fun night, and it was nearly sunrise when everyone crawled into sleeping bags.

 _Maybe this tournament has its benefits,_ I thought to myself as I drifted off to sleep.

Everyone at the party slept through Christmas morning. Cedric and I were among the first awake Christmas afternoon, so we slipped away to give each other our gifts in private. He laughed out loud at my book on fire-proofing charms, and immediately slipped the Magpies hoodie over his head, swearing he'd never take it off. I fell in love with the model Swedish Short-Snout as soon as I laid eyes on it, the one he had been given in the first task, and I raced up to my dormitory to put him on my dresser.

At the foot of my bed, I found my gifts from my friends. My favorite was Harry's --- he, too, had given me his dragon model, his being the Hungarian Horntail, and in a small box laid a dragon charm to add to my bracelet. 

I found Harry along with the Weasley boys outside having a full-on snowball fight, and I jumped in eagerly on the side of Harry and George against Fred and Ron and later Ginny. Hermione came to watch for a little bit, but she slipped away at five o'clock to start getting ready.

“What, you need three hours?” Ron called after her.

I scooped up a massive clump of snow and lobbed it at his face.

Harry laughed and high-fived me. "Nice _shot_!"

"Thanks! I'm not a Chaser for nothing, Potter," I replied. I flipped my braid over my shoulder. "Ron seems unfazed, anyway."

“Who’re you going with?” he shouted after Hermione, who merely turned around and smiled mischievously.

"I should probably start getting ready, too," I said. "See you boys tonight!"

I hurried up to the castle, watching with satisfaction as Hermione turned the corner to head in the direction of the Durmstrang boat.

"I can't wait to see you tonight!" I called after her.

When she turned around, she was grinning from ear to ear. "Same for you! See you in a couple hours!"

"See you!"

* * *

While I waited for Parvati and Lavender to finish getting ready, I reached for the paper airplane I kept in my drawer.

Fred's scrawl. _We tried to warn you! You should have asked him!_

George's slightly-neater scrawl. _Professor McGonagall turned down my invitation this morning. Can you imagine? The nerve! Will you go to the dance with me, as each other's second choices?_

My handwriting. _Of course!_

George's scrawl again. _Harry and Ron looking at you. Go sit over there with them, I have an idea._

I recalled the curious expressions on their faces and the way they hurriedly looked in the opposite direction when I caught them staring. The way I had thought Harry was about to ask me to the dance when he really just wanted to ask me how long Cho and Cedric had been dating all along. 

I folded the airplane carefully and tucked it back in the drawer. I then rose to my feet and glanced in the mirror one last time.

At my request, the girls had gone relatively light on my makeup --- I wore only a bit of mascara and eyeliner to make my eyes pop, and my lips were only a little pinker than usual. My exposed skin was scar-free, thanks to a combination of Parvati's handy charms and Lavender's handy concealer skills. My hair fell in loose curls around my shoulders and down my back, shiny and golden-brown in the candlelight.

And the dress... oh Merlin, how I loved the dress. I twirled experimentally, unable to stop myself from grinning when I saw the way the flowing skirt billowed around me.

"Save your moves for George!" Parvati scolded from across the room. "Honestly, Lucy, it still amazes me you're going with someone two years older than us!"

"Says the girl going with a school champion!" Lavender giggled.

Parvati blushed, adjusting her bangles for the fiftieth time that hour. "Do you think he'll think I look nice?"

"You both look stunning!" I said, twirling around a couple times before stopping to face them. "Are you ready?"

"Yes! No." Lavender hurried over to the mirror and ran her fingers through her hair. "Up? Or down? I still can't decide!"

Parvati reached for her wand and flicked it in Lavender's direction. Lavender's curls were instantly pulled up into a high bun, and she gasped. 

"Good thinking!" I said, high-fiving Parvati. "Are you ready _now_?"

"Oh, Merlin, I hope so," she whispered. "I'm the only one who actually fancies my date. Do you think he'll fancy me too?"

"He asked you, didn't he?" Parvati asked. "Harry only asked me because I was a last resort. I thought he would ask Lucy, honestly, so I was surprised."

"So was George," I chuckled. "He waited so long to ask me because he wanted to give Harry a chance to ask me. Well, that, and Professor McGonagall said no when he invited her."

Lavender and Parvati both laughed at that, and I smiled.

"You both look incredible, and both of your dates are very lucky to have you. Now, the question is," I said in a more serious tone, "are we going down one by one, or all together?"

"Lavender should go first, since she fancies Seamus," Parvati said.

Lavender squealed, then took a deep breath. "I'm calm. I'm calm. I'll go."

She hurried from the room, leaving Parvati and I standing alone. I had expected myself to be upset with Parvati for being the girl Harry asked, but now that I was standing there with her, glancing in the mirror yet again, I was actually incredibly relieved to be going with George instead. I didn't need to worry about embarrassing myself in front of him, or not looking pretty enough for him, or stepping on his toes while we danced. He knew my secret, after all, so I knew there was nothing I could do to hurt him or frighten him away.

"You go next," I said. "You _are_ the one going with a champion. Shouldn't keep him waiting."

She smiled. "Alright. Have fun with George."

I returned her smile. "I know I will. Take good care of Harry for me. Try not to let him trip over his own feet and embarrass himself."

"Oh, Merlin," she giggled. "I might die of secondhand embarrassment if he does. But without further ado, here I go!"

In that moment as I watched her leave, I decided Parvati could have Harry for that night. I'd never give up on him, and the thought of seeing him in those emerald green robes to match his emerald green eyes made my stomach flutter, but that night, I was grateful for the fun I knew I'd have with George without the additional pressure to try to impress Harry.

I glanced in the mirror one last time. Hair, check. Eyes, check. Dress, check.

Smile?

On any other day, I would pick apart every inch of my smile. I'd hate the way my right eye crinkled more than my left, I'd hate the way that I had a dimple in my chin rather than my cheeks, I'd hate the way my nose scrunched up if I smiled too hard. Most of all, I'd hate the way smiling made my scars stretch and pull.

But that night, I let myself smile. I spun in one last circle for good measure before making my way down the stairs. 

The common room was fairly full, but I spotted George easily. He was leaned up against the fireplace, fiddling with something in his pocket. But as soon as he saw me, his face lit up in a broad grin, and he approached me, pulling his tie out of his dress robes.

"A perfect match," he commented with satisfaction. "You look lovely, by the way."

I blushed. "Thanks. I tried, for once."

"Aw, for little old me?"

"No, for Fred," I retorted, rolling my eyes. "Yes, for you. You're the one who asked me to the ball, after all."

George laughed and leaned down to whisper in my ear, "Harry sure looks like he wishes he'd asked you."

"Don't say something like that," I said. Even though the very thought made me blush, I very intentionally avoided looking at Harry, not knowing how I'd react if I happened to turn around and saw him looking at me like... like he _did_ wish he'd asked me. "It doesn't matter. My dress matches _your_ tie, not his."

"That it does!" George held out his arm to me. "Shall we?"

I slipped my arm through his, glad I had let Hermione convince me to wear heels. "Sounds great."

The entrance hall was full to the brim. George led me over to where Fred and Angelina were talking and laughing with Lee and Alicia.

Angelina and Alicia both squealed when they saw me, obsessing over my dress. Fred reached forward and tugged on one of my curls, looking rather gleeful when it bounced back into place.

I swatted his hand away. "I need these curls to last all night, Fred Weasley!"

"What, and you think my grubby paws will ruin them?"

"They will!" Angelina, Alicia, and I all exclaimed in unison, making us all dissolve into a fit of giggles.

"Oh, it's the Gryffindor Quidditch team! And our commentator!" an excited voice said behind us.

I spun around and smiled. "Hi, Colin! We're missing Harry, if you want the whole team. And Oliver, of course, but-"

Colin puffed out his chest proudly. "Professor McGonagall made me the official Yule Ball photographer, and a picture of the Gryffindor Quidditch team would be great! I'll go get Harry!"

He ducked into the crowd and returned with none other than Harry James Potter. 

I'll admit my breath hitched in my throat when I saw him. He looked incredible. 

When his eyes landed on me, it was as if the world stopped spinning. It wasn't until Colin nudged him forward that I realized he had frozen when he saw me, too.

"Smile, everyone!" Colin instructed, raising his camera to his face. I obliged, and turned to Harry once Colin darted away in search of more photo opportunities.

"He's the official event photographer, so in other words, you might want to try to stay away from him. Wouldn't it be horrible if he took a picture just as you tripped over your own two feet and Rita Skeeter got a hold of it? Front page news, 'The Boy Who Lived with Two Left Feet!'"

Harry laughed. "Shut up, Diggory."

"Just trying to help, Potter," I sassed back. "Now go, I think Parvati's trying to get your attention."

His eyes lingered on me for a second longer before he hurried off to join her.

I glanced up at George, who was smirking. "What?" I asked accusingly.

"Oh, nothing, nothing."

"George Weasley, I know that look. That is absolutely not your 'nothing' look."

"Don't worry about it, darling," George said, smirk deepening. 

Before I could press further, the oak doors swung open.

"Let's get this party started!" Fred whooped, and everyone in his vicinity agreed.

The six of us joined Ginny and Neville and Lavender and Seamus and Katie and Dean at a table for dinner, and the twins easily held the attention of the table with their hilarious stories of products gone wrong. The fact that I already knew all of them and had been present for most of them didn't matter --- they were great storytellers, and even people at other tables were turning their chairs around to listen.

And then the dancing started... oh Merlin, the dancing.

It started with the champions and their partners. Cedric and Cho were by far the most coordinated, and the smile on my brother's face was one of absolute bliss. Viktor looked rather satisfied, and rightly so. The Durmstrang girls had transformed Hermione into a fairytale princess, and I couldn't remember the last time she had looked so happy. Fleur's date --- Roger Davies, the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain --- looked utterly enchanted by Fleur, again rightly so. She was beautiful.

And Harry... well, he looked like he was trying very hard not to trip, which I supposed was good. Parvati seemed to be the one leading him, rather than him leading her, and I couldn't help but giggle.

George rose to his feet after about a minute and extended a hand. "May I have this dance?" he asked in a deep and gentlemanly voice that made me laugh.

"You may," I replied in my best imitation of said voice and accepted his hand. He helped me to my feet and perfectly positioned our hands, and we swayed back and forth in time to the beat. There was still a mischievous twinkle in his eyes as we danced, but he hadn't slipped any frog spawn soap into my drink or any puking pastille prototypes into my dinner, so it was alright so far.

Soon, the slow song ended, and a much perkier tune started up. Several more upbeat songs followed, and the energy on the dance floor grew and grew and grew.

George started spinning me in faster and faster circles, laughing as I tried to keep up. I nearly spun straight into Fred at one point, curls flying and skirt billowing, which made us all laugh.

"If you wanted to dance with me, why didn't you just say so?" he asked, grabbing me by the hand and spinning me in three quick circles.

"George, help!" I laughed as I reached for him with my free hand. 

"What's that, Cub? Is Fred too fast for you?"

"Yes!"

"Oh, if slow is what you want," Fred teased, stopping me instantly and lifting me off the ground, spinning me in a slow, wide circle before setting me back down. "Was that slow enough for you?"

I laughed and shook my head. "You're impossible."

"Oh, you want slower?" 

"No!" I giggled. "George! Help!"

"Fine, fine, Fred can have Angelina back," George said, spinning her one last time and releasing her hand. He grabbed mine next and spun me around. "Is that more your speed, Cub?"

"Yeah, it is," I replied, feeling quite breathless now. "You two will be the death of me, I swear."

George suddenly wrapped his hands around my waist and hoisted me into the air, spinning me a few feet off the ground like Fred had. I was laughing too hard to protest, and he set me down before long.

"Laughing as you die isn't a bad way to go," George commented with a smirk.

"No, I suppose it's not."

"But dehydration sounds like a positively miserable fate," he continued, more seriously. "I'll go get us drinks."

"I'll catch my breath and say hi to Hermione."

"Perfect. Meet you there!"

I was still smiling as I crossed the room, but the smile vanished from my face when I heard what was going on.

“If you really want to know, he- he said he’d been coming up to the library every day to try and talk to me, but he hadn’t been able to pluck up the courage!” Hermione was saying, turning a very bright shade of red.

“Yeah, well, that’s his story,” Ron replied with a glare.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Obvious, isn’t it? He’s Karkaroff’s student, isn’t he? He knows who you hang around with! He’s just trying to get closer to Harry, get inside information on him, or get near enough to jinx him-”

“For your information, he hasn’t asked me _one single thing_ about Harry, not _one_ -”

“Then he’s hoping you’ll help him find out what his egg means! I suppose you’ve been putting your heads together during those cozy little library sessions-”

“I’d _never_ help him work out that egg! _Never_. How could you say something like that? I want Harry to win the tournament, Harry knows that, don’t you, Harry?”

Ron didn't give him a chance to reply before snapping, “You’ve got a funny way of showing it.”

“This whole tournament’s supposed to be about getting to know foreign wizards and making friends with them!”

“No it isn’t! It’s about winning!”

“Ron, I haven’t got a problem with Hermione coming with Krum-” Harry tried to say, but he was ignored.

“Why don’t you go and find Vicky, he’ll be wondering where you are,” Ron suggested in a bitter voice.

Hermione was on her feet in an instant. “Don’t call him Vicky!” With that, she stomped away, soon getting lost in the crowd. I turned around to try to follow her, but someone caught my arm.

"What is it?" George asked.

"Hermione and Ron had a row," I explained, trying to wriggle free.

But his grip tightened. "Lucy-"

"I need to make sure she's okay-"

"Lucy, look at me, please." 

I stopped struggling and glanced up at him.

"Don't run, okay?" He passed me a glass of butterbeer. "Come sit with me."

I looked over my shoulder in the direction Hermione had gone.

"Lucy." I turned back to George. "I've seen the way their fallouts over the years have hurt you. Please don't let Ron and Hermione ruin tonight, too. They'll be okay, they always are in the end."

I sighed shakily. "Okay."

"Attagirl," he said with a small smile. "Come on, let's go find a place far away where we can-" His smile faded as he looked at something else over my shoulder.

"What is it?" I asked.

He blinked. "Nothing. Let's go sit."

I glanced over my shoulder and saw none other than Ludo Bagman. Fred made his way over to us, looking serious for the first time that night. 

"Now's our chance," Fred muttered to George. "Do you mind, Cub? I promise not to steal him for long."

I shook my head. "No, this is your perfect opportunity to confront him about the money. Go. I see Percy making his way over to Ron and Harry, it'll be nice catching up with him."

George nodded absently, following Fred over to where Ludo Bagman was. I calmed myself with a sip of butterbeer before making my way over to where Percy had just landed.

"Hi, Percy!" I said. "What brings you back to Hogwarts?"

“I’ve been promoted! I’m now Mr. Crouch’s personal assistant, and I’m here representing him.”

"That's excellent!" I replied. "But where's Mr. Crouch? Is he alright?"

Percy shook his head sadly. “I’m afraid to say Mr. Crouch isn’t well, not well at all. Hasn’t been right since the World Cup. Hardly surprising. Overwork. He’s not as young as he was, though still quite brilliant, of course, the mind remains as great as it ever was. But the World Cup was a fiasco for the whole Ministry, and then, Mr. Crouch suffered a huge personal shock with the misbehavior of that house-elf of his, Blinky, or whatever she was called. Naturally, he dismissed her immediately afterward, but --- well, as I say, he’s getting on, he needs looking after, and I think he’s found a definite drop in his home comforts since she left. And then we had the tournament to arrange, and the aftermath of the Cup to deal with, that revolting Skeeter woman buzzing around, no, poor man, he’s having a well earned, quiet Christmas. I’m just glad he knew he had someone he could rely upon to take his place.”

I smiled. "You are quite reliable."

He looked for a second as if he'd smile back, but his jaw clenched as his gaze strayed. “What do they think they’re _doing_?”

"What? Who?"

Harry gestured with his chin toward Fred and George, who had caught up to Ludo Bagman.

Percy shook his head again. "Annoying senior Ministry members? No respect..."

I bit my lip to keep from smiling. "Annoying" was hopefully an understatement. I switched seats to go sit next to Harry so I had a better view of the show. To my disappointment, he escaped them under a minute and hurried over to where we were sitting, having seen Harry.

“I hope my brothers weren’t bothering you, Mr. Bagman?” Percy asked.

"I hope they _were_ ," I muttered into my glass, making Harry snort and look at me with a _What?_ kind of look. I raised my eyebrows and took a sip of butterbeer. "Hearing things, Potter?"

"I heard what you said, yes," he muttered back, smiling.

Bagman blinked. “What? Oh not at all, not at all! No, they were just telling me a bit more about those fake wands of theirs. Wondering if I could advise them on the marketing. I’ve promised to put them in touch with a couple of contacts of mine at Zonko’s Joke Shop.”

My grip on my glass tightened. _Lying bastard..._

Percy looked rather upset at this news, but before I could hear what he said next, George appeared in front of me and offered a hand. "Another dance, m'lady?"

I laughed, sitting my glass down on the table behind me. "Only if you can promise me my feet will remain _on the ground_ this time."

"Oh, sure," he said as he pulled me up. "Whatever you want."

"Why am I not convinced?" I chuckled, following him nonetheless. I glanced over my shoulder and made eye contact with Harry, mouthing "Wish me luck!"

He laughed, but there was another look in his eyes, one that I couldn't quite place. Odd. But I turned back around and followed George, and we danced until the lead singer announced there would be three more slow songs before the dance would end. 

For the first song, George pulled me closer than we'd been all night. "Has anyone ever taught you how to slow dance properly?" he asked in a soft voice.

I shook my head. "Never. Do you know how?"

"I've done my research this past week," he said with a smile. "I positioned our hands properly earlier, for the first song, but we didn't really dance. If you want to dance, follow my feet."

I looked down and matched his steps as best as I could. When the second of the three songs started, we were moving effortlessly, and I didn't have to watch his feet anymore. As we danced, I noticed that we got closer and closer to where Harry was sitting with Ron, staring at the ground. Halfway through the second-to-last song, George released my hands.

"You know, Cub," George said, plunging one hand into his pockets. "I've been wanting to test one of these."

"One of what?" I asked hesitantly.

He smirked, the mischievous twinkle in his eye perhaps the brightest it'd ever been. "Stand back."

I took three quick steps backward, still confused but electing to trust him. 

In a single fluid motion, his hand flew to his mouth, he chewed twice, and blood shot out of his nose.

"George, are you alright?" I asked, rushing forward. "What were you _thinking_? Come on, let's get you to the Hospital Wing-"

But he wasn't listening. He pressed the sleeve of his robes to his nose and turned to face Harry, whose table was now mere feet away. "Hey, Harry?"

He blinked from his stupor and looked at George with a horrified expression on his face. "What the bloody hell happened to you?"

"Not important," George said, grabbing me by the hand and practically flinging me in Harry's direction. "Dance with her while I head up to the Hospital Wing, will you?"

Harry glanced at me, his cheeks beginning to turn red. "Er, yeah, of course."

George didn't give me any room to protest. He pulled Harry to his feet and pushed him toward me. "Great! Have fun, you two!"

With that, he hurried off toward the doors of the Great Hall. I watched as he left, and just before he reached the doors, he turned around and grinned at me. The bleeding had stopped. With a final wink, he disappeared. 

Harry, however, had seen none of this. When I looked back up at him, he was still looking at me.

He shyly glanced away as soon as I made eye contact and reached for one of my hands with his. "So, shall we?"

I smiled and nodded, my stomach erupting with butterflies. He led me by the hand to the middle of the dance floor, and I reached forward and positioned Harry's hands the exact way George's hands had been just minutes before --- one on my waist, one holding mine.

Harry and I began to dance, and I prayed he couldn't tell how nervous I was as I watched our feet, careful not to step on his toes.

But as the song swelled, the familiar chorus filling the room, I glanced up at Harry.

"Well," he said softly, "I didn't expect this is how the night would end."

"Sorry," I replied. "I don't know what George was- you don't have to-"

"What? No, no, I didn't mean it to be a bad thing," he stammered. "This is nice, really. Parvati went to dance with a Beauxbatons boy."

I frowned. "She did? Why?"

"I suspect I wasn't the best date," he admitted sheepishly. "I tried to be, I just... I guess I'm not ready for anything like that yet."

"That's alright. You don't have to be." I sighed. "I don't know if I am, either."

He cocked his head. "You mean you and George aren't...?"

"Oh, no, we aren't together," I said quickly, too quickly, shaking my head. "We went as friends. Just friends."

He nodded thoughtfully. "Something tells me he had the right idea."

I felt the butterflies in my stomach intensify. _Don't read too much into that, Lucy,_ I scolded myself.

"He's probably a much better dancer than I am," Harry commented. "Reckon that might be part of why Parvati left, too."

I couldn't help but smile. "Don't be ridiculous, Harry. You're not a bad dancer."

He raised his eyebrows. "Really?"

I smiled wider as I nodded. "Really."

"Well, that's good," he said, sounding relieved. "In that case..."

Harry carefully lifted his arm, and I spun in a circle accordingly.

He glanced at the hand he was holding when we returned to our original position, and he did a double-take. "You wore the bracelet tonight?"

"Of course I did. I never take it off. I was even wearing it the night of the Quidditch World Cup, because I hadn't taken it off yet. Besides, I had to show off the new dragon charm, didn't I?"

Harry smiled. 

We were silent then, just letting the music wash over us. I noticed it was Cedric's favorite song, which is why it was so familiar to me.

_Believe that magic works  
Don't be afraid  
Afraid of being hurt  
No, don't let this magic die  
Ooh, the answer's there  
Yeah, just look in her eyes_

Harry was, in fact, looking in my eyes. His smile widened.

"What is it?" I asked.

"You were right about your dress matching your eyes. It's perfect."

I smiled back. "Mrs. Weasley had the right idea about your dress robes, too. Same shade of green."

"Really?"

"Really."

We fell silent again, just enjoying the fading music. 

_And don't believe that magic can die  
No, no, no, this magic can't die_

_So dance your final dance  
'Cause this is your final chance_

As the final chord of the song played, Harry spun me a second time. I closed my eyes as we returned to our starting position, wanting to remember that moment forever.

What a magical night.


	62. I Want Your Midnights

_Candle wax and Polaroids on the hardwood floor  
You and me forevermore_

_Don't read the last page  
But I stay when it's hard or it's wrong or we're making mistakes  
I want your midnights  
But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day_

_"New Year's Day"  
Taylor Swift_

* * *

LUCY:

The tentative plan for a Quidditch friendly on New Year's Day spread like wildfire the day after Christmas. Everyone wanted to play, and if they couldn't play, they wanted to watch.

The little idea from Christmas Eve soon became a huge event. The match was scheduled to take place the afternoon of New Year's Eve rather than New Year's Day, and it would be a Hogwarts team versus a Beauxbatons/Durmstrang team.

It was decided that no champions should compete in the case of injury, so Harry and Cedric helped Madam Hooch and Professor McGonagall (the two most Quidditch-crazy professors) with the Hogwarts team tryouts on December 27. The twins were chosen as the Hogwarts Beaters, and I was chosen as Chaser along with Cassius Warrington and Adrian Pucey of Slytherin. (I was initially worried about being the only Gryffindor working with two Slytherins who were three times my size and two years older than me, but these concerns were completely unfounded. Quite the contrary, both were somewhat impressed with me, and I with them.) Henry was chosen as Keeper, of course, and with Cedric and Harry out of the running, Cho easily beat Draco for the position of Seeker.

The 28th, 29th, and 30th were long days --- Hogwarts got the Pitch in the morning, and the Beauxbatons/Durmstrang team got the Pitch in the afternoon, but even when we weren't on the Pitch, we were talking strategy while Cedric and Harry spied on the other team for us. Cassius and Henry assumed the role of co-captains, having the most years of experience on their House teams.

The night before the match, I was just about to wedge myself between the twins at dinner when someone touched the small of my back.

I jumped and turned to look at the boy who had touched me. His green eyes weren't anywhere near as dazzling as Harry's, but something about the way his strawberry blond hair was carefully combed even after what I expected had been a hard Quidditch practice caught my attention.

"I'm sorry I startled you," the boy said in a thick French accent, looking as if he genuinely meant it. "I am Maxence Auclair, and you are Lucy Diggory, correct?"

"That I am," I said, noting offhandedly how plain my name sounded rolling off his tongue in comparison to his own. 

He extended a hand. "Our spies have informed us you could perhaps be the greatest threat on the Pitch tomorrow. I thought it only fair to introduce myself, as we will be competing closely."

When our hands touched, he lifted mine to his lips in a gentle kiss. I tried to stop myself from blushing, knowing this was just how some Europeans were, but I couldn't. 

"I'm assuming you're a Chaser, too?" I asked.

Maxence smiled, revealing two deep dimples. "That I am."

I smiled back, feeling very flustered at this point. "Well, in that case, good luck tomorrow."

"Good luck to you as well," he replied, flashing one more smile before heading over to the Ravenclaw table.

I watched him walk away for a second too long, because Fred started laughing.

"Oi, Cub, once you pick your jaw up off the floor, you need to eat dinner."

I blinked and returned my attention to the table, blushing all the more when I saw that the twins and Ginny had watched the entirety of the encounter. I immediately hid my face with my goblet as I gulped down pumpkin juice, very glad Harry and Ron and Hermione hadn't arrived yet.

Ginny laughed knowingly. "They don't grow them like that at Hogwarts, do they?"

I choked and set the goblet down. "That is _not_ what that was about."

"Then what _was_ it about?"

"He just wanted to introduce himself before tomorrow since we're both Chasers."

"Alright, and you're blushing because...?"

"Because I'm not used to attention," I mumbled, blushing even more as I lifted a spoon of mashed potatoes to my mouth with a shaking hand. 

"You know, if someone is willing to give it to you, maybe you should go after it," Ginny said. "Flirt back. See how far it goes."

"I can't flirt _back_ if he wasn't even flirting with me in the first place!" I protested. 

"Ginny might have a point, mate," Fred said in a lower voice. "You can't wait on Harry forever."

I shook my head vehemently, looking down at my plate. "Like I said, Harry is worth waiting for. Besides, you are all reading too much into this. He was probably just doing to me what Cho always does to Harry when they're competing, trying to get in my head. But mark my words, I won't fall for it!"

George laughed. "You tell them, Lucy. Don't fall for everyone who flirts with you."

"Who flirted with Lucy?"

I snapped my head up. Harry had arrived.

"A cute Beauxbatons boy," Ginny answered for me before I could even open my mouth.

"No!" I said, altogether too quickly. I took a deep breath and forced myself to slow down. "I mean, yes, I was talking to a Beauxbatons boy. He just wanted to introduce himself before the match tomorrow. Nobody flirted with anybody, he's just trying to get into my head the way Cho does whenever you two play."

Harry blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Cho knows you have the better broom, so both times you've played Seeker against each other, she's acted more flirtatious in an effort to distract you." I managed a laugh. "And it worked in October, so I'm not surprised Maxence is trying the same tactic." I glanced over at the Ravenclaw table. "Yeah, I see him talking to Cho right now, actually. I'm sure she gave him the idea, and I'm sure that's what's going on."

Harry followed my gaze, and to my surprise, he grew bright red. I mentally kicked myself --- Harry must have felt stupid for falling for Cho's mind games twice.

"It's not your fault," I said, nudging his foot with mine under the table. "She's a Ravenclaw. Thinking outside the box is her thing. And she's a girl. Girls think differently than boys do. We can be sneaky."

He smiled a bit at that. "You being sneaky? I'd love to see it."

"I can be sneaky!"

"Oh yeah? Name one time."

I bit my lip. He raised his eyebrows and smirked. I narrowed my eyes at him. "Give me a minute."

He took a sip of pumpkin juice. "I can wait all night. I can't think of a single time you've been sneaky."

'Okay, okay." I leaned forward. "Since I can't think of any either, how about you watch and see how I try to beat this Maxence kid at his own game tomorrow?"

"Meaning?"

"I'll try to distract him right back."

"Could be risky, Cub," George warned, speaking up for the first time in a while. "You don't want to accidentally lead him on."

"There's no way he'd actually have feelings for me," I said dismissively. _I'm too ugly for that. No way someone like him could ever like me._ "It's just Quidditch. Strictly business. If he wants to try to play with my emotions for a day, I'll play his right back."

But when the next morning came, Maxence was the furthest thing from my mind. All I could think about was playing the best game possible. The team all sat together at the Hufflepuff table --- Hufflepuff being the friendliest house, of course --- and we had one more meeting in the changing rooms before heading onto the Pitch.

We all decided to wear our House Quidditch robes for the match, making us quite the rainbow assortment of players. But we all wore massive Hogwarts insignias on our backs instead of our numbers, so we were united in that sense.

Cassius delegated the pre-match motivational speech to Henry, who looked terribly nervous at first but grew more confident as he went along. By the time Madam Hooch came in to tell us it was time for the match to begin, we were fired up and ready to play.

The day was cloudy and cold, but not snowy. It was a bit windy, but not distractingly so. In other words, it was a wonderful winter day for a game of Quidditch.

The stands had never been so full. Quidditch matches were usually well-attended, but this time, it seemed every human being on the Hogwarts grounds had come to watch the game. The crowd roared as both teams stepped out onto the Pitch, and I couldn't seem to wipe the smile off my face.

I scanned the stands for Harry. It was odd, really, being on the Pitch without him. It had only happened once before, our first year, and he was too busy being unconscious in the Hospital Wing to see me play. I eventually spotted Ron's red hair and spotted Harry next to him. Cedric was a couple rows up, already laughing and cheering. I smiled again, deciding in that moment that I would make this the best game of Quidditch I had ever played.

I shot up after the Quaffle the second Madam Hooch's whistle sounded. I was first to the Quaffle and immediately darted off in the direction of the other team's hoops.

Warrington appeared on my left, so I fired the Quaffle his way and barrel-rolled out of the way of the Bludger making a beeline for my head. Warrington tried to pass it to Pucey, but it was intercepted by one of the opposing team's Chasers. But he was too busy celebrating the catch he didn't see the Bludger coming, and when it collided with his shoulder, the Quaffle fell right into my waiting arms. 

I didn't pass this time, instead making a beeline for the hoops and keeping the Quaffle tucked firmly under my arm.

Just before I was about to score, I became aware of someone coming up behind me on my right. So I switched the Quaffle to my left and let it fly, grinning as it went into the center hoop. 

"Nice shot," Maxence said with a smile, "but it won't happen again."

I smiled back, as flirtatiously as I could, suddenly remembering what I had told Harry the night before. "Oh, I think it will. But good luck, pretty boy."

Not giving him room to reply, I flew over to the relative safety of Fred and George while the Keeper retrieved the ball.

I was right. I scored five more goals within the first hour of the game, and Cassius and Adrian each scored four. But unfortunately for us, Maxence scored ten singlehandedly, and with the combined six goals scored by his fellow Chasers, they had a twenty-point lead at the time of our first time-out.

"Not much of a team player, is he?" I commented as soon as we had huddled up.

Cassius shook his head and turned to the twins. "If you two can take him out, we'd be in better shape."

"Well, maybe not 'take him out,'" Henry amended, gentle Hufflepuff that he was. "But keep him busy, will you?"

The twins saluted in unison.

"Any sign of the Snitch?" Henry asked Cho.

She shook her head. "No, but something tells me this Seeker has been receiving lessons from Krum. She's fast, and sharp."

"Fortunately, so are you," I said, smiling. "I may be biased, but you _were_ trained by my brother. I have faith in you."

Cho smiled back. "Thanks, Lucy." 

Cassius cracked his knuckles. "So we focus on the Beauxbatons prick and try to get the Snitch as soon as possible. Anything else?"

"Yeah," Fred said with a stupid grin. "Don't let the Beauxbatons prick flirt with you."

I wrinkled my nose. "Never. For today, _I_ flirt with _him_. Come on, let's show them you don't play Hogwarts on our home pitch and win."

The second hour of the game was even more intense than the first. The Quaffle was never in the same hands for more than ten seconds --- it was either passed, dropped, or knocked loose, and the Keepers also kicked things up a notch, meaning the scores climbed slowly.

Maxence was really doing his best to faze me. I understood another reason for this about halfway through the second hour: I was the only girl on the team other than Cho. And Cho was dating Cedric, meaning she was beyond taken, and he thought I would be vulnerable because of my single-ness. However, this realization just made me all the more determined to distract him as much as possible. I glanced his way after I scored every goal to offer a sassy "Nice try" smile. He seemed to think this was hilarious, laughing quite hard until the Quaffle was back in play.

He didn't laugh when George sent a Bludger straight at his stomach right before he was about to score a goal. 

After that, everything happened so fast I don't recall blinking once.

I flew forward and snatched the falling Quaffle, firing it off to Warrington without a second thought.

"Go!" he shouted, giving me a very pointed look. He relayed it to Pucey while I shot in the direction of the other hoops as fast as humanly possible. Being so much smaller than the other two, I was designated sprinter. And it was time to see if the play we had practiced for hours would actually work.. 

"Three... two... _one_!" my fellow Chasers called in unison.

Without turning around, I reached up and grabbed the Quaffle. I tucked it under my arm and wove through the other team's players, so fast it was as if I weren't even there. Suddenly, the hoops were wide open in front of me.

I noted with no small amount of satisfaction that the Keeper looked mildly frightened.

I smiled as I launched the Quaffle through the hoop.

"CHO CHANG HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" Lee Jordan announced over the screaming crowd. "JUST AS LUCY DIGGORY CATCHES THE QUAFFLE BLINDLY AND SENDS IT THROUGH THE HOOPS! HOGWARTS WINS! HOGWARTS WINS!"

* * *

The party that followed in the Gryffindor common room was easily the most, er, explosive party I had yet attended. The Gryffindor common room was packed to the brim, and I found myself pulled from group to group, everyone wanting to talk about how I had managed to catch the Quaffle without even looking. 

Among these people was, unsurprisingly, Maxence.

"You played well, Lucy Diggory," he said, smiling as he walked away from his friend group and draped his arm over my shoulders. I fought the urge to either punch him in the stomach or blush. He was friendly, perhaps friendlier than any boy at Hogwarts, and Ginny's words crossed my mind. _Flirt back. See how far it goes._

But then I saw Harry across the room. He had his back to me, because he was playing wizard's chess with Ron, but I had butterflies just the same. Maxence was handsome, sure, but no boy could ever be Harry.

"You played well, too," I replied, feeling a bit less flustered now that I had gotten my feet back under me. "Do you play at Beauxbatons?"

"I do," he said. "Have you heard about how it is structured there?"

I shook my head. "No, I haven't."

He leaned up against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. I mimicked his posture, curiosity piqued. 

"Well, we have no houses, like you do here at Hogwarts. We still have four teams, though. Students try out during the first week of school, and each team's coach decides to offer positions to students who perform well."

"Coaches?" I repeated. "Do you have staff members leading each team?"

"We do. Do you not?"

"Not really. Heads of Houses, I suppose, technically, but we have students as captains," I replied. "My brother, for example. He's the Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain. What happens if students receive offers from multiple teams?"

He smirked. "Like I did?" 

I laughed. "Sure. Like you did."

"We get to choose."

"How did you choose?"

"Well, each team is named after an element of Earth. L’Équipe du Feu, L’Équipe de L’Eau, L'Équipe de la Terre, and L’Équipe de L’Air. You would likely be happiest in L’Équipe du Feu, based on your common room."

"Is it fire?"

He grinned and nodded. "I chose L’Équipe de L’Eau, personally. Or _water_ ," he said in his best British accent, "as you would say it."

"L’Équipe de L’Eau-" I tripped over the pronunciation, making his grin widen with amusement. "-is much more, ah..."

"Elegant?"

"Yeah, elegant sounds about right."

"How long have you been playing Quidditch?"

"As long as I can remember," I said, feeling a bit of sorrow pierce me. Having my memories wiped at five years old surely limited how long I was _allowed_ to remember. But it was an easy answer, the easiest I could offer this relative stranger. "Cedric and I would always play together. How about you?"

"The same. Quidditch is my life."

I smiled. "I know the feeling."

"Maxence!" called a voice. "Come back over here! We want to talk to her, too!"

I followed, making polite small talk for a while. The attention was suffocating. My head was pounding, everything was too loud, and I really just wanted to go to bed after four days of being pushed to my athletic limit.

Finally --- and I mean _finally_ \--- Hermione grabbed me by the arm and dragged me over to their (relatively) quiet corner of the room.

Harry passed me a cold bottle of butterbeer and moved a bit to his right so I could sit with him against the wall.

"Thanks," I said, sinking to the ground and taking a long sip of butterbeer. "I was not cut out for this. I just wanted to play a game of Quidditch."

Harry patted my knee sympathetically. "Yeah. I know the feeling, trust me."

"What time is it?"

Hermione glanced at her watch. "A little after 11."

I choked on my butterbeer. " _What?_ "

"Well, I was just about to come get you when the Beauxbatons boy started talking to you," she explained. "You seemed to enjoy talking to him, so I let you be for a while."

"I was surprised, honestly," I said with a shrug. "I thought he was only talking to me yesterday because he was trying to get into my head, but he seemed genuinely interested in talking to me tonight. He explained how Quidditch teams work at Beauxbatons, and his friends were interested in hearing about my Quidditch experience here. They liked my story about you catching the Snitch in your mouth, Harry," I added, bumping my shoulder against his. 

He smiled, an adorable, mischievous little smile. "I had forgotten about that. That was my first match, wasn't it?"

I nodded. "Still can't believe you pulled that off, honestly."

He chuckled. "I could say the same about you playing with a broken nose."

I reached up and rubbed my nose subconsciously. "Then bloody Lockhart blinding me for a month."

"I wonder how he's doing," Ron wondered aloud.

"Cedric saw him over summer," I said. "Still doesn't have a clue who he is."

"Is that charm permanent?" Harry asked.

"I... I don't know." _Is it? In my experience, it is, anyway. Otherwise, Mr. Midgen would have had no reason to collect my memories beforehand..._ I glanced at Hermione. "Do you know?"

She pursed her lips. "I'm not sure. We haven't learned about those yet. Reckon the library's open?"

Harry laughed. "Don't worry about it, Hermione. It's not terribly urgent, I was just curious."

"Even if the charm isn't typically permanent, I'd imagine his would be," Hermione mused. "The wand backfired on him, after all. I doubt it would work properly in that scenario. You know what, I'm going to go see what I can find."

With that, Hermione jumped up and ran to a nearby bookshelf, scanning the titles for anything relevant.

Ron turned to the two of us. "Mental, that one."

I laughed. "We love our Mione."

He sighed. "That we do. I'm going to go see if the twins have anything planned for midnight. I wouldn't mind helping set off a firework or two. You want to come?"

"I'm just trying to stay awake right now," I admitted. "You can go if you want, Harry."

"It's alright, I'll stay here," he said.

Ron nodded and got to his feet, diving into the crowd in search of his brothers. As I watched him go, I had a realization that made me start giggling.

"What is it?" Harry asked, turning to me with a confused expression.

I tried to stop giggling, but it was difficult. After about ten seconds, I managed to say, "Who knew you and Ron driving the Anglia to school that year and crashing into the Whomping Willow would eventually save us our memories?" 

He started laughing, too, and we kept throwing out crazy things that had happened to us in our time at Hogwarts, from Fluffy and Norberta and acromantulas and basilisks and Animagi and blast-ended skrewts to all of the wild Quidditch matches with rogue brooms and Bludgers and plummeting from the sky. We were interrupted by a loud countdown.

"TEN!"

"NINE!"

Harry and I exchanged a glance, then joined in on the counting.

"EIGHT!"

"SEVEN!"

"SIX!"

"FIVE!"

"FOUR!"

"THREE!"

"TWO!"

"ONE!"

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Like on Christmas Eve, people all around the common room started kissing. For half a second, I considered guiding Harry's face to mine and pressing my lips to his, but instead, I rested my head on his shoulder and let my eyes sink shut. 

"Happy New Year, Harry," I murmured.

"Happy New Year, Lu," he replied, resting his cheek against the top of my head. We stayed like that for a couple of minutes before Harry lifted his head and shook my knee gently. "Not asleep yet, are you?"

"Not yet," I said through a yawn. "I made it to midnight. Am I allowed to go to bed now?"

"I'd say so," he said.

I opened my eyes and looked up at him sleepily. "See you in the morning?"

"Of course." I lifted my head from his shoulder as he rose to his feet and extended a hand. I accepted it and let him pull me to my feet.

Hermione came rushing over then, pointing to something on the page of the book in her hand. "The only known examples of memory charms being undone is the pain of torture, specifically the Cruciatus Curse."

"Lovely," I said sarcastically, fighting to keep my eyes open. "Do you know if Ron found out if the twins had anything planned for-"

Before I could finish my question, a hissing sound filled the common room. When the firework exploded, Harry instinctively threw his arms around Hermione and me, but as the sparks began to fall, he sheepishly let go. I smiled as red and blue and gold and green showered around us.

"Now _that's_ a happy start to the new year!" Fred shouted, high-fiving George and Ron at the same time.

"They're going to kill us all one day," Hermione said, smiling nonetheless.

"Not today," I replied with a thumbs-up their direction.

* * *

I was incredibly excited for the Hogsmeade visit halfway through January, since it would be my first trip with Harry _and_ Ron _and_ Hermione. As we left the castle, we spotted Viktor Krum's form on the Durmstrang ship, sporting nothing but swim trunks. We all watched as he dove into the water.

Harry laughed in surprise. “He’s mad! It must be freezing, it’s January!”

“It’s a lot colder where he comes from. I suppose it feels quite warm to him,” Hermione reasoned.

“Yeah, but there’s still the giant squid,” Ron pointed out.

I shuddered. As much as I loved creatures, I would be perfectly content to never meet the squid, because meeting the squid would mean entering the Black Lake, and I would never, ever do that. I might have been able to Jet Ski at Tahoe while clinging to Cedric, but that was as far as I was willing to go where water was concerned.

Hermione sighed. “He’s really nice, you know. He’s not at all like you’d think, coming from Durmstrang. He likes it much better here, he told me.”

"He was nice to me on Christmas Eve," I added. "And he was the one who had the idea for the Quidditch match, even if he didn't get to play in it. But anyway," I said, sensing Ron's mounting anger, "where should we go first today? It's the first time all four of us are going together."

"The Three Broomsticks?" Hermione suggested. "Seems a good place to start." 

The boys and I voiced our agreement, and we were about to sit down when Hermione rolled her eyes.

“Doesn’t he _ever_ go into the office? Look!” She pointed to Ludo Bagman, who was surrounded by goblins.

"I wonder why he's here on a weekend with no event," Harry muttered.

I glanced around, looking for the twins, who I was sure would be _thrilled_ to see Ludo Bagman again. I doubted they'd let him get away again.

I turned back around as soon as Bagman started making his way over, smiling in a way that made me instantly uneasy. “Harry! How are you? Been hoping to run into you! Everything going all right?”

“Fine, thanks,” Harry said, clearly on edge too.

“Wonder if I could have a quick, private word, Harry? You couldn’t give us a moment, you three, could you?”

I really wanted to say "Not in a million years, you cheating scum," but before I could, Ron managed an "Er, okay," and we hurried off to find a table.

"I trust him as far as I could throw him," I mumbled as soon as we had our butterbeers in hand.

"That is to say, not at all?" Hermione asked knowingly.

I nodded. "He's slimy. A bloody good Beater... but slimy."

After about two minutes, Harry made his way back over and slid into the empty seat next to me.

“What did he want?” Ron asked immediately.

"Let the man have a sip of butterbeer," I chuckled, sliding the tankard his direction.

He laughed a bit, raising it to his lips and chugging about a third of it in one go, making me laugh a bit too.

"Better?" I teased.

"Better," he agreed. "He offered to help me with the golden egg."

Hermione's jaw dropped. “He shouldn’t be doing that! He’s one of the judges! And anyway, you’ve already worked it out, haven’t you?”

I glanced at Harry hopefully. As soon as Cedric had figured it out, he had given me a clue to pass along to Harry, since I had told Cedric what Harry knew last time. (Being a Hufflepuff, he felt telling Harry directly would have been cheating, but he at least wanted to help. He hadn't even told me what he had done exactly, but I could tell he was worried about whatever the task was.) But as far as I knew, he hadn't actually gone to the prefects' bathroom yet... or had he?

“Er... nearly,” he said, avoiding my gaze. I felt a pang of distress. That was definitely a no.

Hermione didn't seem to catch on to his obvious lie. “Well, I don’t think Dumbledore would like it if he knew Bagman was trying to persuade you to cheat! I hope he’s trying to help Cedric as much!”

“He’s not, I asked.”

My grip tightened around my tankard. _As if I need one more reason to not like Ludo Bagman..._ "Cedric doesn't _need_ the help," I said acidly, "he's already figured the egg out, but it would still be nice of Ludo Bagman to be an equal-opportunity cheater."

“Those goblins didn’t look very friendly. What were they doing here?” Hermione asked, clearly hoping to change the topic before I let my anger get the best of me. I took a sip of butterbeer to try to calm myself.

Harry took a sip as well before answering. “Looking for Crouch, according to Bagman. He’s still ill. Hasn’t been into work.”

Ron snorted. “Maybe Percy’s poisoning him. Probably thinks if Crouch snuffs it he’ll be made head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation.”

“Funny, goblins looking for Mr. Crouch. They’d normally deal with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.”

“Crouch can speak loads of different languages, though. Maybe they need an interpreter.” Harry took another sip and glanced at me. "Can your dad speak gibberish, or whatever their language is?"

"Gobbledegook?"

"Gesundheit?"

I swatted his arm. "Now you're just being ridiculous."

"Riddikulus?"

I laughed. "Oh, shove it, Potter. I don't think he does --- he's had multiple offers to take jobs across the world, but he really tries to only take temporary jobs in English-speaking countries, like America. He claims he doesn't have an ear for languages, but Mum and I always think he just lacks the patience to learn any."

“Worrying about poor ickle goblins, now, are you, Hermione? Thinking of starting up S.P.U.G. or something?" Ron asked. "Society for the Protection of Ugly Goblins?”

Hermione rolled her eyes in response. “Goblins don’t need protection. Haven’t you been listening to what Professor Binns has been telling us about goblin rebellions?”

"No," the boys replied in unison, making me laugh again.

“Well, they’re quite capable of dealing with wizards. They’re very clever. They’re not like house-elves, who never stick up for themselves.”

Harry sighed, eyes on the door. "Uh oh."

Rita Skeeter had just entered.

I was about to rise to my feet and start giving her a piece of my mind, but suddenly, Harry's hands were on my shoulders and I found myself under the table.

"Harry, what the bloody hell-"

He locked one of his legs around my shoulder to keep me put, his robes effectively blocking me from view. I struggled against him, but when he whispered, "Please just trust me," I stopped.

“Trying to ruin someone else’s life?” Harry called in her direction.

“Harry! How lovely! Why don’t you come and join-”

“I wouldn’t come near you with a ten-foot broomstick. What did you do that to Hagrid for, eh?”

She paused for half a second. I thought she might actually be thinking about the consequences of her actions, but when she spoke again, her words were as sickly sweet as ever. “Our readers have a right to the truth, Harry. I am merely doing my-”

“Who cares if he’s half-giant? There’s nothing wrong with him!”

In the brief silence that followed, I started to unpack everything he had just said. The conviction with which he said there was nothing wrong with Hagrid, the speed with which he interrupted her... for a second, I thought that maybe telling Harry my secret wouldn't be so bad after all. But as soon as I had the thought, I pushed it away. Werewolves were different. _I_ was different. I could never tell Harry. He had enough on his plate without worrying about me too.

“How about giving me an interview about the Hagrid you know, Harry? The man behind the muscles? Your unlikely friendship and the reasons behind it. Would you call him a father substitute?”

Hermione jumped to her feet, snarling, “You horrible woman, you don’t care, do you, anything for a story, and anyone will do, won’t they? Even Ludo Bagman-”

“Sit down, you silly little girl, and don’t talk about things you don’t understand. I know things about Ludo Bagman that would make your hair curl, not that it needs it-”

I started struggling against Harry again, but he kept me even more firmly in place.

"You're not getting a story here today," he said very pointedly to Rita Skeeter. "It might be in your best interest to leave before you lose readers for insulting children, the way you just insulted Hermione. Because in case you hadn't noticed, almost everyone here is listening to you."

There was a tense moment of silence, then I heard the click of heels leaving the pub. As soon as the door slammed shut, the crowd erupted with murmurs and whispers about the standoff that had just occurred. 

Harry grabbed me by the arm and pulled me back up. I turned to him incredulously. "Okay, I trusted you, I didn't make a sound. Will you please explain now?"

He nodded, looking one more time over his shoulder to make sure she was gone before explaining in a low voice, "The day of the Hagrid disaster, I went over to confront Malfoy after you had gone down to Hagrid's. He said Rita Skeeter had mentioned you while interviewing him about Hagrid, and I didn't want to risk you getting upset like Hermione did and her deciding to go after you. Especially since it sounds like you've already got a target on your back."

The thought of Rita Skeeter mentioning my name to Malfoy made my anxiety levels skyrocket. I reassured myself I had never used the word "werewolf" that fateful night with Hagrid, but I _had_ mentioned having a secret. But Harry didn't need to know that. He didn't need to even _suspect_ I had a secret. So I smiled and shifted the attention away from myself. "You know I would have loved to give her hell. You did a fine job of it, though." I reached across the table to fist bump Hermione, laughing. "You too."

“She’ll be after you next, Hermione,” Ron said, looking quite worried.

“Let her try! I’ll show her! Silly little girl, am I? Oh, I’ll get her back for this. First Harry, then Hagrid?”

Ron shook his head. “You don’t want to go upsetting Rita Skeeter. I’m serious, Hermione, she’ll dig up something on you-”

“My parents don’t read the _Daily Prophet_. She can’t scare me into hiding!”

"Besides, there's nothing she can dig up on you," I added. "You're the top student in our year, you went to the Yule Ball with a Triwizard Champion, you're president of S.P.E.W. Unless you're also brewing poisons under your bed, there's nothing she could possibly find to exploit you."

"Unless she makes something up," Ron pointed out.

I nodded. "True. But if she does, I call dibs on fighting Rita Skeeter next." I glanced at Harry, who was looking at me with amused confusion. I laughed. "What? You and Hermione got your turn today. It's only fair I get to go next. I can go off on her for your article, Hagrid's article, and not mentioning Cedric and spelling Fleur and Viktor's names wrong. And then whatever she does to Hermione, if anything." I lifted my tankard to my lips and downed the rest of my butterbeer. "Come on, let's get out of here before she decides to double back. Where should we go next?"

We all decided Zonko's would be the proper place to lift our spirits. To no one's surprise, the twins were already there, talking to the owner about something, probably their own products. I couldn't help but smile. _You go, boys._

In Honeyduke's, I saw Maxence for the first time since New Year's Eve. He was surrounded by his same friends from the party, joking and laughing, and his smile widened when he saw me. I offered a small wave before starting on my way join Ron and Harry by the lollipops.

"I saw that," Hermione whispered in my ear.

"Saw what?" I whispered back.

"You and Maxence!" she hissed, spinning me around so I could see her smirk. "He's very cute."

"Exactly, meaning he's out of my league," I replied, turning back around.

She grabbed me by the arm and turned me to face her again. "Oh, don't talk like that. You should have seen the way every boy in the room was looking at you at the Yule Ball."

"Considering they're the same boys that don't look my way at all on a regular day, I know better than to let that get to my head."

I started to turn back around, but Hermione's grip tightened. "Maxence sure looks your way more often than anyone else."

"Don't get my hopes up," I muttered. "He's cute, sure, but I barely even know him. He barely even knows me. It would never work."

"Never say never!" she singsonged.

I shook my head. "Give it up, Hermione." I glanced over at Maxence one more time. Surely enough, he was still looking at me. An involuntary blush rose to my cheeks, and Hermione Mhmmmed triumphantly. I blinked and wrenched myself free from her vice-like hold on my arm, marching over to where Ron and Harry were now examining the Chocolate Frog cards.

"You know, Lu, I can't find the one you have here," Harry said, holding two up for emphasis. "You know, the special one?"

I swatted his arm, blush intensifying. "Oh, shove off, Potter."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi everyone! Well... I know you're probably baffled by now, if you've somehow read this far. This was published on November 4, 2020, and it's already 400,000 words long? What kind of superhuman author does that?
> 
> Not me. I can tell you that much.
> 
> I actually have been writing this story since March 27, 2020, on Quotev. Quotev is still my website of choice, since I've been a member since 2015, but I've found the highest-quality work on this website, and I hoped the readers of this website could offer the best feedback and criticisms. So... please, give me feedback! I want to be an author one day, and I know how important feedback is to growing as a writer. I trust you. Give me your worst. (Or your best, I'm insecure just like everyone else.)
> 
> But yeah! Thank you to everyone who's read this far, and I hope you continue to enjoy my story. :)


	63. Pioneer

_I won't run when bullets chase me  
I won't rest where arms embrace me  
I will love when people hate me  
I won't hush, no you can't make me  
Send the dark but it won't break me  
You can try but you can't change me  
Take my life, they will replace me  
I won't hush, no you can't make me  
I won't hush, no we will sing_

_Where are we going  
Oh, I don't know  
But still I've got to go  
What will become of us  
Oh, I don't care  
All I know is I'll go anywhere  
Pioneer_

_"Pioneer"  
The Band Perry_

* * *

LUCY: 

It was nearly one o'clock in the morning on the night before the full moon when an owl arrived at the common room window. The twins and I were still up, trying to refine the Nosebleed Nougat George had used so effectively at the Yule Ball, when I heard tapping.

"Who the bloody hell is sending me a letter at this hour?" I wondered aloud, nevertheless going to the window and letting it in. I gently took the rolled-up parchment from its talons and let it clean its feathers while perched on my shoulder.

"What does it say?" George asked.

"You can read it after me," I replied, breaking the seal and scanning the letter quickly.

_Dear Lucy,  
I'm terribly sorry I haven't written you prior to this point. I feared that to do so would put both of us in danger, especially after Rita Skeeter's article about Harry, but I wanted you to hear this news from me before it was broken in any newspaper article, if it is even mentioned at all. Romulus is a remarkable owl, so please send your reply as soon as possible --- he will be able to make the journey.  
Dolores Umbridge just passed a significant piece of anti-werewolf legislation. Following the issue of my Hogwarts employment last year, it seemed the Ministry was all the more determined to make it impossible for werewolves to get jobs. It says working at most jobs will come with a form of safety tax that would cut income in half, with heavy fees for whoever hires one, especially if the employer knows of the condition and hires a lycanthrope anyway.  
I don't mean this to alarm you, as I know of other Ministry officials who are working even now to overturn it, but I wanted to warn you. It has perhaps never been more important to be careful and guarded --- your secret in the wrong hands could become a dreadful weapon.  
I hope all is well for you this year. I can't imagine it's easy being so close to not just one but two of the champions. But if anybody could handle that kind of pressure, I know it would be you. Keep your head up, Lucy, but be careful. Things are stirring, and not entirely for the better.  
Best regards, Remus Lupin_

I wordlessly passed the letter to George, Fred reading over his shoulder. 

Both of their faces grew increasingly flushed with anger.

George's jaw clenched. "I don't know who this Umbridge woman is, but this is-"

"I know," I interrupted. "I know."

Fred reached forward and laid a hand on the shoulder Romulus wasn't occupying. "Good Godric, you're shaking so much. It'll be okay, Cub, we can figure this out."

I shook my head. "You know I love you both, but this is so much bigger than us. You can't throw a Dungbomb at this problem and make it run away."

"Is that a challenge?" Fred asked with a crooked grin.

George swatted the back of his head. "Not the time, Fred!"

I managed a weak smile, which quickly faded. "My hands are shaking too much to try to write a reply right now. I think tonight is Cedric's patrol night... I need to talk to him."

"Do you want us to walk with you?" George offered.

"It's alright, but thanks." I reached up to stroke Romulus's head. "D-Do you mind waiting a little bit? I promise to come back soon."

He hooted in response.

"Is that permission?"

He hooted again, and I managed another smile. 

"Thank you."

Romulus hopped onto George's shoulder, and I pulled the hood of my robe over my head. "I'll be back in a couple minutes... h-hopefully. It would be just my luck for Cedric to be in the dungeons right now."

"We'll be here!" the twins said in unison, watching as I disappeared through the portrait hole.

The castle at night had gotten spookier over the years. My first year, when I had made a habit of sleepwalking, the vacant castle offered an escape. The solitude was reassuring rather than threatening. But my second year, the terror of the basilisk kept me confined to the Gryffindor common room, where I spent many sleepless, suffocated nights. My third year, the threat of Sirius Black also held me back, though the aid of the enchanted shirt from Cedric made the nights cooler and less suffocating. 

With no true threat trapping me in the common room this year, one would think I would resume my sleepwalking activities, but I didn't. I knew too well at that point what horrors may lie in the walls yet undiscovered. I mean, the basilisk had existed in the castle since the founding of the school, with only vague rumors pointing to its existence. And even though Sirius was ultimately innocent, knowing he had managed to navigate the castle in his Animagus form completely undetected was still unnerving.

Needless to say... I was not excited about roaming the halls in search of my brother. But I needed him. I needed him in that moment, and I was going to find him no matter what.

After about five minutes, I spied the glow of a wand getting brighter and brighter at the end of the hallway in front of me.

"Cedric?" I called tentatively.

I heard footsteps grow faster, and surely enough, it was Cedric's head that poked around the corner.

"Lucy? What are you doing out here?"

I shook my head, feeling tears beginning to fill my eyes for the first time. I sprinted forward and threw my arms around him.

"Lu, Lu, what's wrong?" Cedric asked softly. "Talk to me."

I reluctantly released him and wiped away a rogue tear with my sleeve. "Professor Lupin wrote me a letter. Th-There was legislation passed today. B-Bad legislation."

He cocked his head to the side, silently urging me to explain further.

"It... it says that if someone _knowingly_ hires a werewolf..."

"Oh," he said. "Lucy-"

"I can't let you do it, Cedric," I whispered. "I know what you said last year, but now with this, I-"

"Lucy-"

"No, no, I can't, _you_ can't, it's too dangerous-"

"Hey, hey, no. Let's walk," Cedric interrupted, gentle but not leaving room for protest. 

I nodded and wrapped my arms around my waist anxiously. 

Cedric held his wand out. "Homenum revelio." When nothing changed, we started walking down the hallway. "Well, since no homenums were revelioed, you don't mind helping me patrol, do you?"

I laughed a bit at that. "No, I don't mind. I feel much safer walking around with you than I did by myself."

"You have your wand on you, right?"

I nodded and drew it. "A light might have helped. Lumos!"

"Ah, that's right. You don't need the help, do you? Sloane could see exceptionally well in the dark."

"Y-Yeah." I rubbed the back of my neck with my free hand.

"Do you want to talk to me, or do you want to listen to me?"

"I don't have too much to say," I admitted in a small voice. "I'm just scared, Cedric."

"What exactly scares you, Lu?"

I had to pause briefly. What _did_ scare me, exactly? 

"I just..." I swallowed hard. "I'm scared of getting you in trouble."

"I'm going to have to stop you right there. Lucy, you know I've never once gotten a detention, right?"

I nodded. "Neither have I. I never want to get detention."

"Well... I would have to disagree."

"What?" _Cedric? Cedric Amos Diggory, disagreeing with the phrase "I never want to get detention"?! What is this world coming to?_

Cedric grinned. "I've baffled you, haven't I?"

"Er, yes. Yes you have."

"Let me put it this way. If I saw a seventh-year pure-blood picking on a first-year for being a Muggle-born, and I saw the seventh-year raise his or her wand, and Professor Snape was standing right there not doing anything and threatening detention to anyone who intervened, I wouldn't hesitate for a second to disarm and hex the seventh-year."

" _You_? A Hufflepuff? Hexing somebody?"

"Hexing a _bully_ ," he clarified. "I wouldn't hesitate. My first year, I might have hesitated. I would have justified my hesitation with the rule against magic in the corridor. I would have told myself I didn't dare break a rule with Professor Snape standing right there. But now, I would take that detention with pride knowing I had done the right thing."

"What does this have to do with... with me? With the... the legislation?"

"You know, Lu, sometimes doing the right thing means going against the rules and dealing with the consequences later. Sure, maybe I haven't had a detention in my almost-six years here. Maybe I'll never get one. But if I do, it'll be for the right reason. Right and wrong don't always play by the rules."

"But this is so much bigger than detention," I whispered, not wanting to let myself believe this was all so simple. "And it's not about right and wrong, it's about safety and responsibility and all of the debates I have to have every single month-"

"Isn't it?"

"Isn't it... what?"

"Isn't it about right and wrong? Lu, nothing and no one can convince me you're not a good person. There's no reason whatsoever to discriminate against anyone, but especially not good people."

"Even if we're not... you know..."

"Lu, you're as much a person as I am. And no, I'm not a vampire, contrary to popular belief."

" _Fred's_ belief," I corrected with a small laugh. I took a deep breath. "I... I feel better. Thanks for talking to me, Ced."

"Of course. You're lucky I found you instead of Filch."

"Or Peeves."

"Or Peeves," he agreed with a chuckle. He pulled me to his side in a brief hug. "I'll walk you up to the common room, then you try to get some sleep, alright?"

I nodded. "As soon as I write Professor Lupin back."

"Would you mind telling him I say hello? I sure do miss him."

"I miss him too," I replied with a sad smile. "I'll tell him we _all_ miss him, legislation be damned."

* * *

_The night of the January full moon, Lucy did not walk alone to the Room of Requirement. The Weasley twins had caused quite the large disturbance in the Gryffindor common room, allowing Lucy and Hermione to escape in the chaos._

_Hermione had realized that the Room of Requirement was the same as the house elves' "Come and Go Room," and it had not revealed itself to Lucy in December because it was being used by Dobby and Winky. (Lucy, of course, insisted that she needed to do no such thing, that she would be perfectly fine with going to the Forest for the night and letting the elves use it. Everyone else, of course, shot down her argument after watching her literally collapse after the night in the Forest in December.) So, in January, Hermione went along with Lucy in the hopes of coaxing any house elves out of the room so Lucy could have it._

_This month, the door revealed itself to Lucy without issue. Hermione wished her friend good luck --- she never did quite know what to say, but then again, she never did quite know exactly what happened each month; what could she possibly say that could take away the pain that made her scream so loudly? --- and hugged her tightly, watching as the door closed behind her and disappeared._

_Hermione backed up a couple of steps and stood in silence for a moment, drumming her fingers anxiously against her chin._

_For the whole three weeks Lucy and Harry had been somewhat estranged from her and Ron, Hermione had been worried. Worried she wouldn't be enough for Ron. Worried Lucy wouldn't be enough for Harry. Worried Harry wouldn't be enough for Lucy._

_Hermione was of the opinion her friends had a far narrower view of the world than she did. Where Harry saw three months of time to work out his clue, Hermione saw everything that could possibly go wrong in those 92 days that would lead to his terrible end on the date of the second task. Where Ron didn't start studying for his final exams until he was sufficiently prodded again and again and again because O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s were so far away, Hermione started revising and reviewing by the time her birthday rolled around and had been keeping her notes in alphabetical order since her first year because she knew her entire future in the wizarding world depended on those two sets of exams. Lucy was the closest to understanding, she reckoned, but Hermione knew Lucy well enough to know the uncertainty of her future could be paralyzing at times --- and she also knew that it was hard for Lucy to think more than one moon cycle at a time._

_It was a rare moment where Hermione truly stood still. Always running to read, to research, thinking that maybe one day, her knowledge could help save those she held most dear. Her weapon of choice was her intelligence, and she wielded it proudly. Perhaps one day, her knowledge would yield something of value as far as lycanthropy was concerned. A perfect cure perhaps was too far-fetched, but any amount of comfort Hermione could offer, she would give in a heartbeat. But Hermione knew all too well that, in that moment, there was nothing she could do to help Lucy, her first true friend, and that defeat paralyzed her._

_"Hermione? Everything okay?"_

_Hermione jumped and turned to face the voice._

_"Sorry," Cedric said quickly. "I didn't mean to startle you."_

_"No, no, it's alright," she responded, even more quickly. "Just lost in thought, I suppose."_

_Cedric nodded, studying the younger girl with sympathetic eyes. "I understand." He paused, and Hermione had to look away from the intensity of his gaze. He had the same I-can-see-into-your-soul eyes as Lucy, though his were grey and Lucy's were a vivid blue. Hermione found herself wondering if it ran in the family, though she realized upon further recollection they certainly didn't get it from their tactless father, if it did. Their Auror mother --- whom Hermione very much wanted to meet --- was probably the one who taught them how to look at people like that._

_"See you in the morning?" Hermione asked, forcing a smile to the surface as she met those intense grey eyes again._

_"See you then," he agreed. Cedric smiled back, his similarly laced with worries unspoken, and he headed back the way he came. As he disappeared around the corner, Hermione ran her fingers through her bushy hair and took a deep breath_

_"What a privilege it would be to only have one worry at a time," she muttered to herself as she turned on her heel and headed in the direction of the Gryffindor common room to pester Harry about his egg, now that Lucy was safe for the night._

* * *

When I opened my eyes in the morning, I couldn't help but be painfully aware of the pitiful, pathetic, humiliating nature of my condition.

Even in a perfect room, magically designed to cater to my every need, I was still very much diseased. My throat was still raw from screaming. I was still trembling from head to toe from residual pain. My entire body was still unnaturally cold. I was still tired enough to sleep for days on end. Even there, in the best possible situation, I was still a werewolf.

I had let myself believe for a day that maybe Cedric would be enough to protect me from the complications and the prejudices and the anxieties, even if he couldn't cure me. But as I lay sprawled on the ground, still feeling defeated even when I had every comfort I could ever dream of wanting, I realized nothing, not even Cedric, would be enough to take away the burden I had shouldered for what would be ten years on October 28 that year.

Involuntary tears sprung to my eyes as I recognized my own hopelessness, but I forced them away and pushed myself to my feet. No sense worrying everyone else by taking longer than usual to leave the Room of Requirement.

I had barely even opened the door before Hermione rushed forward and nearly tackled me back into the Room of Requirement with a fierce hug.

"Good morning to you too," I choked out, hugging back nonetheless. "Is everything okay?"

"It is now," she whispered before letting go. I studied her face for any sign of change, but she looked as she always did. She glanced away quickly and took me by the hand. "Come on, Cedric's waiting for you in the Hospital Wing. He told me I could fetch you today, something about how I never go by myself but he knows I'm your best friend and wanted us to have a moment alone."

I forced a smile, praying she couldn't see how hard I had to fight to stop myself from absolutely breaking down sobbing in that moment. "A moment without the boys, he means?"

Hermione laughed. "Something like that. Now come on, we have to hurry so you won't be late for class since the sun rises so late in the morning in January."

"Y-Yeah," I managed. The last thing I wanted to do was go to class, but I had no choice. _Maybe seeing Harry will make me feel better,_ I thought hopefully to myself.

Cedric's tight hug helped a bit, and the twins never failed --- and I mean _never_ \--- to make me laugh. And as I expected, seeing Harry helped a bit too. To him, I was still just Lucy, not Lucy the Lycanthrope. As nice as it was not stressing over keeping my secret from the twins anymore, I couldn't ignore the pitying looks I caught them giving me sometimes.

I slid in next to him in History of Magic and started getting my notes out when he suddenly leaned over and whispered in my ear, "I think I'm going to open the egg on Friday night, if you want to stay in the common room."

I nodded. "Sure."

His cheeks reddened slightly as he smiled. "You don't sound surprised by the fact I... well..."

"I'm a lot harder to fool than Hermione," I replied with a quiet chuckle. "Smart as she is, she's not the best at, er, reading people's emotional cues? I guess? Is that fair to say?"

As if to prove our point, Hermione's head suddenly whipped in Ron's direction. "Why do you want to know if Viktor was at the New Year's party?"

"Just wondering if he kissed you," Ron mumbled, not looking her directly in the eye.

"Why do you want to know that?"

Harry glanced at me. "Yeah, that's fair to say."

I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing and continued getting my notes out.

As much as I enjoyed being around Harry, I found it harder and harder with each passing hour to keep myself together. Worries about the new legislation and the need to keep my secret from Harry and the continued threat of Rita Skeeter and what the egg might reveal ricocheted angrily around my brain, and by the time lunch came, I was too troubled to even think about eating.

"I'm going to go see if Hagrid needs help with the skrewts," I said to Harry.

"Don't lose a finger," he replied with a sarcastic grin.

"I'll do my best."

 _Yet another thing I love about Harry,_ I thought to myself. _He doesn't ask questions._

When I arrived at Hagrid's, he didn't seem terribly surprised to see me. He asked if I had heard the news about the legislation, and when my response was a high-pitched "Yeah, I did, did you, wait, of course, you did, you just asked me, sorry, obviously you heard," he suggested I go find a creature to calm myself down.

"Always helps when I'm feelin' worried," he said. "Reckon it'd help yeh too."

I nodded, drawing a shaky breath. "Will do."

I hurried from his hut, grabbed a bag of creature food, and dove into the forest. I wanted to find a thestral, because they were misunderstood too, perhaps more so than any other creature.

But when I finally found a small group of them, I wasn't the only human there.

The girl turned when she heard my footsteps crunching in the snow, and she smiled serenely. "Hello, Lucy Diggory. I was wondering when we would meet each other here."

It wasn't uncommon for someone to know my name before I knew theirs. With Cedric for a brother, and with my telltale scars all over my face, it was rare I had to introduce myself to anybody. But there was something different about this girl. I spotted her Ravenclaw robes and ventured a guess. "Luna? Luna Lovegood?"

She nodded, looking positively delighted I had known her name, too. "Neville and Ginny have told me for a long time now that they think we would be great friends." She knelt down and pulled half of a raw steak out of her bookbag. "Here, you can give this to one of the thestrals. I've found they like steak more than the food pellets."

I sheepishly lowered my bag and accepted the half of a steak from her hand. "I've never thought of raw steak. How did you find that out?"

"I brought a whole raw steak with me to school once, and when I tried getting into a carriage, that thestral over there-" She pointed at a particularly small animal several feet away. "-tried to steal my bag. I thought at first maybe he thought my copy of _The_ _Quibbler_ was food, but he seemed to enjoy the steak, so I've brought steaks here ever since. But I always save half, in case you come."

"You... knew I would come?" I asked as the thestral ate the steak straight out of my hand.

"I've always hoped so. I've always wanted to meet you, but I never quite imagined you'd look so troubled when we finally did meet. What's the matter?"

I blinked, taken aback. "What do you mean, if I may ask?"

Luna nodded at my hand. "I personally find purple and blue to represent fear and sadness, myself. But of course, I could be wrong. I very often am."

I blinked again. "No. I mean, no, you're not wrong, that's exactly what they mean."

"You don't have to tell me what's troubling you if you'd rather keep it to yourself, but you may find that talking about your troubles makes them seem quite small."

I couldn't help but blink a third time, thoroughly taken by surprise by this girl. I liked her.

"Has your father discussed the new werewolf legislation in _The Quibbler_ yet?" I asked.

"Anti-werewolf legislation, you mean?"

I nodded. "That's the one."

Luna nodded. "Very sad. I worry for Professor Lupin."

"Yeah... yeah, me too."

"I've never understood how people can be so cruel," she continued. "Werewolves are people, just the same as you and me. Professor Lupin for one is one of the kindest people I know. But don't worry, Lucy, because I know Professor Lupin will be alright. He is very smart, in addition to being very kind. You know, he always took the time to listen to me after class, even if he didn't believe Nargles exist."'

"He always listened to me too," I replied, his absence stinging more than usual as I recalled the day I told him everything about my family. My first family. The reason I could see the thestrals in that moment. I laughed suddenly. "I don't think Professor Moody would be quite the same in that regard, I'm afraid."

Luna smiled. "I would have to agree."

Luna and I talked for the next little while, and it wasn't at all uncomfortable. We walked around the reserve, distributing the pellets I had brought to any creatures that seemed interested. I could have talked to her the rest of that day, but I eventually realized lunch was coming to an end.

"What's your next class?" I asked. "Would you like to walk to the castle together?"

"I don't think I'll be going to class today," she replied.

"You aren't?"

She shook her head, offering no further explanation. Normally, I wouldn't pry further, but Luna was no normal girl.

"Why not?"

"My mum died four years ago today. I'm going to go back to the thestrals. They make me feel less sad."

"I'm so sorry," I said immediately. "About your mum, I mean. I can stay if you'd like to talk more. I don't mind missing Potions."

"No, you can go. Best not to make Professor Snape angry, since he doesn't like Gryffindors. But if you'd like to come back, I will probably still be here at dinner. I haven't gone to any classes at all today, and the thestrals make good company." Luna smiled. "Thank you for coming today, Lucy Diggory. I'd like to think my mum sent you to make today a little less blue."

I smiled back. "I'd like to think the same. It was nice talking to you, Luna Lovegood. I think we're going to be good friends."


	64. What Do You Know About Love?

_With miles and miles to go  
I guess it's nice to know  
That I can trust you  
Though the question still remains  
What do you know about love?_

_"What Do You Know About Love?"  
Jelani Alladin and Patti Murin_

* * *

LUCY:

On Friday night, I was in the common room reading the copy of _The Quibbler_ Luna had given me after dinner when it was suddenly yanked from my hands and promptly disappeared.

"Bloody hell, Harry!" 

I jumped up from the chair and lunged in the direction I thought he was. Surely enough, I grabbed invisible fabric, and when I pulled, Harry became visible again bit by bit, clutching the egg and the Marauder's Map in one hand and the magazine in his other.

He pouted. "How'd you know it was me? And wait, how did you know where I was?"

"Lucky guess," I replied with a smirk. I held out my hand. "Give that back, it's my entertainment while you're off taking a your special Cedric-endorsed bubble bath."

He tossed the magazine back at me with no small degree of sass. "Now you've made it weird."

"My brother told me, and I quote, 'Tell him to take a bath, take the egg with him, and mull things over in the hot water. Oh, and tell him the password to the prefect's bathroom is pine fresh.' So really, it's Cedric who made it weird by not telling you exactly what to do in the first place, but he's a Hufflepuff and thought that would be unfair to Viktor and Fleur, so he gave you a hint instead. Besides," I bit back a laugh, "something tells me Fleur would probably have gotten the wrong idea if Cedric told her to take a bath."

Harry snorted and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, probably. Well, I understand _that_ , but where did you get the idea I would take a _bubble_ bath?"

"Henry told me a few days later that Cedric had mentioned something to him about Myrtle. Trust me, you'll be glad for the bubbles."

" _Please_ tell me you're kidding."

I held my hands up in surrender. "I wish I was! I have to deal with enough _living_ girls wishing they were taking a bath with my brother. Trust me, I was no happier to find out about that detail than you are right now."

"I mean, fair enough. But still, you're not the one about to take a bath with Myrtle! I mean, no, not _with_ \- wait, that came out wrong-" His face burned bright red. "What I meant was-"

Whatever he tried to say was drowned out by my laughter. "Look, _you're_ the one blushing for once."

He grinned and tossed his Invisibility Cloak over his head. "Prove it."

I rolled my eyes, grinning back. "I hate you."

"No you don't."

"You're right, I don't. Now go, before I change my mind. Your ghostly gawking girlfriend awaits." I twirled one braid around my finger and said in my best Myrtle impression, "'If you had died, you’d have been welcome to share my toilet.'"

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Very funny." An invisible force poked my forehead, pushing me back down onto the couch. 

I complied and laughed. "Have fun."

"Yeah," he replied sarcastically. I could tell it was taking him every ounce of willpower not to laugh. "You too."

I watched the portrait hole swing open then shut again, and curled up with my magazine.

The _Daily Prophet_ still hadn't said anything about the new legislation. Hermione and I both found it incredibly strange, and we still searched each newspaper for anything we could find, but there was nothing. The silence was almost worse... almost.

But _The Quibbler_ was not shy. After reading their article breaking down what the legislation said and how potentially damaging it was, I couldn't help but keep reading. Each new feature was unusual and refreshing and often amusing. It seemed that no time at all had passed when the portrait hole opened again.

I glanced up just as he shed the cloak. "Where's your egg? And the map? And wait, are you limping?"

"That's a lot of questions," he said with a grin, coming to look over the edge of the chair to see what I was reading. "Reading this whole time?"

I snapped the magazine shut and turned to look at him. "Yes, I was. And what have _you_ been up to? I can imagine it's much more exciting than this."

"Well, okay, so as I was leaving the prefect's bathroom, I checked the map to make sure no one was going to catch me. I saw Barty Crouch on the map!"

I blinked. "But he's- why is he-"

"I don't know. But when I went to try to check it out, I forgot about the sink step and-"

I slapped my hand to my forehead. "Harry James Potter, you did _not_ -"

He grinned. "I did. I was there quite a while too."

"Hence the limp, I guess. Okay, so then what happened?"

"It gets worse."

"Of course it does."

He furrowed his brow. "What do you mean by that?"

"When does anything get _better_ for you, Potter?"

He held his hands up in surrender. "Fair. Well, I was going downstairs, so I dropped the map and the egg."

I covered my face with my hands. The secondhand embarrassment was too intense.

"And of course the egg started screaming."

"Of course."

"And of course Filch heard it and came to investigate."

"Of course."

"And then of course Snape showed up."

I dropped my hands and looked at Harry. "That was a plot twist. Why?"

"Well, he heard the racket Filch was making over the egg, then noticed his office had been opened."

"By Crouch?"

"Apparently. Then Moody showed up and more or less fixed everything, but Snape saw the map, and the egg, so he put two and two together and now blames me for the whole ordeal."

"He didn't take the map, did he?"

Harry shook his head. "Moody did. He asked to borrow it, and I was honestly so relieved to not be in trouble that I said he could take it without second thought. Then he said I should consider a career as an Auror and left, and I ran up here to tell you everything."

I nodded. "Well, that was quite the story. So what's the deal with the egg?"

"You probably would have liked it. When you opened the egg underwater, it produced a really pretty song that said-"

I shuddered in reply.

"What? Was it something I said?"

"No, no, not you, I just hate water."

"You- wait, what?"

I blushed. "It scares me. The thought of drowning is just..." I shuddered again. "I don't care how pretty the song is, I'm not going underwater willingly. Anyway, what did the song say? I'm guessing the song was the clue?"

He nodded. "It was. I should probably write it down before I forget."

I got up from the couch, and we sat on either side of a small table. He scribbled down the song and slid the parchment over to me.

_Come seek us where our voices sound,  
We cannot sing above the ground,  
And while you’re searching ponder this:  
We’ve taken what you’ll sorely miss,  
An hour long you’ll have to look,  
And to recover what we took,  
But past an hour, the prospect’s black,  
Too late, it’s gone, it won’t come back._

"Cheerful," I commented.

"Very." He sighed. "I haven't the slightest idea what this means, but I know merpeople must be involved somehow. And I don't like the idea of the merpeople taking something valuable of mine. I like the idea of having to survive underwater for an hour even less."

I shuddered again. "Sounds like my worst nightmare." I yawned and rested my chin in my hand. "I don't think either of us will have a stroke of brilliance tonight, Harry. We can tell Ron and Hermione in the morning and see if any ideas come to us then."

He nodded. "You have a point." 

"We'll figure it out," I said firmly, noticing how nervous he suddenly looked. "We have over a month. I'm sure we'll find something soon."

"I hope you're right," he replied in a soft voice.

* * *

I wasn't. We spent hours upon hours upon hours in the library, searching for any solution that would allow Harry to breathe underwater for an hour, but we found nothing.

I blinked and it was Valentine's Day. One of the worst days of the year, as far as I was concerned, if not the absolute worst.

It was a terrible day from the start. It was the day before the full moon, meaning I couldn't fall asleep until after 4 in the morning. Then, somehow, I overslept, meaning I had no more than fifteen minutes to get dressed and rush to History of Magic. And it was while I was rushing to History of Magic in a nearly-deserted hallway that my day really started.

To this day, I have no idea what tripped me. But regardless of what tripped me, I was suddenly falling, and would have landed flat on my face if someone hadn't grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me up.

"Are you alright?" a deep, heavily-accented voice asked.

_Of all of the people to see me right now..._

I straightened up, already blushing, and looked into Maxence's eyes. To my surprise, he wasn't smiling, or laughing --- rather, he looked genuinely concerned.

"Yeah, I am," I stammered. I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. "Thanks for catching me. I... well, I've always hated Valentine's Day, so I guess Valentine's Day wanted its revenge."

He smiled. "Well, maybe I could help redeem Valentine's Day for you."

I blinked. "What do you mean?"

Maxence reached forward and adjusted my bag on my shoulder. I hadn't even realized it was slipping until he fixed it. "What I mean is that I haven't been able to stop thinking about you, Lucy Diggory. You have been on my mind since the day I saw you at the Yule Ball, and the way you played in the match..." He shifted his weight and glanced away from me. "I have been wanting to try to ask you on a date ever since, but... well I suppose I was too shy. I was worried you would turn me down if I tried. You are close with Harry Potter, yes?"

"Oh, Harry? I- we- we aren't together. If that's what you're asking."

"That is what I was asking," he confirmed, looking at me briefly before diverting his attention again. "What do you say? If you meet me near the Beauxbatons carriage before dinner, I can try to show you that Valentine's Day might be alright after all."

I blinked again, thoroughly stunned. I wanted to pinch myself to see if I was dreaming, but before I could, Maxence was looking at me again, smiling, dimples as prominent as ever.

I nodded, face flaming anew. "I'll be there."

Maxence's smile widened, and he nodded. He looked very pleased with himself. "Then it is a date. See you then."

"See you then," I said, feeling quite breathless as he walked away, leaving me alone in the hallway. I realized with a jolt I was about to be late for class, and sprinted the rest of the way to History of Magic.

"There you are," Hermione hissed as I slid into the seat next to Harry. "Where were you? I thought you had decided to skip today! And why are you all red?"

I shook my head to deflect her questions. "Just overslept. Had to run here."

Hermione leaned forward, asking in a voice only I could hear, "Then why were you so embarrassed by something three minutes ago?"

"Later," I whispered in response. I turned around and faced the front. I took a deep breath and released it in a shaky sigh. "Have I ever mentioned how much I hate Valentine's Day?"

Harry snorted. "At least we don't have to see Oliver and his girlfriend snogging this year, since they graduated."

I felt as if I'd been struck by lightning. Snogging? What if that was Maxence had in mind?

_Is today the day I have my first kiss?_

Professor Binns emerged then, and class began, but all day, I couldn't focus on a single thing any of my professors said. My mind was spinning with questions and worries and all kinds of worst-case scenarios. It was so bad that as soon as our last class for the day ended, I grabbed Lavender and Parvati and asked them if they'd meet me in the dormitory in ten minutes. They looked confused, but agreed, so I rushed over to Hermione.

"I have a date with Maxence tonight," I whispered in her ear.

She whipped around, her jaw dropping. "I knew you two had chem-"

"Shh!" I looked around, horrified someone had heard her, but nobody seemed to think twice of it. I turned back to her, face on fire, and lowered my voice. "I don't really want anyone else knowing. They'd make fun of me. Would you mind just, I don't know, coming up with a story?"

"Gladly!" Hermione smirked, looking very smug. "Is that what happened this morning?"

I nodded pathetically. "I was going too fast, tripped over air, and would have fallen if he hadn't caught me. Then I said something about hating Valentine's Day, and he asked if he could try to make the day worthwhile for me."

She squealed, and I desperately tried to silence her. "Sorry, sorry!" she said, composing herself. "I'm just so excited for you! You'll have to tell me everything when you're back!"

"I will, I promise." I glanced at her watch. "I should head up to the dormitory. Lavender and Parvati are waiting for me there. I'm hoping they'll help me get ready. I just wanted to tell you about it first."

"Have fun!" she called, waving after me as I darted away.

Lavender squealed even louder than Hermione when I told her and Parvati about what had happened that morning.

"You have literally fallen for him," Parvati added with a shrill giggle.

I covered my face with my hands. To no surprise, it was burning. "No! I just- he- we-"

"Don't worry, Lucy, we'll get you ready," Lavender said, already rifling through my trunk for the Yule Ball makeup. "Same thing as December?"

"Sure, that's fine," I stammered. 

"Let's put your hair up this time!" Parvati suggested. "I'm thinking a bun."

I threw my hands up in surrender. "Have your way with me. Do whatever you want." 

Before I knew it, I was sneaking out of the common room and hurrying down the castle steps. My hair was up in a tight bun, the scars on my face, neck, and hands were hidden by makeup, and my entire body was buzzing with anxious energy.

I found the Beauxbatons carriage easily and found a quiet place to wait. As I waited, watching people going in and out and waiting for Maxence to appear, my mind raced. Thoughts of the possibility of kissing him and of maybe Valentine's Day not being so bad after all and of trying to stop myself from panicking swirled on a vicious loop. But I watched the sun sink lower and lower without a sign of him. 

And if Fleur Delacour hadn't come down from the castle, blue eyes flashing with anger and wand in her hand, I might have stayed there, waiting, until midnight.

Her fiery eyes scanned the grounds, and when they landed on me, she froze.

"Lucy?" she called. "Is that you?"

I nodded, and we started walking toward each other. I was about to ask what was wrong when she suddenly threw her arms around me and pulled me close to her in a hug.

"I am so sorry," she murmured.

I blinked and pulled away. "What happened?" A horrible thought occurred to me. "Is Cedric okay?"

"Cedric is fine, Cedric is fine." She sighed. "I should explain. I heard Maxence bragging to a friend that somebody paid him 50 Galleons to ask a specific girl out on a date tonight then never show up. I had to come down here to make sure it was true before hexing him, because Maxence is known for having a big mouth, but I never expected you to be the girl in question. I am so sorry."

In hindsight, I should have been more upset than I was. Really, I just felt stupid for thinking there was even the slightest possibility he was serious.

"Oh..." was all I was able to say.

"I had no idea it was you. I will go hex him for you."

"What? What, no, it's alright, I don't want you getting into trouble-"

"No, it is not alright. And I will not get in trouble. I am a Triwizard champion, after all. Would you like to come sit with me during the feast? You are more important than he is, and you would also get to watch me reverse his knees. I am well-known at my school for being the best at that hex."

I managed a weak smile. "As much as I'd love to see that... I-I'm alright, thanks. I'm just going to go... go somewhere by myself. I'm not very hungry."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded. "May I ask one favor?"

"Of course. What is it?"

"Will you please not tell Cedric? Or the Weasley twins? If they find out, they might send him straight to St. Mungo's."

Fleur quirked an eyebrow. "I fail to see this as a problem, but if that is what you want, I will make sure they do not find out."

"Thank you... and thank you for finding me."

She stepped forward and hugged me again. "Of course. Are you sure you would rather be alone?"

"I am."

"I understand. I will check on you tomorrow. _Au revoir_ , Lucy!"

"Bye, Fleur."

As soon as she started heading up to the castle, I spun on my heel and sprinted to the Quidditch Pitch. My safe place. My hiding place.

I didn't let myself think about anything that had just happened until I was in the commentary box.

I wasn't angry with Maxence. 50 Galleons was a fair sum of money. 

I was angry with myself. For letting myself get my hopes up in the first place.

The humiliation and anger combined with the pre-full-moon fever to make me feel as if I was literally on fire. Nothing about the cold of the night could take away the sting of having my hopes crushed so mercilessly.

I used the sleeve of my robe to scrub the makeup off my face. I didn't have to hide my scars anymore, now that nobody would be coming around. I freed my hair, too, fixing it with two quick braiding charms. I was myself again, unlovable though I was in such a state.

I walked forward and rested my elbows against the edge of the box. I had never been afraid of heights, with or without a broom. That night especially, I feared nothing.

I thought about summoning my broom and a Quaffle and pouring all of my emotions into Quidditch, but even Quidditch had lost some of its appeal. It was Quidditch that had brought Maxence and I together in the beginning, and I found myself wondering why I had run to the Quidditch Pitch in the first place.

I don't know how much time passed before I heard footsteps thundering up the stairs. I thought they were too loud to be Harry's, but it was Harry's voice I heard at my back when the footsteps reached the top.

"Lucy!"

Before I could even turn around all the way, Harry was crushing me with a hug.

"I'm so sorry," he said, still breathing hard from how fast he had come. "I overheard Fleur confronting Max whatever-his-name-is. It was Malfoy who put him up to it." He released me and laid a hand on my shoulder, green eyes alight. "You didn't deserve that. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," I replied. I looked down at my toes and rubbed the back of my neck. "I'm just stupid."

"You're not stupid."

"I fell for it!" I protested, glancing back up at him. 

"You're not stupid," he repeated firmly.

I sighed. "I must be. I usually have a pretty good first impression of people. I don't know why I trusted him."

Harry grinned suddenly. "Fine, if you won't listen to me, you _are_ outside after dark in the middle of February without even a coat or a scarf or gloves, so maybe you're right. Why did you agree to a date with a complete stranger, anyway?"

"He's not a stranger!"

"What's his last name?"

I opened my mouth to answer, then found I couldn't remember. I was distracted by the way Harry's eyes were twinkling in the moonlight. "I don't know. Something French. It doesn't really matter."

"You might want to find out next time. What if Fleur had hexed the wrong _Maxence_?"

He said the name with such a revolting French accent I couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, I see where this is headed. You think you know more about love than I do."

"I do know that knowing a person's first and last name is a good idea."

"Yeah, and what else? What do you know about love, Potter?"

"Some people get distracted by princely looks and forget that personality matters, too."

"I'll admit he did have rather princely looks, so we agree on that one," I replied with a sassy raise of my eyebrows.

He rolled his eyes in response. "Right. Look, all I'm saying is that when you think you love someone, you can't just jump headfirst into it and hope for the best."

"If it's true love, I think you can."

"You'd have to get incredibly lucky for that to happen, especially on the first try."

"Look, just because Cho was already taken-"

He started laughing. "Low blow."

"Oh, don't start acting all innocent and pitiful now," I fired back, laughing as well. "Go on, what else do you know?"

"I think you have to take your time when it comes to love, so you don't fall flat on your face and get hurt."

 _If there's one thing you can do, Harry James Potter, it's take your time..._

He paused. "Well, you've heard what I think. Your turn now. What do _you_ know about love?"

"I do agree with you. You have to take your time, you shouldn't jump head-first into it... unless it's true love."

"And what do you think that is?"

"It's... loving them for who they are rather than who you want them to be."

It was Harry's turn to look at the ground. "Sounds like you really loved him, then."

"What? No! Of course not! Harry, we've talked three times. Ever. I couldn't _possibly_ love him, I barely even _know_ him. I just agreed to a date, to see if it was worth getting to know him better. That's all. And good Godric, look where that got me. I think I have my answer."

"I think so, too," he said with a chuckle. He looked up at me. "If you didn't love him, why are you asking me about love?"

I hoped it was too dark for him to see me blushing. "Still Valentine's Day, isn't it? Love is in the air, so to speak. Besides, I was curious to hear what you thought."

"Well, I can say with confidence it's _not_ what he did to you tonight."

I huffed a laugh. "I gathered that myself, funny enough." I lowered myself to a bench and stared out at the Pitch. "He said he'd try to prove to me that Valentine's Day wasn't that bad, but I can't help but feel validated in my belief that it's the dumbest day of the year."

Harry sat next to me and nodded. "Yeah, I'd have to agree."

Silence descended then, and neither of us seemed to want to be the first to break it. 

Harry ultimately did. "If you weren't thinking of him when you were talking about true love... who were you thinking about?"

"Oh. Er... no one in particular. Just thinking about what Cedric tells me about Cho."

Harry nodded, and another silence followed.

I broke the second silence. "Out of curiosity, do you think you're really in love with Cho?"

He started bouncing his left leg up and down. "I don't think so. I like her, sure, but it's not like what you described. So if you're right about that being true love... then no, I'm not really in love with her."

I don't know what emotion I was feeling exactly, because I had my hands under my thighs to hide the ring, but it was something like a bird taking flight in my stomach and fluttering around in my chest. 

"Are you cold?" he asked suddenly.

I shook my head, biting my lip. I knew where this was going.

Harry's hand raised slowly to my forehead. " _Merlin_ , Lucy, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I lied, glancing away. 

"You say that every time, Lu," he said softly.

I didn't say anything in response. There was nothing I _could_ say, nothing to make it better. I just kept my eyes straight forward, praying he wouldn't notice the almost-full moon overhead.

"Cedric and the twins don't know about Maxence, do they?" I asked, hoping the change of topic would stop him from sounding so sad.

It worked. 

"No, I was the only one who heard. Fleur cornered him as everyone was leaving the feast. I just happened to be walking by. Why do you ask?"

I chuckled. "Just making sure he hasn't been sent to the Hospital Wing."

"He hasn't been. One of his friends fixed his knees." Harry glanced at me. "Malfoy, on the other hand-"

"You didn't do anything, did you?" 

"No, I didn't," he said. "I came straight here. I'll deal with him tomorrow, I just had to make sure you were alright."

"I'm alright," I replied. "Please don't do anything. I don't want you getting in trouble. Merlin knows what Rita Skeeter would do if she found out about any of this."

"Fine, fine, I won't do anything. But if you see me talking to Moody after class and a ferret runs past you an hour later..."

We both started laughing at that thought, and we took turns throwing out other animals for Professor Moody to try. After a couple minutes, we decided to head back up to the common room. He flashed a middle finger at the Beauxbatons carriage as we walked past, knowing no one would see it but wanting to make the statement anyway, making me laugh even more.

Feeling oddly brave all of a sudden, I lunged forward and caught his hand in mine, intertwining our fingers. 

"You can't go around doing that, Mr. Triwizard Champion," I scolded jokingly.

"Anyone who stands you up deserves it," he replied, though he didn't try to free his hand. Quite the contrary, he started swinging our hands back and forth in dramatic arcs. 

When we had almost reached the castle, I grew more serious and tightened my hold on his hand ever so slightly. "Never leave me, will you?"

Harry stopped and turned to face me. "Why would I?"

"I know you wouldn't," I said softly. "I just needed to hear it. It's been a day, you know?"

"I can imagine," he replied, starting to walk again, slower this time. His hand tightened around mine. "Don't worry, Lu. You'll have to put up with me until we graduate."

My bravery hadn't reached its end yet. "I'd like to put up with you forever, actually," I said.

Harry smiled. "Forever's a long time."

"So I might as well spend it with someone who understands me as well as you do."

"I guess you're right," he said after a moment.

"Of course I am," I replied in the best sassy voice I could muster. "Admit it. You're stuck with me, Potter."

"Tragic," he said in a voice so sarcastic I knew he was kidding. 

I smiled, and we didn't say much else until we parted ways in the common room and headed up to our respective dormitories.

Hermione rushed over as soon as the door opened. "Soooo, how'd it go?" she asked, smiling like she expected me to start gushing about Maxence. Lavender and Parvati looked over, looking equally excited.

I laughed, the whole situation now seeming incredibly ridiculous. "He stood me up."

"He... what? He did?"

I nodded, still laughing. "Yeah, he did. Apparently Malfoy paid him 50 Galleons to ask me then never show up."

" _What?_ " all three girls shouted indignantly.

"Yeah!"

"But... I don't understand," Hermione said in a softer voice, biting her lip.

I shrugged. "Yeah. Pretty awful thing to do, but I suppose 50 Galleons is 50 Galleons. I can't really blame him."

"No, that's not- well, I don't understand that either, but-"

"What is it...?"

A slow smile spread across her face. "Lucy, who told you about Malfoy?"

"Well, Fleur Delacour was the one who overheard him talking about the 50 Galleons. Harry was the one who told me Malfoy was the one who put him up to it."

"So you've been with Harry for the past hour or so?"

I nodded. "Something like that. Why?"

Hermione held up her hand, grinning triumphantly.

My half of the ring was bright red.

* * *

_Long after Harry and Ron had retired to their dormitories, Hermione was still awake, skimming book after book, searching desperately for anything that would help Harry. The only other people in the room were the Weasley twins, heads bent low over whatever new project they had started._

_When Hermione simply couldn't focus anymore, she closed her book and went to see what they were doing. The twins had always fascinated her, though she was loath to admit it. They were rule-breakers after all, and Hermione very much was not. But still... she had to admit they were brilliant._

_"What made you two realize?" she asked. "About Lucy, I mean?"_

_"We were writing a letter," George replied, "and I looked at the window seat where she always sits. I noticed how bright it was outside, checked my astronomy homework, and put two and two together."_

_"When did you find out?" Fred inquired._

_"First year."_

_"Did she tell you, or did you have to figure it out?"_

_"Merlin, no. She was really shaken up by it for a while, too, because I was the first person to actually connect the dots and ask her."_

_"Must be exhausting trying to keep something so big a secret from almost everyone," George commented sympathetically. "I mean, she trusts us, right? Why didn't she tell us?"_

_"Well, look at what happened to Professor Lupin. You know, it seemed to me like she might have started telling people if it had worked out alright for Professor Lupin, but now she's going to guard her secret more closely than ever. Especially with Rita Skeeter on her tail."_

_Fred snorted. "Was that a pun?"_

_Hermione blinked. "An unintentional one, I suppose. Point being, every time she starts to think maybe it's not so bad, something new comes along and forces her back into hiding." She sighed. "I'm glad she has you two now. I just wish she'd tell Harry."_

_"What do you think she'd do if he figured it out on his own and asked about it?"_

_Hermione laughed suddenly. The twins exchanged a confused look._

_"What's so funny?" George asked._

_Hermione eventually stopped laughing long enough to say, "If he hasn't figured it out by now, he never will."_

_"Doesn't he suspect she might be hiding something? I mean, you'd think after three and a half year's worth of excuses every single month, he'd be at least a little suspicious. We certainly were."_

_She shrugged. "I love Harry, but not because I understand him." She sighed. "Speaking of, I should probably go to bed. Another day of searching tomorrow. Good night, boys."  
_

_"Good night, Hermione!" they called after her._

* * *

_Henry was still awake, too. Cedric wasn't on patrol that night, meaning if Henry wanted to, he could roll over onto his other side and study his friend's sleeping face without fear of Cedric noticing. But he didn't. He kept his back firmly to his friend while his fingers absently bent the corner of the piece of parchment hidden under his pillow.  
_

_Lucy wasn't the only person who had always hated Valentine's Day. Henry had never understood why he hated it so much... until that year. First, he had to listen to Cedric talk so excitedly about his plans with Cho for the day. Then he had to watch as girls who either didn't know he and Cho were together or elected to ignore that inconvenient fact slipped Cedric notes in class asking to be his chosen date for Valentine's Day. And then Valentine's Day itself... well, that had always been a fiasco for Cedric. At least that year hadn't brought any love potions, entertaining though that was.  
_

_The night before Valentine's Day, Henry had written his first love letter. For the first time, he confessed to himself just how madly in love he was. He wrote about grey eyes and yellow jerseys, sitting side-by-side in class and rushing toward each other every September 1, early morning practices and late night conversations. Henry knew he would never --- could never --- actually give this letter to his best friend. His intention was to write it then burn it, as if doing so would burn away these feelings he knew he would never --- could never --- actually express._

_But he wouldn't --- couldn't --- burn it. So instead he kept it tucked under his pillow, and as he stared up at the full moon, he bent the corner, straightened it out, then bent it again._

_Henry had always hated Valentine's Day. And now he knew why._

* * *

The day before the task was upon us altogether too soon. Harry had been extra jumpy the whole week --- with less than 24 hours to go, he seemed on the brink of explosion. 

I didn't know what Cedric was planning, but I did know that he knew what he was doing. The anxiety of neither boy knowing what to do might have been too much for me to handle. But we could find no solution for Harry, so, the night before the task, all four members of the quintessential quirky quartet were poring over book after book. Harry sat in between Ron and me; Hermione was too anxious to sit, so she paced back and forth with her face mere inches from the book in her hands.

Ron snapped his book shut. “I don’t reckon it can be done. There’s nothing. _Nothing_. Closest was that thing to dry up puddles and ponds, that Drought Charm, but that was nowhere near powerful enough to drain the lake.”

“Don't be ridiculous, Ron, there must be something. They’d never have set a task that was undoable,” Hermione snapped.

Ron shook his head. “Well, they have. Harry, just go down to the lake tomorrow, right, stick your head in, yell at the merpeople to give back whatever they’ve nicked, and see if they chuck it out. Best you can do, mate.”

“There’s a way of doing it,” I said, massaging the knot in my neck with my fingers. 

Harry laid his head down on the desk. “I know what I should have done. I should’ve learned to be an Animagus like Sirius.”

“Yeah, you could’ve turned into a goldfish any time you wanted!” Ron added.

“Or a frog,” Harry mumbled sleepily. 

"Frogs are neat," I commented, half-asleep myself. "But I don't think you get to choose."

"Besides," Hermione said in a very disapproving voice, "it takes years to become an Animagus, and then you have to register yourself and everything. Professor McGonagall told us, remember? You’ve got to register yourself with the Improper Use of Magic Office, what animal you become, and your markings, so you can’t abuse it.”

Harry lifted his head. “Hermione, I was joking. I know I haven’t got a chance of turning into a frog by tomorrow morning.”

"We'll find something," I assured him, turning back to my book with renewed vigor. But it was short-lived; Hermione snapping her book shut distracted me.

“Oh, this book is no use. Who on earth wants to make their nose hair grow into ringlets?”

A new voice, belonging to Fred Weasley himself, responded. “I wouldn’t mind. Be a talking point, wouldn’t it?”

I crumpled up a piece of parchment and threw it over my shoulder.

The "How did you manage that?" that followed informed me I had hit my target.

"I have superpowers, remember?" I replied dryly, not even bothering to look up from my book. "What brings you two to the library? Did Percy's spirit possess you?"

“Looking for you,” George replied.

My head snapped up, and I finally turned to face them.

“McGonagall wants you, Ron, and Hermione,” he continued.

“Why?” Hermione asked immediately.

Fred shrugged. “Dunno... she was looking a bit grim, though.”

“We’re supposed to take you down to her office.”

The three of us turned to look at Harry, who looked back at us halfway between panic for himself and concern for us.

“We’ll meet you back in the common room,” Hermione said.

Ron reluctantly stood up. “Bring as many of these books as you can, okay?”

“Right,” Harry replied, still looking on the verge of a breakdown.

"We'll be right back," I said. I stood up even more reluctantly than Ron. "I promise. Okay?"

He nodded, sighing quietly as he turned back to his work.

"D'you think McGonagall's upset that we're helping him?" Ron asked in an undertone as we walked.

"What choice do we have?" I replied, fighting to keep my voice level. "He's the youngest competitor, and he didn't even enter."

Hermione started to say "The rules of the Tournament still-" but Ron and I silenced her with a single shared look.

"Lucy has a point," Fred piped up. "We don't think you are in trouble. She looked more sad and worried than anything."

"Yeah, maybe she wants to tell you three something that will help Harry," George said.

"But that would be chea-"

"Hermione, I'd rather Harry be alive because he cheated than dead because he didn't," Ron snapped.

"Whatever it is, we're about to find out," I said, gesturing to the door ahead of us.

"Best of luck, you three!" Fred called as the door closed. I smiled back at him, but my smile faded at the sight of the other people's faces in the room. Grim was a good descriptor, I decided.

"Come in, come in," Professor McGonagall said, conjuring up three chairs for us next to a little girl, who looked like a carbon copy of Fleur. "We're just waiting for the Headmaster and Mr. Bagman."

I took the seat next to the girl and smiled; she looked as scared as I felt. "Hi, I'm Lucy. Lucy Diggory." I extended a hand, which she accepted.

"Gabrielle Delacour," she said. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too." 

Before we could talk further, Professor Dumbledore entered the room with Ludo Bagman. My jaw clenched instinctively at the sight of him; as soon as we were allowed to leave, I had to tell the twins he was on school grounds. They'd get another chance to talk to him in the morning.

He assumed command of the room with a loud clap of his hands. "Excellent, excellent! All four treasures are here!"

"Treasures?" Hermione repeated, sounding offended.

"That's right!" he replied with a toothy grin. "Now, you all know the second task of the Triwizard Tournament is tomorrow morning! The stands are set up, the reporters are on standby, the judges are ready to award points. But... there's one thing missing: you."

"Us?" Ron repeated.

"What he means," Professor Dumbledore said, "is that tomorrow morning, the four champions will dive into the Black Lake in search of a particular thing they would sorely miss."

Professor McGonagall swallowed and nodded. "For Mr. Potter, for instance, that would be you, Mr. Weasley. Miss Diggory and Miss Delacour will be retrieved by their siblings, meaning you, Miss Granger, will be retrieved by Mr. Krum."

I bit my lip to keep from smiling. Hermione blushed, looking quite flattered, whereas Ron looked downright murderous. When would they ever figure out they were perfect for each other? 

"But how?" Gabrielle piped up. 

Ludo Bagman was the first to respond. "I am so glad you asked, little Miss Delacour! Tonight, we will be putting the four of you under an enchanted sleep that will allow you to breathe underwater for the evening." 

I felt my heart drop to my toes. I was going to be underwater for the next... 12 hours? 13? 14? 15?

"Rest assured, it will be perfectly safe," Professor Dumbledore said, blue eyes resting briefly on me before looking away. "You will be asleep until your champion breaks the surface with you tomorrow. At that point, the trance will be broken, and you will never know you were underwater in the first place."

"Any questions?" Ludo asked. He waited for about half a second before clapping his hands together again. "Excellent! Let's head down to the Black Lake!"

I felt as if I were trying to walk through molasses. All this time I had spent worrying for Harry being underwater for an hour while I was going to be the one underwater for 12, 13, 14, 15, however many. Life was cruel and ironic and unforgiving.

We walked in silence except for Ludo Bagman's cheerful yet out of tune whistling. As soon as we stepped outside into the night, I found myself looking down at my feet, head lost in time.

I knew now where my fear of water first started. With each step I took, I relived that memory. Being swallowed by a wave. My dad's strong hands holding me above the water.

I had always known that above the water was the safest place to be. I hadn't been too scared of Jet Skiing with Cedric because I trusted him at the helm. We were above the water. He would make sure of it. Well... except for that one time he sent me off by accident. But it had been just the one time, and he had been right there to help me out.

It won't be terribly different this time, I told myself. You're safest above the water, sure, but you'll be safe under the water too, as long as Cedric is the one to save you.

That thought comforted me somewhat, until we reached the lakeshore.

"Professor, your time has come!" Bagman declared jovially. "Who would like to go first?"

"I will, I guess," Ron said, stepping forward. "Er... what do I need to do?"

"Perhaps it would be best to do them all at once," Professor McGonagall suggested.

"No need to frighten them more than necessary," Professor Dumbledore agreed. "Perhaps it would be easiest if you held hands. A single sweep of the charm may do the trick."

I slipped my hands into Ron's on my left and Gabrielle's on my right. Gabrielle's hand trembled violently, so I gave it a squeeze.

"We'll be alright," I said softly to her. "Your big sister will come to get you, and my big brother will come to get me. Okay?"

She nodded, lower lip trembling with fear and cold. I squeezed her hand a bit tighter and closed my eyes.

Suddenly, I felt my body getting heavier, heavier, heavier... 

_See you soon, Cedric..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hello hello hello! I hope you all enjoyed that chapter, because I had way too much fun writing it. The Valentine's Day Quidditch Pitch scene was heavily inspired by "What Do You Know About Love?" from the Frozen Broadway musical, so if you haven't listened to it, feel free to check it out! It's one of my favorite feel-good songs --- it never fails to make me smile. :) It was also what inspired the whole Maxence debacle in the first place... sorry, Lucy. But hey, all's well that ends well, eh?
> 
> Anyway, thank you all for reading! See you on Saturday with the second task!


	65. All Will Be Restored In Your Melody

_Dive in with your eyes closed  
For the life you were born to claim  
The water will be paralyzed  
By the courage you contain  
And the flutter of your earnest heart  
It will fill the silent seas  
And all will be restored in your melody_

_"Watermark"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

CEDRIC:

The night before the second task, my dreams were haunted by the merpeople's song. Over and over again it repeated, growing closer to me with each loop. When I thought it couldn't possibly get closer, I jolted awake. 

It was morning.

I draped my arm over my eyes and took a deep breath to shake off the eeriness of the night.

"Everything alright, Ced?" Henry asked.

I nodded, stifling a yawn. "Yeah, I'm alright. Just nervous, I guess."

"Well, that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard," he replied with a laugh. "Come off it, you've known for the past two months what you're going to do today."

"I just hope it works for the whole hour. Or longer... if something goes wrong."

"There's always ascendio. Don't be nervous, mate. This is nothing compared to those bloody dragons. You just have to do the charm, go underwater, get your broom, and come back up."

I couldn't help but laugh at his matter-of-fact way of putting it. "Where did you get the idea my broom would be at the bottom?"

"What else would you 'sorely miss?' Your hair gel?"

I threw my pillow at him. "You know I don't wear any."

"My point exactly. Your broom is the only thing I can think of that you'd sorely miss."

"I think I'd sorely miss _you_ , if _you_ were at the bottom of the lake. I think."

He pressed a hand to his chest. "I'm touched. But I'm still here."

"How tragic," I replied jokingly. "Now can I have my pillow back, please?"

"Nope. Time to get up. You've got a broom to save."

I dug through my drawer for something else to throw at him, but he threw my pillow back at me --- hitting me square in the face --- before I got the chance.

"Rude," I said with a muffled voice, making him laugh.

"Someone's got to do it," he replied. "I'll see you at breakfast."

I lowered the pillow from my face. "Yeah, see you there."

With a heavy sigh, I pushed myself out of bed. One thing I had always appreciated about Henry was how normal he made me feel. I could tease him like that without worrying about hurting his feelings. I could confess my deepest insecurities to him without worrying about him turning around and telling the entire school about Cedric Diggory's inner world. Henry had never once put me on a pedestal, and I loved him for it.

The morning passed in a blur of "Good luck!"s and claps on the back. Nearly everyone had something they wanted to say to me, with one notable exception: Lucy was nowhere to be found. She always found me before Quidditch matches to give me a quick hug and wish me luck, even when we were playing Gryffindor. And after she had been so faithfully at my side before the dragon task, it was a bit unsettling not to see her anywhere. Scratch that... very unsettling. 

I tried not to think about it. She was okay... she had to be.

Henry and Cho slipped out ahead of the crowd with me so we could head down to the Black Lake undisturbed. The stands that had been used for the dragon task were now erected around the lake --- and there appeared to be a first aid tent as well. I knew from experience it was better to be safe than sorry, but the sight of it still made me uneasy. The dock was a hub of activity, and Professor Dumbledore waved me over when he saw me.

"Well, good luck," Henry said, clapping me on the shoulder. "Not that you need it, of course."

I grinned. "Thanks."

Cho stood on her tiptoes to give me a kiss, and I snaked my hands around her waist. 

I grinned as I let myself get lost in her eyes. "I know you like stealing my jumpers because you swear they're warmer than yours, but after an hour in that water..."

"Don't worry," she said sweetly, gesturing to the baggy Hufflepuff sweater she was wearing over her robes. "You can have it back once you're out of the water. Only for today, though, this one is my favorite."

"Deal," I replied, kissing her temple one last time.

"Be sure to get that broom back," Henry called as I walked away. "It'll be hard to win the Quidditch Cup next year without it."

"You'll have to get past me first!" Cho protested, punching Henry's shoulder.

I walked backwards for a second and grinned. "One thing at a time, sweetheart."

I turned back around and made my way to the dock. I was only waiting two more minutes before Fleur showed up, then only two more minutes for Viktor. We made small talk as the stands began to fill, though I'll admit I was fairly distracted trying to look for Lucy. I watched Henry and Cho find seats with Archie and Cam, but Lucy wasn't with them. To my surprise, she wasn't with the Weasley twins either, or with the Gryffindors in her year.

I tried to will away my worries so I could focus on the lake beneath my feet, but I couldn't.

I had been growing increasingly worried for Lucy over the course of the past year or so. Finding out we were never biological siblings had done nothing to change how we felt about each other --- we would always be brother and sister, genetically or otherwise --- but I could only imagine how she must have felt about herself. It certainly explained why Dad had always... well, been Dad. No matter how many times I tried to shift attention off of myself and onto Lucy, I was always the favored child. The hope of having another family out there that loved her as their own must have had a significant impact on her, for better or for worse, even though she never voiced this to me.

Then came the St. Mungo's internship. Not a day had gone by that I hadn't thought of her, hoping she was doing alright without me. The Weasleys took good care of her, as they always did, but it still made me anxious to be apart from her for so long. Every full moon was restless, and I always made sure she would have a letter from me waiting when she got back to the house in the morning. Surprising her the night before the Quidditch World Cup was great, and the match was by far one of the best experiences of my life.

Then came the attack afterward. I still had nightmares about the flames, nightmares where I woke up screaming her name. Nightmares about the Death Eaters, too, where I was sitting in the woods with my secretly Muggle-born sister under my arm and wondering if I would be enough to protect her if the Death Eaters came our way. 

Then came the Rita Skeeter articles. It seemed with every article, she came closer to the truth, somehow. And then the monthly cycle of watching Lucy get worse and worse until the full moon, and trying to help through the couple days of recovery afterward. 

To say her absence the morning before the second task was concerning would be an understatement. While on the surface there was nothing inherently bothersome about her not coming down for breakfast, the fourteen months of compounding worries... well, really, the fourteen months on top of the ten years since she was bitten... worrying for my sister was nothing new, but the weight of these compounding worries on the day of the second task was a lot to try to handle.

"Where is Harry?" Fleur asked suddenly, glancing around.

I blinked and looked around to see for myself. Surely enough, Harry wasn't there, either.

Half a second later, I spotted a fast-moving blur on the horizon.

"He's on his way," I said, gesturing with my chin in his direction.

"Little sleepyhead?" Viktor wondered aloud with a laugh.

"Possibly," Fleur giggled. "Well, we can probably strip to our swimsuits now."

I nodded and pulled my robes over my head to reveal the yellow jersey beneath. Harry had reached us by the time I had folded my robes back up and set them behind me.

"I'm here!" he panted, struggling to pull his robes off.

Percy Weasley scowled in his direction. “Where have you been? The task’s about to start!”

“Now, now, Percy! Let him catch his breath!” Ludo Bagman said with a wide grin.

"Harry," I said under my breath as he balled up his robes and tossed them down.

He blinked and glanced up at me, still breathing heavily. "Yeah?"

"Have you seen Lucy this morning, by any chance?"

He shook his head. "No. Fell asleep in the library. She left with Ron and Hermione last night around eight, never came back. Figured they would be in the stands."

Before we could talk further, Ludo Bagman grabbed Harry by the shoulders and moved him further down the platform. All four of us were about ten feet apart. I swallowed my worry, a hot coal that burned all the way down my throat, and drew my wand. I had to survive this hour, then I would find Lucy. Maybe she had overslept, too, somehow. She _had_ looked more tired than usual lately...

Ludo Bagman's voice rang out. "Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them. On the count of three, then." I drew a deep breath and released it in a shaky sigh.

_Get to the bottom, and get the broom..._

_"_ One..."

_Or whatever's down there..._

"Two..."

_And get right back up, nothing to it..._

"Three!"

I performed the bubble-head charm and dove in. 

The Black Lake was nothing like Lake Tahoe, I can say that much. In Tahoe, I could see several feet down without issue. In the Black Lake, I could barely see my hand in front of my face. 

Harry was nowhere to be seen. Viktor --- who was now half-shark --- cut through the water and took an early lead. Fleur had used the same charm I had and kept pace with me for a while, but we got separated in the middle of what appeared to be a kelp forest. When I emerged from the kelp, I was alone several feet deep in the Black Lake.

I swam toward what I hoped was the center of the lake, looking for any sign of activity. But after swimming for what felt like an eternity, the only signs of life I had seen were small schools of fish and grindylows. I kept them at bay with a handful of useful charms I had found in a book written by a Latvian witch who had built herself an underwater mansion in the Baltic Sea. 

I checked my watch. Thirty-seven minutes had passed.

I swore under my breath and laid my wand flat on my palm.

"Point me," I said, my panic levels rising.

My wand whirled around, confirming I had been swimming west when I should have been swimming south. The kelp forest must have disoriented me. I gripped my wand tightly and changed direction, swimming for all I was worth. I spotted Krum's shark head in the water behind me after about ten minutes, and Fleur, too. Both looked as if they'd had a particularly nasty time with the grindylows, because they were swimming more slowly than they had started and were bleeding out of a couple of minor cuts, but the three of us were all alive, alright, and heading in what we hoped was the right direction.

Finally, I saw the distinct dark green hair of merpeople. I put on a burst of speed, seeing that Harry was already there... but he wasn't the only person already there.

Lucy was there too. Her braids floated limply in the water, her chin resting on her chest. 

_She_ was what I would sorely miss.

I swam over to Harry, who was hacking at Ron's ropes with a rock. Ron was between Hermione and Lucy, and to Lucy's right was a little girl who looked like Fleur's sister.

I pulled a knife from my pocket and started sawing at Lucy's ropes, panting as I explained, “Got lost! Fleur and Krum’re coming now, I think!”

Harry tried talking, but bubbles were all that came out. 

"Sorry, didn't catch that," I said.

Harry pointed to Lucy emphatically. He then pointed up to the surface, then back at Lucy, then back at the surface.

"Go!" he said, that much being clear even through the bubbles. "Fast!"

"Aren't you going too?" I asked, cutting through the last bit of the thick ropes around Lucy's ankles. "Your ropes are cut."

He shook his head. He pointed to himself, then his watch, then out at the water, then at Hermione and Fleur's sister. 

"You'll wait for the others?" I guessed.

He pointed at Lucy again, then up at the surface, then pushed me toward my sister. "GO!"

"Thanks, Harry," I said, grabbing Lucy around the waist and kicking up off the bottom. Just as I kicked off, Fleur arrived and started hacking at her sister's ropes. Viktor swam over once I was about six feet up, meaning all of the hostages would be safe. I pulled Lucy tighter to me and kicked with all I was worth up to the surface, praying whatever charm had been placed on her to keep her asleep would last just a couple seconds longer. I had no idea how much time was left in the hour, but it felt like it had been an eternity. 

With a final strong kick, I breached the surface. The crowds erupted, and Ludo Bagman announced something, but my only concern in the moment was for my sister, who had just experienced her own personal hell. Lucy gasped beside me, then choked and coughed up a bit of water. The spell had been broken, and she was very much awake.

"I'm here, I'm here," I murmured, keeping a firm grip around her and heading toward the shore. "I've got you." 

As soon as we had reached shallow enough water for Lucy to stand, I pulled her to her feet and wrapped an arm around her violently shaking shoulders. I pushed my wet hair back from my face and made my way over to a frantically-gesturing Madam Pomfrey, who ushered us into a tent.

"She's terrified of the water," I explained in a low voice to Madam Pomfrey. I guided Lucy to a chair and draped a blanket around her. "I'm right here. You're safe. You're out of the water."

Lucy nodded, but I could tell from how much she was struggling to breathe that she was hurtling toward a panic attack. I knelt in front of her and laid a gentle hand on her knee.

Madam Pomfrey draped a blanket around my shoulders. "Take care of yourself, too," she said in my ear.

I nodded and glanced up at her gratefully. "Thanks." I hadn't even realized how cold I was. 

I looked back at Lucy and tightened the blanket around her. "I'm here, Lu. You're alright."

"I... I..." Lucy's voice was little more than a hoarse whisper. "Ced... th- the- the d- dr-"

She started gasping for air, unable to keep talking. I reached forward and took both of her hands in mine. "I'm here. You're safe."

I could feel her rapid pulse in her fingers as her grip tightened like a vice. This was getting bad.

I brought her hands to my chest, knowing that as long as I stayed calm, she would eventually be calm too. "Breathe with me, okay? Focus on what I do."

I inhaled slowly through my nose, then waited until she did the same. Then I exhaled through my mouth, and Lucy's grip loosened a tiny bit. 

"Good," I whispered. "Good. Let's try again."

After four more breaths, a second eruption from the crowd informed me that someone else had broken the surface. Lucy jumped at the sudden sound.

"I'll bring bring everything out to them, you two stay here," Madam Pomfrey said, briefly touching my shoulder as she hurried from the tent.

"It's just us now, Lu. You're alright. You're safe." I rubbed my thumb against her hand. "It's okay. That loud sound just means someone else is back. You're alright. Let's take another breath."

After a few more breaths, Lucy lunged forward and threw her arms around my neck, clinging to me as if her life depended on it, still trembling violently.

"I wasn't scared last night," she said, her voice strained still but calmer. "I knew you'd come for me. You always do."

"I always will."

Her hold tightened. "I know."

After a couple more seconds, she shivered. Her blanket had fallen from her shoulders when she had launched herself at me. I released her and reached for it, draping it around her. I reached for the two cups of pepperup potion on the table as well, and made sure she drank all of hers before having my own. 

I settled into the chair next to her and wrapped my arm --- and by extension, my blanket --- around her shoulders. She automatically buried her head against my chest, covering her eyes with a fist and taking a deep breath in sync with me.

"Good," I said. "Keep breathing like that. You're okay."

She nodded in response and took another deep breath. I rubbed my hand up and down her arm in time with each breath.

Henry and Cho's heads appeared in the opening of the tent, but when they saw Lucy, they glanced up at me. 

"Later," I mouthed to them, and they nodded in understanding and disappeared.

The crowd erupted a third time, then a fourth time ten seconds later, meaning the last two people were back.

"That's everyone," I said softly to Lucy. "Everyone's back."

She nodded, relaxing a bit more. 

I peered through the opening to see what was going on. Harry and Ron were staggering to shore. As soon as Harry reached the rocks, he scanned the crowd of people in blankets and called out to Hermione, but before he could reach her, Madam Pomfrey wrapped a blanket around his shoulders and poured the pepperup potion down his throat.

A boy I faintly recognized from the Quidditch match in January appeared in the opening less than a minute later, but only for a second. A hand grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back with an impressive amount of force. I was even more impressed when I saw the hand belonged to Harry, whose other hand was holding his wand in such a way he looked ready to duel him on the spot.

"You don't get to show up only when it's convenient for you," Harry spat. "You don't get to pick and choose when you're a friend and when you're not. If you really care about someone, you're there even when you have a million reasons not to be. You left her in the cold on Valentine's Day. Now clear off before Fleur sees you here and decides your knees would look better bending the other direction."

Harry shoved his wand into the pocket of his swim trunks and hurried into the tent. He made brief eye contact with me before dropping to a knee in front of Lucy.

"Hey, Lu," he said in a completely different voice than the one he had just used with the Beauxbatons boy. "You alright?"

Lucy lowered her fist from her face and sat up a bit straighter. She managed a small smile. "Do you remember what I told you the night you lost your bloody egg by throwing it down the stairs?"

"I didn't-" Lucy raised her eyebrows, and his protest died on his lips. He sighed resignedly, trying not to smile. "That you'd never go underwater willingly no matter how pretty the merpeople's song was? And that you hated water in general?"

"Yeah. That's it."

"And all this time, _you_ were worried about _me_. You're lucky you didn't decide to sleepwalk last night, you know. I know you can deal with grindylows while awake, but asleep?"

To my surprise, Lucy started laughing. "How dare you. I think I would be perfectly fine, thank you very much."

Harry grinned. "Yeah, you're alright." He glanced at me. "Want to go get our scores?"

I turned to Lucy. "Are you ready to head back out there?"

She nodded and sat up, pulling her blanket around her shoulders. "Yeah. Let's go see how you two did."

As soon as we stepped out of the tent, Hermione rushed over to Lucy, firing about ten different questions at her at once. With her distracted, I grabbed Harry by the elbow and pulled him off to the side. 

"Who was that kid?" I asked in a low voice. "The one who tried to come in?"

"Lucy'll kill me for telling you, but that was Maxence I-don't-know-something-French. Draco Malfoy paid him 50 Galleons on Valentine's Day to ask Lucy to go on a 'date' with him then never show up."

I raised my eyebrows, hand going instinctively to my wand. "He _what_? Where is he, I just want to talk-"

"Don't worry, I think Fleur reversing his kneecaps sent a clear enough message on Valentine's Day. Hopefully he's gone for good after I..." He paused and cocked his head at me. "I was a bit harsh, wasn't I?"

I chuckled. "I can guarantee I would have said something very similar, though I probably would have been far less eloquent."

"I've been waiting for my chance," he admitted with a sheepish shrug. "She didn't tell me herself about what he did, so don't feel bad about not knowing. I only know because I happened to walk by while Fleur was hexing him. I found Lucy in the Quidditch Pitch and stayed with her for a while. She-" He cut himself off with a laugh. "She didn't want you or the twins to know because she was worried the three of you might kill him."

I considered this for a moment. " _I_ wouldn't have killed him, but I would have taught him a new hex or two. The twins, however..."

The two of us laughed, vivid images of various forms of Weasley twin revenge flitting through our heads. Just before the scores were announced, I turned to Harry.

"Thanks for taking care of her," I said. "That night, and down in the lake."

He shrugged me off, glancing away --- in Lucy's direction, I noticed. "Of course. I know she hates the water. I was worried the charm would wear off if she was under longer than an hour. And Maxence... well, Lucy deserves better than that."

In the silence that followed, I studied Harry with new interest. I had never _dis_ liked him, but I reckoned I had never liked him more than I did in that moment. He would be good for Lucy. Really good.

I nodded. "Yeah, she does." _And I think you could be that person,_ I added to myself.

Ludo Bagman started speaking then, effectively ending the conversation. I went to stand with Henry and Cho, giving Cho a quick kiss before pulling my blanket tighter around my shoulders. It really _was_ cold. 

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows. Cedric Diggory, who used the bubble-head charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour. We therefore award him forty-seven points."

"That puts you at 85!" Cho informed me over the roar of the Hufflepuffs in the crowd. 

I smiled and waved appreciatively, glad my score was the first to be announced.

"Fleur Delacour, who also put the bubble-head charm to excellent, was second to return with her hostage. We therefore award her 43 points!"

"81 total," Cho said. "You're still in the lead!"

"Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points."

"I got this one," Henry said with exaggerated bravado that made me laugh. "I do believe Mr. Viktor Krum is now at 80 points, because 40 plus 40 equals 80."

"You _can_ add!" I teased him, earning myself a swat to the back of my head.

"Shove off, Diggory," he replied.

"Harry Potter used gillyweed to great effect. He returned last, and well outside the time limit of an hour. However, the Merchieftainess informs us that Mr. Potter was first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to return all hostages to safety, not merely his own. Most of the judges feel that this shows moral fiber and merits full marks. However, Mr. Potter’s score is forty-five points."

"You two are tied!" Cho exclaimed. 

I flashed Harry a thumbs-up, which he returned. Lucy looked back and forth between the pair of us, still looking pale and a bit shaken but definitely better.

Ludo Bagman made one last announcement. "The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June. The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions."

"The eight of you need to head up to the castle to get into warm, dry clothes now!" Madam Pomfrey called. 

We all nodded, shivering in the chill breeze. Henry jumped on my back suddenly, wrapping his arms and legs around me.

"Now you can warm up with exercise _and_ steal my body heat!" he announced. "You're welcome!"

"Gee, thanks," I grunted, rolling my eyes. I looked at Cho. "I think I'd rather steal my jumper back, if you don't mind."

"Only for today," she reminded me.

I nodded. "All I need."

Lucy ran up to me. "I'm going to start with Harry's party today since I'm heading up to my dormitory to change anyway, but I'll come down in a couple of hours, I promise."

"No worries, Lu, you can stay up there the whole time if you want. I won't be offended."

She shook her head. "I'm 50/50 on the celebrations. I made that rule for myself the night you were both chosen."

"Oy, Cub, stop fraternizing with the enemy!" came the call of a Weasley twin. 

She stuck her tongue out at whichever one it was and turned back to me with an innocent smile. "See you later!"

With that, she turned on her heel and went to join her brothers and sisters in Gryffindor red.

"You know you're a miracle worker, right?" Henry asked as we watched her go.

I leaned my head back in a vain attempt to make eye contact with the monkey on my back. "What?"

"You brought her from panic attack to _that_ in a matter of minutes."

"Harry did it, really," I said. "He made her laugh."

"Are they a couple yet?"

I shook my head. "Not yet."

"Well, they should be," Henry asserted. "They're best friends, _that_ much is obvious. But anyway, Ced, you were the one who got her to a place where she could laugh. We heard the whole thing, we just waited until she was calm to see if we could come in. Oh, by the way, who was that kid Harry was talking to? Something about Valentine's Day?"

I pursed my lips, debating how much to say. "Have I ever told you how much Lucy hates Valentine's Day?"

"I don't think so." Henry's voice seemed a bit flat. Did he hate Valentine's Day, too? But when he spoke again, his tone was back to joking. "Did the love potion incident her first year traumatize her?"

"I _will_ drop you," I threatened. "I would like to forget that night ever happened. But yeah, that's probably why."

"Oh, you know I'll never let you live that down. You should give that girl a snickerdoodle at her graduation this year. Jenna, was it?"

I laughed. "Henry Furls, you have the _worst_ ideas. And I love them."

* * *

I did see Cam come into the common room, grab Archie by the arm, and leave in a hurry. I just assumed they were going to have a quick snog in the privacy of the hallway and come back. They did it often enough; it wouldn't have surprised me. But when the party was winding down and they still hadn't returned, I began to think their snog had turned into a shag.

I couldn't have been more wrong. 

Cho left the common room with ten minutes left to curfew. As soon as she left, Archie and Cam came back in. 

"What's wrong?" I asked, knowing all too well the haunted look they shared. Something horrible had happened.

Cam opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. Archie looked at her a second longer before turning to me. 

"Her brother got sick in December," Archie said, more serious than I had ever seen him. "He- well, they thought he was doing better. But last night... she just found out today..."

Cam sobbed suddenly, and Archie immediately wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders. 

I immediately cleared a spot on the couch for the pair to sit, while Henry and I --- the only other people in the common room --- took seats in the nearest armchairs. The two of us exchanged a look rife with meaning.

"I'll go talk to the house elves about hot chocolate," Henry said softly. 

I nodded, hoping he understood my unspoken message of _Good idea_. "Cam likes hers with peanut butter," I called after him, earning myself the tiniest bit of a smile from Cam.

"Nobody really knows she even has a brother," Archie whispered. "And the girls in her dormitory would tear her to shreds just to get a rise out of her. We... well, we thought it would be safest here."

I nodded. "I'm sure Hannah and Susan and the others wouldn't mind if you stayed with them for a couple of days, Cam."

"B-But Professor... Professor Snape..."

"I'm a prefect," I said. "I'll talk to Professor Sprout first, get her approval, then tell Professor Snape. He won't be able to undo what Professor Sprout agreed to, and I know for a fact she will agree."

"I c-can do it tonight?" she asked, looking up with tears coursing down her olive cheeks.

"As soon as you're feeling better, I'll go straight to Professor Sprout's office," I replied. "I'm guessing the peanut butter hot chocolate Henry's fetching will help a little bit." I inched my chair closer to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Just let it out, it's alright. You're safe here. Don't bottle it up, or you'll explode."

"He... he was too young," she choked out. "He was... he was... just three more days..."

"He would have turned eleven on Monday," Archie explained in a low voice. "Frankie couldn't wait to get his letter. It was all he could talk about."

"He said he wanted to be just like me, he didn't care that I was a Slytherin," Cam sobbed. 

Archie stroked Cam's hair as her cries intensified. "Green was his favorite color."

"And he... he would always tell me that snakes are cooler than lions... Mum got him a book full of facts about snakes when he was really little, and he would... he would ask me to read it to him... that's how he learned to read, really, he memorized it when I read it to him and... and... and now he'll never get to... he..."

"Shh." Archie pulled her close to himself and rocked her slowly back and forth. I absorbed the scene in silence, trying to think of something, _anything_ I could do to help. I had been the one to comfort a number of grieving family members over the summer, but it was so different when you knew the mourner even if you didn't know the mourned.

Henry returned a couple minutes later with four mugs full to the brim, but I couldn't bring myself to bring it to my lips. My stomach hurt with the grief I felt for Cam. She was the happiest, giggliest, bubbliest person I had ever known. To see her sobbing so brokenly broke me, too. I couldn't even begin to imagine how Archie felt, holding the girl he loved as her world fell apart. If something like that ever happened to Cho...

"I'm going to go talk to Professor Sprout now," I said softly. "I'll talk to Professor Snape in the morning."

As I expected, Professor Sprout wasted no time in making the fourth year girls' room as comfortable as possible for Cam. Archie walked her up to the dormitory, leaving me alone in the common room with Henry.

He nudged my untouched cup of hot chocolate closer to me. "You've done everything you can for tonight, Ced. Come on, I kept it warm for you for a reason."

"Thanks, Henry." I reached forward and held the mug in my hands for a moment longer before taking a sip. Surely enough, the sweetness and the warmth did help. I leaned my elbows on my knees and sighed. "Well, today wasn't quite what I expected."

"Yeah, what kind of psychopath puts four kids at the bottom of the Black Lake?" Henry took a sip of hot chocolate. "Is Lucy alright now?"

"She still seems a bit shaken, but I know she'll be alright with a bit of time." I smiled to myself. "She did say she wasn't terribly scared last night because she knew I'd come to get her. Something about waking up actually in the water must have been alarming, though. I can't blame her. Even if I weren't as terrified of the water as she is, I can't imagine that would be a particularly pleasant experience."

Henry nodded, grinning. "Thank Merlin for Lucy. She spared Cho an unwanted bath."

"Yeah, either her or you."

"Me?"

I paused and looked up at him. "Of course, you. She's my girlfriend, sure, but you're my best friend. Lucy was the most obvious person, being my sister, but if she hadn't been able to do it, I bet they would have gone for you next."

Before he could reply, Archie returned.

"That was a good idea you had," he said as he flopped back onto the couch. "The girls practically shoved me out the door, and I heard something about coloring books. I think she'll be okay."

"She's got you," I said, "so she will be."

He dragged his hand down his face. "I feel so helpless. I don't know what to say, or what to do, and just holding her while she cries feels..."

"You're not helpless just because you were thrust into a difficult situation suddenly."

"Yeah, Archie, we know you," Henry said, turning in the chair to face him better. "You'll do anything --- and I mean _anything_ \--- for the people you love. Cam is in good hands with you, even if you don't know what to do right away. You'll learn."

Archie looked at me. "He was just so young. Cam is _still_ so young. _We_ are still so young. It's just... just not fair."

I shook my head. "Life isn't always, but I've learned that some things never change. The world can fall apart, yet keep spinning."

"That seems cruel," Archie said, reaching for his mug of hot chocolate.

"It doesn't have to be," I replied. I bit my lip, trying to think of a way to explain this. "My first year, there was a girl in Hufflepuff who died. Her portrait is across the hallway from the History of Magic classroom. I remember feeling that night like morning would never come again. I remember feeling like it should stay dark, that the world should stop turning long enough to let us grieve. But the sun rose in the morning, and it was one of the most beautiful sunrises I've ever seen." I paused. "I know it feels wrong to think of the sun rising tomorrow, like nothing happened tonight, but I think it can be a source of hope, too. Even if everything else in the world changes, you can still count on the sunrise, and the sunset, and the stars, and friends, and family, and this room being a safe place, just to name a few things. Some things never change."

Archie nodded slowly. "It doesn't sound quite so bad when you put it that way."

"It's still horrible, of course," I said. "I... I had to see a lot of people die over the summer. A lot of people who were too young, with so much more life left to live. I had to see a lot of people left behind, too, and do my best to comfort them. I know how much it hurts now, in the darkest part of it all, but when she's ready, there will be light again."

A brief moment of silence followed, and I wondered if I had said something wrong. But when Archie spoke again, a part of his typical goofy grin was back.

"Can you say that all again so I can write it down? I want to tell her what you just said word for word, unless you want to tell her yourself in the morning."

"I can tell her if you want me to, but I think it would be best coming from you."

"I bet you could do it better."

"There's nobody better for her than you right now. She came in here to get you, not me."

Archie nodded, taking the hair tie out of his hair so it cascaded around his shoulders. "You're right. Well, I don't want to get scalped by Snape for trying to sneak back into our common room after curfew, so I'll probably just crash here tonight, if that's alright. I've been growing my hair out for too long now to let it go to waste."

I chuckled. "You know you can crash here anytime. Do you want some company, or would you rather be alone with your thoughts?"

"I can handle being on my own, don't worry. See you in the morning, and thanks for helping us out."

"Always have, always will," I said with a smile. "See you in the morning."

Henry and I took our mugs of hot chocolate, still half-full, and headed up to our dormitory. Our roommates were already sound asleep, so we changed into pajamas and got into bed as quietly as possible. I thought about getting into bed, but something held me back. So I sat on the edge instead, hot chocolate between my hands, and stared into space.

Henry pulled the curtains around us, sat next to me, and whispered a silencing charm.

"Alright, what is it?"

I closed my eyes. "I just haven't felt like this since St. Mungo's," I admitted.

"Like what?"

"Like... I don't know exactly." I opened my eyes again and looked into Henry's. "When you're surrounded by so much death, so much sorrow, you learn to put all of your hope in the light. You have to, or else you'll drown in the darkness around you. But... but even when you're doing that, the darkness is still there."

Henry was silent for a moment, eyes full with an emotion I couldn't read. "I remember that sunrise too. You were right, it was... beautiful."

I nodded. I reached over with one hand and grabbed my pillow, digging into the pillowcase in search of the piece of parchment I knew would be there. I pulled it out and showed Henry.

"'Have faith in the sunrise.'" I swallowed hard. "I've kept it in here for... years. I pull it out whenever I have nightmares. I never used it more than I did last summer. I just needed the reminder nearly every night that no matter how long the night is, the sun will always rise."

Henry nodded. "You're right." He was still looking at me in a way that suggested he was searching for something.

"I'm alright," I said, tucking the parchment away and returned my pillow to its position at the head of my bed. "Really. The second task is over, I have three months before I have to worry about the last one. Tonight just... brought me back to one of the darker times of my life. I'm glad I had that experience," I added quickly, "and I really do want to be a healer, honest I do. Making a positive difference for people makes me happier than anything else, and being a healer is the easiest way to do that consistently."

"It's okay," he interrupted gently. "You don't have to explain yourself, or defend yourself. I know." He looked down at his hands. "I would be shaken up, too. I mean, I _am_ , but more so if I were in your shoes. He just... well, it's like you said. So much life left to live." He paused again. "Death has a way of making you think about life."

I nodded. "I thought about both last summer, far often than I probably should have. And, well, I think I've lived this past year more intentionally than any other."

"How so?"

"Well... I've tried to make every moment more meaningful, so that I could look back one day and say I did everything I could to make the most of what time I had. Because... like Cam's brother, we don't always have much."

Henry nodded, still not glancing away from the cup in his hands. 

The two of us sat in silence a bit longer, lost in our own worlds. That's another thing I loved about Henry --- he understood the importance of silence, and the volumes it could speak.

"If-" he said suddenly, looking up at me. "If for whatever reason, something had gone wrong in the lake today... how would you have felt? About the life you lived?"

I finally recognized the emotion in his eyes. Desperation.

"Because if I were the competitor," he continued, "you would have been at the bottom of the lake. And, well, if I hadn't been able to get there in time, if something had gone wrong... how would you have felt?"

I paused for a moment. "I would be proud of the way I've lived this year. Listening more to myself than to my dad. Loving people more fearlessly and honestly. I... well, nothing did go wrong, Hen, so I want to live like this again next year, and every year after we graduate. So I guess what I'm trying to say is, well, if I were to have died today somehow, you could have known I was happy. Because I am, I really am. With you, with Cho, with Lu. With everything right now."

Henry nodded, looking away from me again. 

"What about you?"

He blinked. "Me?"

I nodded. "If you were in the lake today, and something had gone wrong, what would _you_ think about your life?"

"I-" He glanced at me for a second, looked away, then looked back. "I would be happy, too."

I smiled. "Well, that's good. I'd hate to think I've ruined your life these past five years."

He snorted. "Hardly." He lifted his mug to his lips and downed the last of his hot chocolate. "You said some things never change, right?"

"Right."

He grinned at me. "Add hot chocolate to that list."

"And snickerdoodles," I said, downing the last of my hot chocolate, too. "I can't wait for summer this year. Lucy's going to teach me how to make the recipe she perfected over summer. Merlin, hers are the best snickerdoodles I've ever had."

* * *

_If I die young bury me in satin  
Lay me down on a bed of roses  
Sink me in the river at dawn  
Send me away with the words of a love song_

_Lord make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother  
She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colors, and  
Life ain't always what you think it ought to be  
Ain't even grey, but she buries her baby_

_And I'll be wearing white when I come into your kingdom  
I'm as green as the ring on my little cold finger  
I've never known the loving of a woman  
But it sure felt nice when she was holding my hand  
There's a girl here in town says she'll love me forever  
Who would have thought forever could be severed by_

_The sharp knife of a short life, well  
I've had just enough time  
_

_If I die young bury me in satin  
Lay me down on a bed of roses  
Sink me in the river at dawn  
Send me away with the words of a love song_

_The sharp knife of a short life, well  
I've had just enough time_

_"If I Die Young"  
Michael Henry And Justin Robinett_


	66. How Brave I'd Be

_If I could rearrange my words,  
I’d say what I mean.  
If I could learn to count the cards,  
I’d risk everything.  
Imagine how brave I’d be  
If I knew I’d be safe.  
If I could only know the end,  
I’d be a prodigy of faith._

_"Pacific Blues"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

I tried to tell Cedric about the dream. The dream I had at the bottom of the Black Lake. 

The worst nightmare I had ever experienced.

But the words wouldn't come. I couldn't speak. I couldn't bring myself to talk about it. The words choked me. They refused to let me breathe. So once the storm passed, I instead I tried to tell him I hadn't been afraid. That I had known he would come for me. Because I did. I had known that, before I fell asleep.

Because, truthfully, it wasn't really being in the Black Lake itself that sent me over the edge. It was the nightmare.

I was awake at the bottom. Awake and alone. In the darkness, in the silence, in the cold. I was awake and alone at the bottom of the Black Lake, and I knew Cedric wasn't coming for me.

I didn't hear a voice telling me he wouldn't come. I didn't see any sign that he wouldn't come.

But I knew. I just knew. In my heart of hearts, my soul of souls, I knew that Cedric wasn't coming for me. Cedric wasn't coming to save the day like he always did. Cedric wasn't going to rescue me, and he never would again.

I knew in this nightmare that I was awake and alone at the bottom of the Black Lake. I knew in this nightmare that I would never see the light of day again. I knew in this nightmare that if I wanted to I could push off the bottom and swim to the top, but I knew in this nightmare that Cedric wouldn't be waiting for me whether I did or not. I knew in this nightmare that it would be so much easier just to stay on the bottom until I ran out of oxygen. 

And in this nightmare, I stayed on the bottom until my world turned black.

* * *

On Ron's birthday, I woke up on the early side to try to talk to him alone before the day really began --- which proved to be ineffective, because he was carried down the stairs on the shoulders of Harry, Neville, Seamus, and Dean while Fred and George sang a horrible birthday song at the top of their lungs. I tried again at lunch, then again at dinner, but he was still coasting on all of the publicity from the second task and therefore surrounded by people.

Everyone was keen to know what had happened down at the bottom of the lake. Ron was all too happy to tell them his side of the story, and it grew more and more impressive with every telling, but I tried to keep to myself. I was still embarrassed by the way I had fallen apart, and I was sorely tempted to tell at least Cedric and maybe Harry about my dream so they didn't think I was completely spineless, but every time I thought about it, I decided I was ridiculous for letting a silly little dream affect me so deeply and stuffed my uneasiness deeper down inside myself. 

My chance to talk to Ron finally came at the end of the day, when his party was over and nearly everyone had gone to bed. I grabbed my Chocolate Frog card --- _my_ Chocolate Frog card --- and went to sit beside him.

"Hey," I said as casually as I could.

He looked up. "Hey, Lucy. What's up?"

"Well, I wanted to show you this first, in the spirit of birthdays." I reluctantly passed him the card. "This is the card-"

"Harry always teases you about," he finished for me, flipping it over to read the back. Once he had skimmed it, he looked at the picture on the front again. "Cute picture. Who took it?"

"Cedric. He made the card for me too, for my birthday our second year."

He turned the card back over and looked at the date. "May 23, second year... wouldn't that be the day we went-"

"Into the Forbidden Forest? Yeah." I sighed. "Which brings me to my second thing. I... well, I thought you might understand. More than anyone else would."

He passed the card back into my hands and nodded. "Go ahead. I'm listening."

I looked down at the card in my hands, watching the picture loop. "How did you cope? After the night in the Forbidden Forest?"

"What do you mean, Lucy?"

"Saturday... the Black Lake..." I looked up into his eyes. "Ron, that was one of the scariest nights of my entire life. I'm terrified of water, the thought of drowning has the power to paralyze me if I let myself dwell on it for too long. And I thought..." I looked down again. "You faced your fears that night, with the acromantulas. And you were so _ridiculously_ brave about it. Never complained afterward, never showed a sign of weakness or regret. And to tell you the truth, I'm still scared, even though it was five nights ago. I want to be brave."

"Hey." Ron reached forward and turned the card over. He pointed to a line halfway down the card. "Read that one out loud."

"Are you-"

"Just do it."

I cleared my throat and said quietly, "'Her other talents include being remarkably brave and resilient in the midst of hardship and kind to everyone she meets.'" I looked up at him, waiting for whatever came next.

"Right. Go back to that night, the moment we walked into McGonagall's office. What's the first thing you did?"

"Waved at the twins as they-"

"After that."

"Sat down?"

"After that?"

"I... oh, I introduced myself to Gabrielle."

"And why'd you do that?"

"She looked scared."

Ron nodded. "I figured as much. So the 'kind to everyone she meets' part is true. Now think back to that-" He shuddered. "-that day in the Forbidden Forest. Who did all of the talking with Aragorn?"

"Aragog," I corrected.

He waved me off. "Whatever. Who did all of the talking?"

I blinked. "I didn't do _all_ of the talking, Harry talked too-"

"And would you consider Harry to be brave?"

"Of course. I'd have to be stupid not to."

"How much braver would you feel, then, if I reminded you that _you_ were the one who _started_ the talking?"

I froze. "I- a bit braver, I guess."

"And how much braver would you feel if I reminded you that you jumped down into the Chamber of Secrets first of the four of us?"

"A bit."

Ron smiled. "There you have it, then. Everything you want to be, you already are."

"But I'm still scared," I admitted in a soft voice.

He raised his eyebrows.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because being scared has nothing to do with bravery," he replied. "Look, you know as well as anyone that I'm still scared of spiders. You had to kill one for me over summer, remember?"

I giggled. "That I remember."

"And you still came to me, thinking I was brave, didn't you?"

"I did. Because you are, and I want to be more like you. I want to handle this like you did."

"No, don't be more like me." He snatched the card from my hand and held it up. He moved it closer and closer to my face until I had to go cross-eyed to see it. "Be more like _you_. The you Cedric wrote about all those years ago. The you that you still are." 

I laughed and took the card back. "Alright, alright, I think I get it. Thanks, Ron."

He grinned. "Of course. Can't have one of my best friends thinking she's not brave, now, can I?"

"I guess not." I smiled. "Well, now you know my birthday. Congratulations, I suppose."

"Do the twins still not know?"

I nodded.

His grin widened. "Excellent. I can't wait to brag about it in the morning."

"Are you going to use this to blackmail them or something?"

"Perhaps, perhaps. For now, I will simply enjoy knowing something about you that they don't. You're rather mysterious sometimes, you know that?"

"Well, Harry says I'm unpredictable, so I guess mysterious isn't too far removed from that." I turned around. "Oy, Mione!"

Her head snapped up from the book she was reading. "Yes? What is it?"

"Am I more mysterious or unpredictable?"

Harry looked up from his copy of _Flying with the Cannons_. "I have my answer."

"And I have mine!" Ron piped up.

Hermione pursed her lips. "I'd have to go with mysterious."

"Yes!" Ron pumped his fists in the air. "Hermione actually agrees with something I said! Happy birthday to me!"

* * *

A week later, the mail brought two significant items. First was a short note from Sirius asking us to meet him on the fringes of Hogsmeade with as much food as we could carry on our next visit. Second was Rita Skeeter's revenge.

Hermione laughed aloud at breakfast as she read the copy of _Witch Weekly_ Lavender had sent down the table with a concerned expression.

I held my hand out. "Alright, hand it over."

She held up a finger, still laughing. "Wait, I'm only on the second sentence."

"Well, read it out loud, then!" I insisted.

Hermione cleared her throat. "First off, the title is 'Harry Potter’s Secret Heartache.'"

I slapped my hand to my forehead. "Not again."

"A boy like no other, perhaps --- yet a boy suffering all the usual pangs of adolescence, _writes Rita Skeeter_. Deprived of love since the tragic demise of his parents, fourteen-year-old Harry Potter thought he had found solace in his steady girlfriend at Hogwarts, Muggle-born Hermione Granger. Little did he know that he would shortly be suffering yet another emotional blow in a life already littered with personal loss."

"At least she got your age right this time, mate," Ron said with a roll of his eyes. "Go on, Mione."

"'Miss Granger, a plain but ambitious girl, seems to have a taste for famous wizards that Harry alone cannot satisfy. Since the arrival at Hogwarts of Viktor Krum, Bulgarian Seeker and hero of the last World Quidditch Cup, Miss Granger has been toying with both boys’ affections. Krum, who is openly smitten with the devious Miss Granger, has already invited her to visit him in Bulgaria over the summer holidays, and insists that he has 'never felt this way about any other girl.'"

"'Plain but ambitious'?" I repeated incredulously. " _Clearly_ this woman wasn't at the Yule Ball. The boys there couldn't take their eyes off you!"

"It gets better!" Hermione singsonged. "'However, it might not be Miss Granger’s doubtful natural charms that have captured these unfortunate boys’ interest.'" Hermione screwed up her face in what looked like a Pansy Parkinson impression. Surely enough, it was. "'"She’s really ugly," says Pansy Parkinson, a pretty and vivacious fourth-year student, "but she’d be well up to making a Love Potion, she’s quite brainy. I think that’s how she’s doing it."'"

"So Pansy is pretty and vivacious, but Hermione is plain but ambitious?" Harry asked.

Hermione either ignored him or didn't hear him. "Love Potions are, of course, banned at Hogwarts, and no doubt Albus Dumbledore will want to investigate these claims. In the meantime, Harry Potter’s well-wishers must hope that, next time, he bestows his heart on a worthier candidate."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Lovely woman. Charming, truly."

Ron was less than amused. “I told you! I _told_ you not to annoy Rita Skeeter! She’s made you out to be some sort of... of... scarlet woman!”

Hermione nearly spat out her milk. “Scarlet woman?” she repeated.

“It’s what my mum calls them,” he said, looking embarrassed.

“If that’s the best Rita can do, she’s losing her touch. What a pile of old rubbish.” She slid the magazine back down the table at Lavender. "Thanks for the entertaining read!"

Lavender looked somewhat concerned. "Just thought you would want to know before Pansy got to you in Potions," she explained. "Good luck."

Hermione waved her off. "I'll be fine."

Surely enough, in Potions, she just laughed when Pansy tried to get under her skin. But as she ground scarab beetles, something else seemed to be bothering her after she had borrowed the magazine back from Lav and read the article again.

“There’s something funny, though. How could Rita Skeeter have known...?”

Ron looked up quickly. “Known what? You _haven’t_ been mixing up Love Potions, have you?”

“Don’t be stupid. No, it’s just... how did she know Viktor asked me to visit him over the summer?”

Ron dropped his pestle. “What?”

“He asked me right after he’d pulled me out of the lake, after he got rid of his shark’s head. Madam Pomfrey gave us both blankets and then he sort of pulled me away from the judges so they wouldn’t hear, and he said, if I wasn’t doing anything over the summer, would I like to-”

“And what did you say?”

“And he did say he’d never felt the same way about anyone else, but how could Rita Skeeter have heard him? She wasn’t there... or was she? Maybe she has got an Invisibility Cloak; maybe she sneaked onto the grounds to watch the second task...”

“And what did you say?”

“Well, I was too busy seeing whether you and Harry and Lucy were okay to-”

“Fascinating though your social life undoubtedly is, Miss Granger, I must ask you not to discuss it in my class. Ten points from Gryffindor.”

I bit my lip, determinedly keeping my eyes down. Oh how I hated Snape...

“Ah, reading magazines under the table as well? A further ten points from Gryffindor. Oh but of course, Potter has to keep up with his press cuttings.”

The Slytherins (except Archie, of course --- Cam wouldn't have laughed either, but she had stayed home after her brother's funeral) burst out laughing. I looked up for the first time to glare at Snape.

His lip curled into a cruel smile. “‘Harry Potter’s Secret Heartache... dear, dear, Potter, what’s ailing you now? ‘A boy like no other, perhaps...’”

He went on to read a paragraph of the article. Harry and Hermione both looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"'Miss Granger, a plain but ambitious girl-'"

"Professor?" I interrupted. 

His cold eyes snapped up from the article and met mine. "Yes?"

I held out my bowl. "Do my scarab beetles look properly ground to you, sir?"

He blinked. He looked at the beetles, then at me, then back at the beetles, then back at me. I smiled.

If he said no, I planned to ask him to demonstrate the proper way to grind them. Then he'd be forced to either give me wrong information --- which I doubted he would do --- or admit he was wrong --- which seemed even more unlikely. And if he said yes...

"Yes, they do," he said after a moment longer. 

I smiled wider. "Thank you, sir. I was worried that your reading of the article had distracted me from doing the best possible job." I looked around the room. "Was I the only one distracted?"

Archie quickly caught on. He held up the partially-ground contents of his own bowl. "Professor, do _my_ scarab beetles look properly ground to you?"

Since Archie was on the other end of the room, he had to get up to take a closer look. I lunged across the table, snatched up the magazine, cast a silencing charm, and ripped the pages out.

"Sorry," I mouthed to Lavender.

She shook her head as if to say I didn't need to apologize. "Do it," she mouthed back.

I nodded, shoved the rest of the magazine into my bookbag, and pointed my wand at the pages of the article.

 _Incendio,_ I thought to myself, concentrating with all of my might on what would be one of my first nonverbal spells. 

It caught fire instantly. "Aguamenti," I whispered, gathering up the ashes and also dumping them into my bookbag.

I glanced up just as Professor Snape turned back around after assessing Archie's beetles. The entire class was staring at him, waiting to see what he'd do next.

It appeared that without the article in front of him, he had forgotten what the interruption was about in the first place.

"Back to work," he snapped, looking somewhere between confused, angry, and embarrassed.

The class was so silent the knock at the door twenty minutes later made us all jump.

“Enter,” Snape said.

It was Igor Karkaroff himself who entered. I looked down quickly.

“We need to talk,” he muttered to Snape.

Snape seemed less than impressed with the idea. “I’ll talk to you after my lesson, Karkaroff.”

“I want to talk now, while you can’t slip off, Severus. You’ve been avoiding me.”

“After the lesson.”

As the bell rang, Harry knocked his armadillo bile to the ground and immediately bent down low to mop it up. I had to try very hard not to smile --- he was brilliant. 

"Meet you in the stairwell," I said under my breath, playfully pushing his head down to help him hide better. 

Archie jogged over to where I was walking with Ron and Hermione. "That bit with the beetles was well-played, Diggory."

I smiled. "Thanks for catching on as fast as you did."

"Of course. I've used a lot of adjectives to describe Snape over the years, but 'nice' has never been one of them."

That drew laughs from Ron and Hermione. A bit of Archie's grin returned to his face, which had been sadder than I'd ever seen it in the two weeks since Cam's brother died. He had gone to the funeral that weekend, but he came back, whereas Cam stayed with her family. He knew giving her time with her family was for the best, but I could tell that being apart from her while she was hurting killed him.

Before any of us could comment further, Harry hurtled up the stairs.

"Karkaroff was showing Snape something on his forearm," he panted. "Snape saw me before he could say much else about it, and I had to get out of there."

Archie started slightly. "Harry, which forearm?"

Harry blinked, as if he hadn't seen Archie standing with us. "Er, the left one. Why?"

Archie turned to me. "Your mom's an Auror, yeah?"

"Was," I corrected. "Why?"

He gnawed on the inside of his cheek, thinking hard. "Cam's dad, too. I can't remember which forearm the Dark Mark was on."

"You mean Karkaroff's a Death Eater?" Hermione asked in a horrified whisper.

Harry ran his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, guess we forgot to tell you. Sirius said so."

It was Archie's turn to blink. "Sirius? As in, Black?"

Hermione shot Harry a look that screamed _Oh now you've done it_. 

But Archie was one of Cedric's best friends. I knew we could trust him.

I turned to him and smiled. "It would seem you're behind the times, Graye. Sirius Black is innocent and Igor Karkaroff is a Death Eater, didn't you know?"

He blinked once, twice. Three times. "Sure. Why not. But wait, Harry, if he went to Snape about it, does that mean...?"

"I don't know what exactly it means," Harry said, rubbing the back of his neck, "but I doubt it's good."

"We should clear out of here before he hears us gossiping like old women with nothing better to do," Archie said. "But I can be your resident Slytherin spy. I'll keep an eye on Snape, and the kids of Death Eaters too, for that matter."

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked as we started climbing the stairs. "Would it be safe for you? I remember first year, you-"

"Hermione, Hermione, you worry too much. I was eleven then. I've learned to fight back. But, more importantly," he said, flipping his wand, "I've learned the art of subtlety, too. I'll be fine."

"I think subtlety is something we could all learn from you," Ron said with a roll of his eyes. "Dropping your armadillo bile, Harry? Really?"

Harry chuckled. "We can't _all_ be Lucy." He lifted his hands up in a bowl shape, batting his eyelashes dramatically. "Professor Snape, do you think these beetles look good? Oh, they do? Well, I won't be needing my pestle anymore, now, will I? You know, Professor Snape, I have a good idea for where it might fit! If you'd just bend over-"

At that point, I was literally laughing so hard I had tears streaming down my face. "I did _not_ say that! I was just trying to distract him long enough to burn the article so he would shut up!"

Harry smiled at me in a way that made me weak in the knees. "Doesn't mean it wasn't brilliant. I just took some, ah, _liberties_ with the specifics of what you said. For comedic effect."

"I didn't say anything about putting a pestle anywhere!"

"You didn't have to, we were all thinking it."

"What?!" I squawked. "All of you?"

The outburst of laughter that followed answered my question.

* * *

I may have stopped Professor Snape, but I couldn't stop the readers of Witch Weekly.

The next morning, we were all eating breakfast when a torrent of owls settled on the table, all inching closer to Hermione, holding out their letters and flapping their wings in an attempt to make her open their letter first.

"Something tells me that's not fan mail," George said grimly. "Careful, Hermione."

She didn't seem to hear him. She reached forward and freed a letter from an owl's beak. 

“Oh really!” she spat, her face reddening with anger and embarrassment. 

“What’s up?” Ron asked.

She shook her head and turned it around so we could all read the letters, individually cut out from a magazine. 

_You are a WickEd giRL. HarRy PotTER desErves BeTteR. GO back wherE you cAMe from mUGgle._

I snatched the letter from her hands and ripped it in half. "Honestly." I reached for a letter of my own. It was even worse, reading "Harry Potter can do much better than the likes of you, Mudblood," so I ripped it in half, and then half again, and then half again. How could people be so disgusting?

Hermione kept tearing open envelope after envelope. "They’re all like it! 'Harry Potter can do much better than the likes of you.' 'You deserve to be boiled in frog spawn.'"

I grabbed the second-to-last envelope and ripped it open as Hermione opened hers. Hermione yelped in pain, and at the same time, the letter I had opened glowed and blasted a jet of blue at my face with a hiss of "Mucus ad nauseam!" It struck me between the eyes before I could raise my hands to protect myself. 

The four boys watching us all leapt into action. 

“Undiluted bubotuber pus!” Ron said, inspecting Hermione's envelope as Harry angrily shooed the owl away that had delivered it. 

Fred threw my envelope and the letter inside to the ground, hitting it with a stunning spell before it could realize it missed its target and blast Hermione, too.

"Are you alright, Lucy?" George asked.

Harry's head snapped in my direction. "Did yours have it, too?"

I shook my head, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"What happened?" Fred pressed, leaning forward to inspect my face.

"I don't know," I said. "I just feel... tired. And... dizzy. And..."

Before I could say anything more, Cedric was beside me. "Mucus ad nauseam?"

I blinked. It was suddenly hard to think around the growing pressure in my head. "I... I think so."

"I saw the blue." He looked across the table at Hermione. "Madam Pomfrey has the antidote for bubotuber pus, Hermione, don't worry. The sooner you apply it, the less it will hurt."

She nodded, tears filling her eyes, and rushed out of the Great Hall. As she left, I lunged forward for my napkin --- my nose had started running like a waterfall.

"Alright, Lu, I'll walk with you," Cedric said, standing up quickly and pulling me up with him. "You'll be alright, you just need to get to the Hospital Wing before you collapse."

"Lovely," I remarked. I was feeling heavier by the second, but I was no wimp. I was a werewolf. I waved at the boys with a smile, lowering the napkin just long enough to quip, "Don't you just love fan mail?"

"Whoa, whoa, wait, what?" Harry appeared at my side as I left the Great Hall. "Cedric, what do you mean, collapse?"

"Basically, that curse gives you a terrible head cold. The worst imaginable," Cedric explained. "I can reverse it, but the potion is in the Hospital Wing. What do you have next?"

"Herbology."

"I'm fine, Harry," I said with a laugh. "Remember second year? We drank more Pepperup Potion than we did water. Go finish breakfast, I'll see you in Herbology."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded. "Positive. I'll be fine."

He reluctantly turned around, leaving me alone with Cedric.

"What _was_ that?" Cedric asked in a low, worried voice. "The letter? Who sent it?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Someone who reads _Witch Weekly_."

"Someone who... what?"

"It was intended for Hermione," I said quickly. "Not me. I just opened it because some of the letters called her really terrible things and I didn't want her reading them all. Good thing, really, that it hit me and not her."

"Oh. Oh, alright. I just thought... well, doesn't matter what I thought. It wasn't meant for you." He offered an uneasy smile. "Stupid self-sacrificing Gryffindor."

"Hey, that's my line. That's what I called Harry during that disastrous match second year."

Cedric's smile became more genuine. "I know. Heard about that from the twins. They seemed to think it was funny for you to say that then turn around and try to physically fight Lockhart to get him away from Harry just a couple minutes later. The two of you are more alike than probably realize, you know. You and Harry."

I felt my face grow crimson, and not just with the low-grade fever typical of a common cold. "Yeah, well," I muttered, "we do spend a lot of time together."

"So I've noticed," he commented with a laugh. 

I would have swatted his arm, but instead, I lunged forward and caught it. Cedric stopped laughing instantly, his other arm coming forward to catch me. 

"Don't tell Harry," I said as my world gave way to blackness.

* * *

About an hour later, I strode out of the Hospital Wing with steam rising from my ears and very, _very_ clear promises from Cedric and Hermione both that nobody needed to know I did actually collapse --- Harry especially. The bell was ringing as I left, so I headed down to Care of Magical Creatures rather than Herbology.

“Potter, have you split up with your girlfriend? Why was she so upset at breakfast?” Pansy Parkinson called after Harry.

"You can laugh all you want," I said from behind her, feeling awfully bold all of a sudden, "but last I checked, _she_ was the one who went to the Yule Ball with a Triwizard Champion, not you."

Pansy spun on her heel, wrinkling her nose with disgust. "A mystery that confounds us all. At least the Mudblood-"

"Silencio!" I crossed my arms, keeping a firm grip on my wand. "Don't say anything like that around me again. You'll regret it."

She wrenched her own wand out and removed the charm from herself. "As I was _saying_ , at least Granger had the good sense to date up the ladder. Potter and Krum would certainly have been better than your date, Diggory, that blood traitor Weas-"

"Silencio!" This time, I didn't cross my arms. I kept my wand pointed at her. "I mean it, Pansy. Don't."

I sighed dramatically and tucked my wand away, walking around her to catch up with Harry and Ron, who were looking rather impressed, though surprised. 

"I take it you're feeling better?" Ron managed after a moment. 

I smiled. "Yeah, it was an easy fix."

Harry swatted at the steam that was hitting his face. "Haven't needed Pepperup in a while. Is it still nasty?"

"I had forgotten how bad it tasted, but it's better than death by head cold. Hermione should be at lunch, her hands are almost back to normal." I stopped and gasped when I saw the crates in front of Hagrid's hut. "Nifflers!"

Hagrid beamed. "Darn right, Lucy. Come on, everyone, gather 'round!"

The class slowly formed a circle around the crates.

"These’re nifflers! Yeh find ’em down mines mostly. They like sparkly stuff." Just then, one niffler jumped up and tried to snatch Pansy's watch off her wrist. "There yeh go, look. Useful little treasure detectors! Thought we’d have some fun with ’em today. I’ve buried some gold coins over there. I’ve got a prize fer whoever picks the niffler that digs up most. Jus’ take off all yer valuables, an’ choose a niffler, an’ get ready ter set ’em loose."

Harry slipped his watch off, and I couldn't help but notice the small smile on his face out of the corner of my eye when I rolled up my sleeve just high enough to reveal the bracelet. I undid the clasp, trying not to blush, and slipped it into my pocket. He had glanced away by the time I looked back at him, so I glanced away, too.

My gaze landed on Neville, who looked as if he'd had a worse day than I had. His eyes were a bit red, and his cheeks too, which was odd --- Herbology typically made him happier than anything else. 

I ducked away from Harry and Ron and made my way over to him.

"Hey, Neville, want to choose our nifflers together?" I asked with a smile.

He blinked. "Er, yeah. Yeah, sure."

I gestured for him to follow me, to where I knew Knut Scamander was. I scooped him up and passed him to Neville. "I think you'll like this one. Guess what his name is."

"Lucy, I don't know-"

Just then, Knut crawled up Neville's arm and snuggled into his neck. Of all of the nifflers, Knut was the most affectionate, and the best at finding treasure, which was why Hagrid and I had decided to name him after the most famous Hufflepuff creature-lover of all time as well as a unit of wizarding currency. Neville looked as if he'd cry again, but this time from pleasant surprise.

"Neville, meet Knut. Knut Scamander. He's sweet, isn't he?"

Neville nodded. "He is. Which one will you get?"

I glanced into the crate and waited for one to run up to me. It was a baby who ran up to me, with light brown fur and big blue eyes. I scooped her up, and she instantly closed her eyes.

"Doesn't look terribly excited about treasure-hunting," Neville commented.

I laughed. "It's okay. She's just a baby. This might be her first treasure hunt."

"What's her name?"

"I haven't named her yet, actually," I said, gently holding her out in front of me. "She reminds me of someone, but I'm not quite sure who."

"Are you serious?" Ron laughed from behind me. "You don't know who that niffler looks like?"

I turned around, confused. Harry was smiling, looking like he was in on the joke, too.

"No...?" I said, glancing between Harry and Ron. 

"Who do you think she looks like?" Neville asked.

Ron reached forward and pulled Neville by the sleeve to where he was standing. He pointed at the niffler in my arms, then at me, then back at the niffler. Neville laughed loudly.

"Lucy, it looks just like you!"

I scoffed. "You can't call me a baby niffler just because I haven't hit my growth spurt yet-"

"No, no, not that," Harry chuckled. He stopped and cocked his head, smirking. "Well... not _just_ that."

"Oh, shove off, Potter," I said with a roll of my eyes.

"Alright, alright. But look." He reached forward and loosely held one of my braids down to the niffler's fur. "And your eyes are close to the same color. Yours are a lighter shade of blue, but it's close."

"So what you're saying is... this niffler would look good in my Yule Ball dress?"

All three boys laughed then. The sound frightened the baby a bit, so she scrambled up onto my shoulder and hid her eyes with the same braid Harry had been holding. 

I almost made a comment along the lines of "Oh, look, she's a coward too, just like me!" but I didn't think Ron would like that very much after our conversation a few days prior. So instead, I kept my mouth shut and smiled. Making them laugh felt good.

"Hang on, there’s a spare niffler here!" Hagrid called. He scanned the group. "Where’s Hermione?"

Our smiles faded. "She had to go to the Hospital Wing," I said in a low voice. I stepped forward and lifted the black-furred Hunter from the crate. "I don't think the baby is feeling up to treasure-hunting. Hunter can search for me while I give this little girl some more attention."

Hagrid nodded. "Sounds good! Alrigh', everyone, turn 'em loose!"

The sound of laughter soon filled the air. I think I even saw Draco Malfoy smiling, and not in a sinister way. It was unusual.

While Ron asked Hagrid about the risks of keeping nifflers as pets, I made my way over to Neville, who was sitting by himself. He looked better, but still somewhat lonely.

"Lucy, look at how many he's found!" he exclaimed, showing me the dozen or so he had collected in his robe.

I smiled as Knut dropped another one into Neville's lap. "Good boy, Knut! Go get more!" I sat beside Neville and let the baby curl up in my lap. Hunter's name was somewhat misleading --- he had only given me one coin and a safety pin. But that didn't matter to me in the slightest. "Is everything alright, Neville? You seemed sad earlier."

He bit his lip and looked down. "Would you believe me if I told you Moody makes me nervous?" he asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

I nodded. "Would you believe me if I told you he makes me nervous, too?"

"He- he does? Why?"

"I don't know. Just instinct. Which makes no sense," I added quickly, "my mum worked with him after all, it's just... a weird gut feeling."

Neville blinked. "Yeah, me too. I... I heard..."

He paused, so I waited to see if he would speak further. After a couple of seconds, he started talking again.

"I heard he can see through clothes. Things he said to people at the Yule Ball."

I felt my blood run cold. If that were true, he certainly would have seen my bite mark... oh Merlin...

"Just small things," Neville continued, "like commenting on people's socks. But I don't think it stops at socks."

Then, Neville pulled the sleeves of his robes higher and clenched them in his fists. He stared straight ahead, and didn't acknowledge Knut dropping another coin into his lap.

"He can see _that_ so well, but he doesn't seem to see how... how hard it is for me to be in his class..."

"I'm so sorry, Neville," I said. "I can't even imagine how horrible it must feel to... have to see that."

He nodded. "All my life, I've heard from my gran how amazing my parents were. If I can't even handle the sight of the cruciatus curse on a spider-"

"Shh." I glanced around to make sure nobody was listening. In stark contrast, laughter still rang out around us. We were in a safe albeit sad bubble. "Neville, nobody wins in a game of comparison." I laughed humorlessly. "If I lived my life comparing myself to Cedric, I would still be as miserable as I was when I first came here."

"You were miserable?"

I nodded. "It didn't last long, but I was. I wanted so badly to be in Hufflepuff, just like Cedric."

"Me too," he said quickly. "Well, er, not like Cedric. I didn't know Cedric. But I wanted to be in Hufflepuff. Anyway, what happened next? How did you start being happy here?"

"I just... found other ways to belong. I was the Gryffindor reserve for Quidditch, and I stopped hiding from people and started making friends." I turned to Neville. "Did I ever mention to you that I met Luna?"

"Luna told me," he said. "She's really nice."

"Do you talk to Luna and Ginny about any of this?"

He shook his head. "Not really. They're not as easy as you." He smiled sadly. "You just... draw it out of me, it seems."

I smiled. "I think you were just ready to talk about it, and I happened to be here. But Neville, I mean it. You don't have to compare yourself to anyone else, because I promise that the right people will always love you as you are."

Right then, the baby crawled out of my lap and into Neville's, looking up at him with those big blue eyes. He smiled, looking from her to me. "She really does look like you. If you were, you know, a niffler."

"I'll go get my Yule Ball dress, then," I said, pretending to get up.

Neville grabbed me by the wrist, grinning. "Very funny, Lucy." He blinked, suddenly looking like he was thinking very hard. "Lulu. You should name her Lulu! It's your name, but not!"

The niffler suddenly make a high-pitched chirping noise, sounding quite delighted.

I sighed and picked her up. "Lulu, huh?"

She chirped again, as if solidifying her new identity.

I laughed and pressed my nose to the tip of her snout. "Alright, fine. Lulu it is." I looked sideways at Neville. "For the record, if anybody ever calls me Lulu, I might actually hurt them. Lu is fine coming from Cedric or Harry, and of course the twins call me Cub, but I don't think I'd be able to bear Lulu."

Neville smiled the most mischievous smile I had ever seen on his face. "Sounds like I should start working on defensive spells, then."

"Don't even think about it, Longbottom," I replied with a laugh. Lulu made a sound that sounded like an attempt to mimic my laugh, which made Neville laugh, too. 

_Lulu Everlin Diggory... Merlin, no._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I sure hope you all like Neville and Ron as much as I do, because when I had the chance to write special scenes for them, I seized that opportunity around the neck. On a somewhat-related-but-not-really note, would anybody be interested in character playlists? I had so much fun with my general playlist I'm thinking about making a couple more. Who would you want to see? Lucy, Cedric, Henry, Harry, George, Hermione? Anyone else?
> 
> And... ugh, I hate that I have to write this. I regret all of my life decisions that have brought me to this point. But this is your ten-day warning. I recommend taking the next ten days to prepare yourself for the third task chapter, which will be posted next Saturday. (If I posted it at midnight PST, would anybody read it upon its release? Or should I wait until, like, 7:00 AM PST? Let me know!) 
> 
> Anywaaayyy, I hope you all enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! And don't forget, take care of yourselves the next ten days, I know I'll be trying to prepare myself for it all.


	67. Till We're Fixed from the Inside

_So I propose a toast  
To fists unraveling, to glass unshattering  
To breaking all the rules, to breaking bread again  
We're swallowing light, we're swallowing our pride  
We're raising our glass, till we're fixed from the inside_

_"Taste"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

After spending the morning of our Hogsmeade visit at Honeyduke's and Gladrags Wizardwear, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I made our way to the place Sirius told us to meet him. I couldn't help but be a little nervous. I tried to force my worries from my mind, but just before we rounded the last bend, I couldn't stop myself.

"Do you think Sirius will like me?" I burst out.

Ron laughed. "You're about to meet someone who 365 days ago we all thought was a mass murderer out to kill Harry, and you're worried about him _liking_ you?"

I blushed. "Well, yeah." _Last time I met him, I_ did _try to kill him... I was in my werewolf form at the time, but still..._

"You worry too much," Harry said matter-of-factly. He grinned. "And you can stop worrying now, because there he is!"

Surely enough, a big black dog with newspapers in its mouth was watching us approach, wagging its tail excitedly. After sniffing Harry's bag, Sirius turned around and trotted away. We followed him out of the village and up into the hills. After about half an hour, we reached a rock fissure that led to a cave.

The second Buckbeak saw me, he started straining at his ropes. 

"It would seem you have a friend, Lucy," Sirius commented, now a human.

I smiled, cheeks flushing as I pulled a piece of three-day-old bread from my pocket. "I think he's hoping I have this."

Surely enough, at the sight of his favorite snack, Buckbeak strained even harder. As Sirius dove into the bag of food Harry had carried, I rushed forward and threw my arms around Buckbeak's neck, burying my face in his feathers. He bent his head low around me in response like a hug. I pulled away and offered him the bread, which he devoured in a single swallow.

"You're lucky I have two pockets, Beaky," I said with a shake of my head as I pulled out the second piece. Once that one disappeared too, I turned back to the group.

“What’re you doing here, Sirius?” Harry asked.

“Fulfilling my duty as godfather. I’ve been living off rats mostly. Can’t steal too much food from Hogsmeade, I’d draw attention to myself. Don’t worry about it, though, I’m pretending to be a lovable stray.” He tore a massive piece off the drumstick in his hand and looked up at Harry, who didn't seem to find this attempt at humor very funny. I knew Harry was worried --- and I couldn't really blame him, I was worried too. But at the same time, it was nice knowing Sirius was there to support Harry; Merlin knows Harry needed it. “I want to be on the spot. Your last letter... well, let’s just say things are getting fishier. I’ve been stealing the paper every time someone throws one out, and by the looks of things, I’m not the only one who’s getting worried.”

“What if they catch you? What if you’re seen?”

“You four and Dumbledore are the only ones around here who know I’m an Animagus.”

I shifted, thinking to myself, _Harry, if I can keep being a werewolf a secret from almost everyone for nearly ten years... Sirius will be fine._ Hermione glanced at me as if she'd read my mind and bit back a smile. 

Ron and Harry pored over the newspapers together. I grabbed one of the chicken bones and tossed it to Buckbeak. He lowered himself to his haunches, inviting me to sit with him. I did so, and Hermione and I stroked his feathers.

Harry was the first to speak again. “They’re making it sound like Crouch is dying, but he can’t be that ill if he managed to get up here.”

“My brother’s Crouch’s personal assistant, and he says Crouch is suffering from overwork,” Ron said to Sirius.

Harry shrugged. “He _did_ look ill, last time I saw him up close. The night my name came out of the goblet.”

Hermione straightened up. “Getting his comeuppance for sacking Winky, isn’t he? I bet he wishes he hadn’t done it now! Bet he feels the difference now she’s not there to look after him!”

“Crouch sacked his house-elf?” Sirius asked.

Harry nodded and filled him in on the events of that horrible night after the Quidditch World Cup match. I sat back and let the other three do the talking; my experience that night had been very different from theirs.

When he was done, Sirius started as if he'd had a realization. “Let me get this straight. You first saw the elf in the Top Box. She was saving Crouch a seat, right?”

“Right.”

“But Crouch didn’t turn up for the match?”

“No. I think he said he’d been too busy.”

“Harry, did you check your pockets for your wand after you’d left the Top Box?”

Harry paused. “Erm... no. I didn’t need to use it before we got in the forest. And then I put my hand in my pocket, and all that was in there were my Omnioculars. Are you saying whoever conjured the Mark stole my wand in the Top Box?”

“It’s possible,” he replied with a shrug.

“Winky didn’t steal that wand!” Hermione said loudly.

“The elf couldn’t have been the only one in that box... who else was sitting behind you?”

“Loads of people. Some Bulgarian ministers, Cornelius Fudge, the Malfoys-”

“The Malfoys! I bet it was Lucius Malfoy!” Ron exclaimed.

“Anyone else?” Sirius pressed.

“Ludo Bagman.” 

I exhaled sharply but quietly through my nose. He was not one of my favorite people for several reasons. I doubted he was _evil_ , but he was certainly a snake.

“I don’t know anything about Bagman except that he used to be Beater for the Wimbourne Wasps. What’s he like?” 

“He keeps offering to help me with the Triwizard Tournament,” Harry said. 

Sirius furrowed his brow. “I wonder why he’d do that.”

“He says he’s taken a liking to me,” Harry replied.

A brief pause followed.

“We... did see him in the forest just before the Dark Mark appeared,” Hermione said.

Ron shook his head. “Yeah, but he didn’t stay in the forest, did he? The moment we told him about the riot, he went off to the campsite.”

“How d’you know? How d’you know where he disapparated to?”

“Come off it, Hermione! Are you saying you reckon Ludo Bagman conjured the Dark Mark?” Ron asked.

“It’s more likely he did it than Winky!”

He shot an exasperated look at Sirius. “Told you she’s obsessed with house-”

“When the Dark Mark had been conjured, and the elf had been discovered holding Harry’s wand, what did Crouch do?” Sirius interrupted.

Harry thought for a second before answering. “Went to look in the bushes, but there wasn’t anyone else there.”

“Of course, of course, he’d want to pin it on anyone but his own elf... and then he sacked her?”

Hermione nodded angrily. “Yes, he sacked her, just because she hadn’t stayed in her tent and let herself get trampled-”

“Hermione, will you give it a rest with the elf?” Ron burst out.

Sirius waved his hand to calm the pair of them down. “She’s got the measure of Crouch better than you have, Ron. If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.” Sirius paused. “All these absences of Barty Crouch’s... he goes to the trouble of making sure his house-elf saves him a seat at the Quidditch World Cup, but doesn’t bother to turn up and watch. He works very hard to reinstate the Triwizard Tournament, and then stops coming to that too. It’s not like Crouch. If he’s ever taken a day off work because of illness before this, I’ll eat Buckbeak.”

“D’you know Crouch, then?” Harry asked.

“Oh I know Crouch alright. He was the one who gave the order for me to be sent to Azkaban without a trial.”

All four of us shouted "What?!" at once.

“No, I’m not kidding. Wish I was, trust me. Crouch used to be Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, didn’t you know?”

We all shook our heads.

“He was tipped for the next Minister of Magic. He’s a great wizard, Barty Crouch, powerfully magical, and power-hungry. Oh, never a Voldemort supporter. No, Barty Crouch was always very outspoken against the Dark Side. But then a lot of people who were against the Dark Side... well, you wouldn’t understand, you’re too young-”

Ron stiffened. “That’s what my dad said at the World Cup. Try us, why don’t you?”

Sirius grinned. "Alright, I will. Imagine that Voldemort’s powerful now. You don’t know who his supporters are, you don’t know who’s working for him and who isn’t; you know he can control people so that they do terrible things without being able to stop themselves. You’re scared for yourself, and your family, and your friends. Every week, news comes of more deaths, more disappearances, more torturing. The Ministry of Magic’s in disarray, they don’t know what to do, they’re trying to keep everything hidden from the Muggles, but meanwhile, Muggles are dying too. Terror everywhere, panic, confusion. That’s how it used to be."

I looked at Harry to see how he was doing. I could tell he was fighting to keep his face devoid of any emotion; it couldn't have been easy for him to hear this all. 

"Well, times like that bring out the best in some people and the worst in others. Crouch’s principles might’ve been good in the beginning --- I wouldn’t know. He rose quickly through the Ministry, and he started ordering very harsh measures against Voldemort’s supporters. The Aurors were given new powers, to kill rather than capture, for instance. And I wasn’t the only one who was handed straight to the dementors without trial. Crouch fought violence with violence, and authorized the use of the Unforgivable Curses against suspects. I would say he became as ruthless and cruel as many on the Dark Side. He had his supporters, mind you, plenty of people thought he was going about things the right way, and there were a lot of witches and wizards clamoring for him to take over as Minister of Magic. When Voldemort disappeared, it looked like only a matter of time until Crouch got the top job. But then something rather unfortunate happened... Crouch’s own son was caught with a group of Death Eaters who’d managed to talk their way out of Azkaban. Apparently they were trying to find Voldemort and return him to power.”

“Crouch’s _son_ was caught?” Hermione asked incredulously.

“Yep! Nasty little shock for old Barty, I’d imagine. Should have spent a bit more time at home with his family, shouldn’t he? Ought to have left the office early once in a while... gotten to know his own son.” 

“ _Was_ his son a Death Eater?” Harry inquired.

“No idea. I was in Azkaban myself when he was brought in. This is mostly stuff I’ve found out since I got out. The boy was definitely caught in the company of people I’d bet my life were Death Eaters, but he might have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, just like the house-elf.”

Hermione shifted. “Did Crouch try and get his son off?”

"Crouch let his son off? I thought you had the measure of him, Hermione!" Sirius laughed. "Anything that threatened to tarnish his reputation had to go; he had dedicated his whole life to becoming Minister of Magic. You saw him dismiss a devoted house-elf because she associated him with the Dark Mark again, doesn’t that tell you what he’s like? Crouch’s fatherly affection stretched just far enough to give his son a trial, and by all accounts, it wasn’t much more than an excuse for Crouch to show how much he hated the boy, then he sent him straight to Azkaban."

“He gave his own son to the dementors?” Harry asked disbelievingly.

Sirius nodded. “I saw the dementors bringing him in, watched them through the bars in my cell door. He can’t have been more than nineteen. They took him into a cell near mine. He was screaming for his mother by nightfall. He went quiet after a few days, though... they all went quiet in the end, except when they shrieked in their sleep...”

A troubled, distant look crossed Sirius's face. 

“So he’s still in Azkaban?” Harry asked after a moment.

“No. No, he’s not in there anymore. He died about a year after they brought him in.”

“He _died_?”

“He wasn’t the only one. Most go mad in there, and plenty stop eating in the end. They lose the will to live. You could always tell when a death was coming, because the dementors could sense it, they got excited. That boy looked pretty sickly when he arrived. Crouch being an important Ministry member, he and his wife were allowed a deathbed visit. That was the last time I saw Barty Crouch, half-carrying his wife past my cell. She died herself, apparently, shortly afterward. Grief. Wasted away just like the boy. Crouch never came for his son’s body. The dementors buried him outside the fortress; I watched them do it. So... old Crouch lost it all, just when he thought he had it made. One moment, a hero, poised to become Minister of Magic; next, his son dead, his wife dead, the family name dishonored, and, so I’ve heard since I escaped, a big drop in popularity. Once the boy had died, people started feeling a bit more sympathetic toward the son and started asking how a nice young lad from a good family had gone so badly astray. The conclusion was that his father never cared much for him. So Cornelius Fudge got the top job, and Crouch was shunted sideways into the Department of International Magical Cooperation.”

Buckbeak nudged me then. I hadn't realized I was picking at my fingers --- a fairly recent nervous habit. He nudged me again, and I leaned back against his warmth in the coolness of the cave.

We talked a bit longer with Sirius, about everything that had happened with Snape and about the Tournament. At half past three, he said we should head back to school, telling Harry in no uncertain terms not to sneak out of school to see him.

“No one’s tried to attack me so far, except a dragon and a couple of grindylows,” Harry remarked with a stupid grin.

Sirius rolled his eyes. “I don’t care. I’ll breathe freely again when this tournament’s over, and that’s not until June."

"You and me both," I commented, sighing.

"Ah, yeah, you've got two horses in this race, haven't you?"

I huffed a laugh. "Something like that."

"Wait a second," he said, suddenly pointing at me. "Susan. Susan Diggory. That's your mother's name, right?"

I nodded slowly. "Yeah, it is. Why do you ask?"

"Do you remember --- well, you'd probably be too young to remember. You would have been a baby. But Barty Crouch Junior..." His voice trailed off, and he crossed his arms, looking down at the floor. "When people screamed in their sleep, it was usually just nonsense. But I'm thinking your mother must have been the one to bring him in, because he never stopped screaming curses at her in his sleep."

I shuddered. "In that case, I'm glad he's dead."

Sirius nodded. "Sorry, I don't know why that just now clicked."

"It's alright." I closed my eyes and tried to remember. But remembering was so hard for me, always had been, even before I knew I had a whole other family halfway across the world that had been wiped from memory. Cedric and I both reckoned losing something so substantial must have affected my ability to make new memories to an extent, especially when I was younger. I opened my eyes again. "Now that you mention it, you're right. I think my mom and Professor Moody worked together to bring him in. I could be wrong, though, I'll ask Cedric."

Sirius rose to his feet. "I'll admit I'm curious now. I'll walk down with you four, try to snag another paper-"

Buckbeak made a low growl in his throat when I stood as well, making everyone laugh. After I stroked his feathers a couple more times, he allowed us to leave. 

"Oh, one more thing, you four. If you’re talking about me among yourselves, call me Snuffles, okay?"

Ron stifled a laugh. "You got it."

We made our way back to the village and headed in the direction of Hogwarts. In the morning, I'd been too preoccupied with thoughts of Sirius and Buckbeak to really notice we were walking past the Black Lake, but since all four of us were lost in our own thoughts, my eyes wandered to the water. 

It was a place I really only went when everything was horrible. The first time I had run there, it was because Draco Malfoy had punched me at the Quidditch match. I had returned a couple of times over the years --- when the petrifications had started, when I had been asked what career I wanted in the future, the day after Cedric and Professor Lupin left. It was a spot I reserved only for my deepest sorrows, so it seemed only fitting it would be the site of the second task of the tournament I had never wanted to happen.

The tournament... Sirius had said Crouch had worked "very hard" to bring the tournament back. Why did Barty Crouch Jr. care so much about the tournament? Surely there would have been a better way to ensure "international magical cooperation" than kidnapping the champions' loved ones and-

A hand reached out and grabbed me by the elbow. 

"Lu, you okay?"

Harry. 

I nodded, my eyes not leaving the lake. "Just lost in thought, I guess. Why?"

When he didn't respond, I turned to face him. I'd wandered a couple feet from the other three, in the direction of the lake. As if it were pulling me. Beckoning to me. Summoning me. It was eerie.

I forced a laugh. "I guess I was really lost in thought." I let Harry pull me back to the others and fell into step with them.

"What were you thinking about?" Ron asked.

"What Sir- Snuffles said about Barty Crouch," I admitted. "About how badly he wanted the tournament to happen."

"Well, I suppose he thought it would be a good way to build international magical cooperation," Hermione replied. "That's what it's always done in the past, anyway, and I'm sure he figured a return to tradition might be wise after the unrest at Hogwarts the past couple of years."

"That's just the thing," I said. "The unrest at Hogwarts. Why bring the tournament _here_ , if it happens at all? Why not host it somewhere else? Or, better yet, why not skip the tournament altogether and just have mindless fun, the way the Yule Ball was, or the Quidditch match? Valentine's Day notwithstanding," I added under my breath with a sheepish smile Harry's direction as a blush crawled up my neck to my cheeks.

He good-naturedly bumped my shoulder with his. "Well, that just goes without saying. Maxence I-don't-know-something-French can go fight a dragon with nothing but his princely looks." He dodged my attempt to swat his arm, laughing. "What? I hope he does. But you're right, Lu. Of all the things in the world, why bring back a tournament with a death count, then stop showing up?"

I glanced out at the lake again, shuddering a second later.

Harry bumped my shoulder again, more urgently this time. "Don't worry, Lu, you'll never have to go in there again. Unless Hagrid decides to have a hands-on lesson on merpeople-"

He didn't dodge me in time, and my palm connected with his tricep. "Don't you dare say that again, he might think it's a good idea."

"What's wrong with it?" he asked innocently.

I didn't respond out loud, opting instead to offer a speculative gaze.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

I smiled, hoping I looked as innocent as he'd tried to sound. "Just wondering how far I could shove your Firebolt if you ever did decide to tell Hagrid about your new lesson plan."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione all laughed heartily at that. Once the laughter died down, Harry brightened, diving into the pocket of his robes. 

"You know what, I actually have a better idea!"

"It's hard to have a worse one," I said with no shortage of sass.

He rolled his eyes and brought out the pairs of socks we had helped him choose earlier. "Want to go meet Dobby?"

"Yes!" I exclaimed, walking faster. Harry laughed again, and we made our way to the kitchens.

Dobby was overjoyed by the socks. The expression on his face was so radiant, so joyful, I couldn't help but smile as I introduced myself.

"I have heard about you, Lucy Diggory!" he said with a wide grin. "I have seen you, too, that night after the Bludger."

"I would have loved to see you too," I replied with an amused glance at Harry, who shook his head, laughing, at my Merlin-awful attempt at a joke.

“Dobby, where’s Winky?” Hermione asked.

Dobby's face fell. “Winky is over there by the fire, miss.”

“Oh dear,” she said worriedly, glancing over at the fire, where the small figure of an elf with drooping ears was silhouetted by the roaring fire. I walked over, unsure of how to help but wanting to.

“Winky is getting through six bottles a day now,” Dobby whispered. I turned to see everyone had followed me over.

“Well, it’s not strong, that stuff,” Harry said.

I shook my head. "Strong for house-elves." I knelt in front of Winky and offered a smile. "Hi there, Winky. I don't believe we've met. I'm Lucy."

She swayed slightly, clutching her butterbeer. Her eyes were wide and glassy, but they cleared ever so slightly when she saw me. Encouraged by this, I pressed on.

"Do you like butterbeer?"

She nodded. "It... helps." She hiccupped so violently she nearly dropped the bottle. 

"I like butterbeer too," I said. "Would you mind if I borrow your bottle for a bit? I didn't get any this morning, and I'm a bit thirsty."

She nodded again and held the bottle out to me. 

"Thank you, Winky!" I smiled, holding the butterbeer out behind my back. Ron understood immediately what I had done and snatched it from my hands. 

Dobby tugged on Harry's sleeve to get his attention, whispering in a low voice, “Winky wants to go home. Winky still thinks Mr. Crouch is her master, sir, and nothing Dobby says will persuade her that Professor Dumbledore is her master now.”

Harry knelt beside me. “Hey, Winky, you don’t know what Mr. Crouch might be up to, do you? Because he’s stopped turning up to judge the Triwizard Tournament.”

“M-Master is stopped coming?” she asked, turning to face Harry with her massive eyes.

“Yeah, we haven’t seen him since the first task. The _Daily Prophet_ is saying he’s ill.”

Her eyes welled up with tears. “Master... ill?”

"We don't know that for sure," I said quickly, reaching forward to catch her before she toppled off her stool. "That's why we need your help. You were very helpful to Mr. Crouch, and we need to know if he's ever acted like this before while he was well."

She shook her head, ears flapping. “Master is needing his Winky! Master cannot... manage... all by himself...”

“Other people manage to do their own housework, you know, Winky,” Hermione asserted. 

"Did you do other jobs for Mr. Crouch, Winky?" I asked in a vain attempt to calm the elf.

“Winky is not only doing housework for Mr. Crouch! Master is trusting Winky with the most important... the most secret...”

“What?” Harry prodded after a moment.

“Winky keeps her master’s secrets! You is nosing, you is.”

"Winky, we just-" I tried to say, but Dobby jumped in to defend Harry.

"Winky must not talk like that to Harry Potter! Harry Potter is brave and noble and Harry Potter is not nosy!"

“He is nosing into my master’s private and secret... Winky is a good house-elf... Winky keeps her silence... people trying to pry and poke and...”

"Harry, catch her," I muttered as she toppled to his side of the stool, her eyelids fluttering shut. He lunged forward and steadied her, but she remained unconscious.

Before I could help, a dozen house elves rushed forward and covered her with a tablecloth. 

“We is sorry you had to see that, sirs and miss! We is hoping you will not judge us all by Winky, sirs and miss!”

“She’s unhappy! Why don’t you try and cheer her up instead of covering her up?” Hermione asked, sounding on the verge of an explosive angry outburst.

“Begging your pardon, miss, but house-elves has no right to be unhappy when there is work to be done and masters to be served.”

Hermione stamped her foot. “Oh for heaven’s sake! Listen to me, all of you! You’ve got just as much right as wizards to be unhappy! You’ve got the right to wages and holidays and proper clothes, you don’t have to do everything you’re told! Look at Dobby!”

"Hermione," I said warningly, noticing the way Dobby wilted under the glare of the other elves. 

An elf shoved a large amount of food into Harry's arms. “We has your extra food! Good-bye!”

They started shoving us toward the door, but I knelt down and whispered to the elf nearest to me, "I can take Winky with me to the Come-and-Go Room. I'm on my way there now."

He stopped pushing, his eyes widening. "You know of the...?"

I nodded.

He looked at the retreating forms of my friends, then back at the lump of tablecloth that was Winky.

"I can revive her, too," I said. "Please. I'd like to help. I like helping, just the same as you."

"But you is... you is a witch."

I smiled. "I'm Lucy. What's your name?"

"Plucky," he replied shyly. "You will really help Winky? You do not think less of us because of her?"

"Not at all, Plucky. I'd be happy to help."

He nodded and led me by the hand to the other elves. Winky was already sitting up, the tablecloth wrapped loosely around her like a blanket. Plucky explained my offer to the house-elves, who were all too happy to be rid of her for a while.

Winky refused to hold my hand or let me carry her, but I walked slowly enough that she could reach forward and grab my leg if she stumbled. I was originally planning on using the Room of Requirement to revisit my memory from that day at the beach a decade ago in attempt to chase away the nightmare from the night under the Black Lake, but Winky needed it more than I did. Besides, that nightmare was a one-time occurrence... or so I thought.

* * *

_March 16, 1995 - 10:20 PM_

_Cedric didn't want to sleep. He bent lower over the book detailing the development of the wolfsbane potion, looking for anything he might be able to use one day to help his sister, and turned the page as quietly as possible, because he thought Henry was asleep in the bed next to him._

_Henry folded the corner of the letter under his pillow. Then laid it flat. Then folded it. Then laid it flat again. The Triwizard Tournament had added new ideas to his recurring nightmare, ideas involving dragons and giant squids._

_And Lucy, now a werewolf in the Room of Requirement, was sound asleep through it all._

* * *

March 24, 1995 - 6:24 AM

I jolted awake, panting.

The nightmare from the Black Lake had returned.

I was at the bottom, alone in the dark and the cold.

I was at the bottom, with no Cedric coming to rescue me.

I was at the bottom, until the world around me faded to black.

I was no stranger to recurring nightmares. But to have _that_ one not once but twice shook me to the core.

* * *

_April 15, 1995 - 10:20 PM_

_George glanced over at the window seat, expecting it to be empty. Instead, Harry sat there, a small smile on his face as he scribbled something on the piece of parchment in his lap._

_Fred followed his twin's gaze. "What kind of homework makes you smile?" he wondered aloud._

_And Lucy, now a werewolf in the Room of Requirement, was sound asleep through it all._

* * *

April 24, 1995 - 6:24 AM

My eyes snapped open, and I gasped for air. 

The nightmare had come back to haunt me a third time. 

At the bottom of the Black Lake, in the dark, in the cold, in the solitude. No Cedric in sight. No one coming to save me.

The darkness closing in. Swallowing me whole. Blinding me with despair.

I shoved my blankets off and sat on the edge of my bed, my back to my still-sleeping roommates.

The nightmare was getting worse. Nothing about it changed, not really, except for the way it made me feel.

Every time, it got darker. Colder. More lonely. 

Every time, the darkness closed in a little bit sooner, and waited a little bit longer before releasing me to the safety of the morning.

I tried to push it away. But every time, the darkness felt a little bit more real.

* * *

_May 14, 1995 - 10:20 PM_

_Hermione was bustling around the Gryffindor common room with a quill and a notepad. She talked to George and Angelina and Fred and Alicia and Neville and Ginny and Seamus and Lavender and Dean and Parvati._

_Ron was in the common room as well, in the corner talking to Colin Creevey and sifting through pictures. His brows were knit together with concentration, an expression only seen on his face during games of wizard's chess or when he was trying to understand what in Merlin's name Hermione was on about again._

_And Lucy, now a werewolf in the Room of Requirement, was sound asleep through it all._

* * *

I was dragged out of bed and down the stairs to the common room by Hermione before I'd even opened my eyes all the way.

"Whazthematter?" I asked.

"The matter is that it's taken until fourth year for me to figure out your birthday," she said, shoving me onto the window seat, sitting next to me, and shoving a package into my hands. "Ron should be here any-"

Ron grinned as he crossed the room. "Harry's gonna be so bloody pissed we beat him to this."

"Now go on, open it," Hermione urged.

Feeling a bit more alert --- and skeptical --- I tugged on the ribbon until the bow came undone in my hands and peeled off the purple paper. A small scrapbook of sorts fell into my lap. 

Ron impatiently yanked the wrapping paper out of my hands, threw it onto the ground, and opened the book to the first page, still grinning. "Well, I thought about what we talked about on my birthday-"

"And I happened to overhear-"

"And we put our heads together. Fortunately for us, you've never really noticed just how many pictures Colin Creevey takes."

I squinted at the first page. My face was covered in blood, just like Krum's had been at the World Cup, but the Quaffle was firmly in my grip, and I stared straight ahead as my braids whipped in the wind behind me. "Hold on... is this from the first Quidditch match, second year? When I broke my nose?"

"Told you she wouldn't need the captions," Ron muttered to Hermione. 

She waved him off and continued excitedly, "We wanted to get Harry to help, too, but he said he already had his own thing planned when we asked him about it. So we figured we might as well try to get to you first."

I glanced out the window. "What time _is_ it?"

"Four minutes after midnight," Hermione announced triumphantly. "We wanted you to see the Lucy _we_ see. So we worked with Colin to find the best pictures to match that. How much you love Quidditch, for one."

The three of us flipped through the dozen or so pictures, laughing at some and cringing at others. Hermione and I with our heads bowed together, deep in conversation the night we had rescued Ginny from the Chamber and Hermione had been brought back by the mandrakes, my eyes shining with excitement to have her back. My bear patronus combining with Harry's non-corporeal patronus to charge down the Slytherin "dementors" in a blue blaze of glory. The whole Gryffindor table laughing at the antics of the twins, me more so than anybody else. A picture of me hugging Gabrielle on our way back to the castle after the second task, and Fleur jumping on top of me, too, thankful that I had been able to comfort her sister the night before in Professor McGonagall's office.

At the end of the book was a small collection of pieces of parchment. It seemed that Hermione had taken on the role of a less-sinister Rita Skeeter and asked around to see what people _really_ thought of me, writing down their responses word-for-word. Although Harry may not have helped collect pictures, his comment about me made me blush more than anyone else's.

"What I think about Lucy? Why? Oh, for that project for her birthday? Wait, what was the question again? What do I think of Lucy? Hermione, what kind of a question- alright, alright, I'll answer it. It's just hard to really say, other than that, well, she's always there when I need her. And she just... understands. Explain more? Uh, sure, well, what I mean is that whenever I have a problem, I turn to her first, you know? I just know she'll be there. I just hope she knows I'll always be there for her too if she needs me, but, er, I think... well, I can't even imagine her really _needing_ anything, from me especially. She's just... Lucy. She's the best. Oh, bloody hell, here she comes, put that away!"

I laughed, putting my hand over my mouth as I did so both to try to make it quieter and to hide the way I was furiously, furiously blushing. 

"Was this last week? When I went to bed early, then realized I left my quill downstairs?"

"Yes!" Hermione burst out, thoroughly exasperated. "Then as soon as you left, he decided to go to bed, too, and I wasn't able to get him alone again."

"His was the hardest to get in the first place, you two are damn near inseparable," Ron chuckled. "And Hermione didn't trust me not to screw up the enchantment on the quill she used to record everything in real time, so _I_ couldn't ask him."

I threw my arms around their necks. "I love it so much. Thank you."

"Happy birthday, Lucy," they said in unison.

I bit back a giggle; they were so rarely in agreement on anything. _I guess I'm one thing they can agree on,_ I thought to myself, feeling warmth spread in my chest at the thought.

"Now go back to bed," Hermione said firmly. "Merlin knows what Harry has planned for tomorrow, if it was somehow better than this."

I dragged a hand down my face. "Merlin. I can't even... fathom that."

The next morning, Harry and Ron weren't in the common room when I walked down with Hermione, so we made our way down to breakfast. Ron arrived a couple minutes later, alone.

"Where's Harry?" Hermione asked.

Ron shrugged. "Wasn't there when I woke up." He looked pointedly at me, trying very hard not to smile. "You haven't heard from him, have you?"

"Er, no. Not yet." I shifted. "I'm sure he'll be here any minute now. Maybe he's just, I don't know, paying Myrtle a visit."

That got sarcastic laughs out of everyone around me, but I was nervous. Part of me wondered if he was still working on whatever it was for my birthday --- he _did_ have a tendency to procrastinate --- but after what Sirius had said two and a half months prior, I found I was never able to fully relax unless Harry was right there beside me. Things were stirring, and not for the better.

I was distracted from my worrying by Cedric, who lobbed a wadded-up piece of parchment at my face with a smile. I ducked under the table to read it, away from the twins' prying eyes.

_Happy birthday, Lu! I would come over and say it to you face-to-face, but I know you have fun keeping it a secret._

_Meet me out on the dock after you eat lunch, I'll give you your present then. Harry called dibs on after dinner tonight._

I crumpled the parchment back up and shoved it into my pocket, bouncing back up and flashing a smile and a thumbs-up at Cedric.

"He just wants me to meet him at lunch," I said before anyone could ask. "Something about needing help with gift ideas for Cho, her birthday's in June."

Ron bit his lip to keep from laughing, whereas Hermione looked somewhat impressed by how easily the lie had slipped off my tongue.

"Why are you blushing, then?" Fred asked, raising his eyebrows suspiciously.

"Thinking about what a certain someone you fancy might do on _your_ birthday?" George pressed.

Ron and Hermione both busted up laughing as I blushed. _George doesn't know it's my birthday... does he?_ I shook my head violently back and forth. "No, no, of course not. You both know- well- no, of course I'm not thinking about that. I just- we-" I glanced toward the door, hoping to see Harry, but he still hadn't showed. "I hope Harry's alright," I said, opting for a change of topic. "It's not like him to miss breakfast. He doesn't have Ron's appetite, but-"

"Yeah, nice try," Fred said. He nudged me with his elbow. "We all know why you were blushing."

I shook my head again. "Oh, shove off." I looked at Ron. "Wait, why are you laughing? How do you know about...?"

He rolled his eyes. "I'm insulted. You might have had Hermione fooled for a while, but I'm not blind."

Hermione swatted his arm. "Hey!"

"What? It's true! Anyone with eyes can see the way she looks at Har-"

"Shh! He might be coming!" I interrupted as I glanced around worriedly.

But Harry didn't show until the bell rang, signaling for us to head to class. I grabbed a couple pieces of toast and hurried over to him.

"Here," I said, holding my hand out. "Everything alright?"

He sighed. "Yeah, yeah, just a change of plans." He accepted the toast, shifted the bookbag on his shoulder, and smiled. "Happy birthday, Lu," he said in a quiet voice. "I promise, I won't let the change of plans stop me."

I blushed as I returned his smile. "Thanks, Harry. Don't worry about it, though, I-"

"Stupid self-sacrificing Gryffindor." He ate half a piece of toast in one bite and raised his eyebrows at me. Hermione and Ron joined us then, and the four of us headed to History of Magic. 

Five minutes into the lesson, Harry scribbled something onto a piece of parchment and slid it over to me.

_Are you afraid of heights?_

I glanced over at him. "What?" I mouthed.

He nodded at the parchment and looked back up at me, adjusting the glasses on his nose and raising his eyebrows in a _Well?_ gesture.

_I would be a very shoddy Quidditch player if I were._

I slid the parchment back at him, fighting not to smile when I heard him stifle a laugh. He scribbled something else and passed it back.

_Alright, second question. Are you on good terms with any other hippogriffs?_

"What the _hell_?" I mouthed at him.

He reached over and took the parchment back for a second before sliding it back. 

_Like I said, change of plans._

_The hippogriffs all like me, yeah. Why?_

Instead of replying, he offered me a cheesy smile and folded the piece of parchment in four, tucking it into his pocket. I narrowed my eyes in suspicion before turning back to Professor Binns. I tried asking him about it on our way to Herbology, and again on our way to lunch, but he just smiled whenever I pestered him. I could tell the gears were turning in his mind, and I was waiting on pins and needles to see what the bloody hell Harry James Potter had in mind.

After I had downed a sandwich, I made my way down to the dock of the Black Lake.

"You know, I've never come down here for a _good_ reason," I called when I saw Ced sitting at the edge with his bare feet dangling over the water. 

He turned around and smiled. "I know. I figured I should try to change that." 

I settled on the dock beside him, and he dug into his bag.

"I know you already got a book from Ron and Hermione," he said, passing a box into my hands, "but I know for a fact it wasn't this one."

I popped the lid off. Inside was a book titled _A Guide to Making Memories Last_. Below the book laid a number of small vials, like the ones in the jar at the bottom of my chest in my dormitory. I could see that three were already filled with the silvery wisps of memory, leaving about five others still empty.

"I had to make sure it worked," he explained. "One of those is of our last night at Tahoe, since you said that's how you conjured your patronus. Then one is of your sixth birthday, which I realized would have been your first with us in Ottery St. Catchpole. And one is just a memory of us flying around as kids. I can't remember a date or even a year for that one, but you remember those days, right?"

I nodded, staring at the book in my hands with wonder. 

"I don't know if it'll be able to bring any obliviated memories back," he admitted, "but I thought that, well, it wouldn't hurt to try."

I set the box down and threw my arms around Cedric. "I love it. Thank you, Cedric, I can't wait to start trying."

He hugged back. "I wish I could do more to help, but hopefully this is a good start. I'll get you more when the time comes, but I figured seven was a good place to start. Seven years at Hogwarts and all."

"And I'll start now, with this moment!" I said, opening the book. "Alright, what page?"

My brother laughed. "It might take a bit of time to get the hang of it, Lu. It was about a week for me before I was able to do it."

"So let's start now!" I said again, having fun pestering him just a little bit. "What page, Ced, what page?"

He laughed even harder, managing to say, "I think there's a bookmark in there somewhere. But we should probably head back, class will start soon."

"Potions. Awesome." I rolled my eyes. "Happy birthday to me."

"Give Professor Snape my best. Or my worst, whichever you feel like passing along."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "Cedric Amos Diggory! How could you say such a thing about an _esteemed_ Hogwarts professor?"

"I graduate in a little over a year and I've been nothing but polite to him... well, to his face anyway. I think I've earned a bit of a break."

I couldn't disagree with that. I made it through Potions, then Transfiguration, then DADA, then dinner, my anxiety mounting as I wondered what in the name of Godric Gryffindor himself Harry had planned. Or, rather, what Harry's _change_ of plans entailed. After dinner, I tried to lose myself in the crowd, my nerves getting the best of me, but I felt an arm loop around mine and pull me back.

"Nice try, Diggory," Harry said with a laugh. "Come on."

"Harry, it's fine, you don't have to do anything-" 

He pulled me closer, saying in my ear, "If you don't stop protesting, I'll tell all the Weasleys what today is. And I mean _all_ of them. I'm sure Mrs. Weasley wouldn't mind knitting a sweater in May, since it's been a little colder than usual this spring."

I glared at him playfully, biting my lip as I studied his face. "Unfortunately, I think you're serious."

"No, I'm Harry," he said with such a straight face I burst into laughter. With my guard down, he dragged me more easily through the crowd and out onto the grounds.

"Alright, Potter, you got me outside. Where are we going?"

"Wherever the hippogriffs are. I had to improvise; for some reason, they've put enchantments around the Quidditch Pitch that's making it impossible to get in."

"Huh, that's odd."

He snorted. "Threw me for a loop this morning when I went to make sure my broom was in good flying condition, I can tell you that much."

"So can you tell me what the plan _was_?" I asked as innocently as possible.

"No, because I was able to salvage most of it. I just would have preferred brooms."

"You rode Buckbeak last June, didn't you?"

"Buckbeak is great and all, but the Firebolt..."

I laughed. "You know what, that's fair."

Soon enough, we reached the hippogriff enclosure. I hopped over the fence and gestured for Harry to follow me. Fireflutter strained against his ropes trying to get to me, so I approached her first.

"Wait, Lu, aren't you supposed to bow?" Harry asked, sounding rather panicked.

" _You_ are," I replied with a teasing grin. I reached forward and stroked her feathers. Fireflutter tossed her head back. "Oh, shove off. You have all these friends with you. You know the thestrals are more solitary, if you can even see them, so I keep them company more often, when I get the chance." She growled, playfully shoving her head against my chest. "I've been busy! I want to see _you_ try to conjure a bouquet of flowers with nothing but a wand. My brother's the best at transfiguration in the whole school according to Professor McGonagall, and it took me two weeks even with _his_ help. That doesn't leave much time for wandering around feeding you, even though you know I wish I could." 

She stood upright then, narrowing her eyes at something over my shoulder. I stepped back so I was standing next to Harry. I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Be nice, you muppet, he's the reason I came to say hello tonight." I turned to Harry. "She's one of the more temperamental of the hippogriffs, if you couldn't already tell. You should probably bow just to be safe --- she doesn't like listening to me."

He nodded, not breaking eye contact with her. He bowed, and after a couple seconds, Fireflutter followed suit.

"Good, now you two are friends." I glanced at Harry. "Do I have time to say hello to the others? Do you have a strict schedule?"

Harry glanced up at the sky. The sun had set, but the stars had yet to come out. "You have time." He glanced over my shoulder and grinned. "Looks like you have someone who wants to say hello to _you_ , first. Quite a few someones."

I turned to see a small army of porlocks gathered at the fence, all shoving through each other trying to crawl through the gaps.

"I'll be right back," I said with a laugh, hopping over the fence and immediately feeling each porlock nuzzling up against me. Harry soon appeared behind me.

"What are these?" Harry asked. Even though his voice was gentle and curious, a number scurried away.

"Kneel down, they'll come back," I replied softly. He complied, and surely enough, they returned with some reluctance, hiding behind me and leaving a wide radius around Harry. "They're porlocks. Hagrid doesn't want to use them in a lesson with us because, well, you can see how shy they are. The Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs got to interact with them, though, and they really are sweet. They're horse guardians, and really hesitant around humans."

"They seem to have no problem with you," he pointed out.

 _Am I really human, though?_ I forced this thought away and smiled. "They remember the hands that feed them. And the hands that know they liked being scratched behind the ears." I glanced at Harry out of the corner of my eye and jerked my chin at the porlock closest to him. "Move slowly, but give it a shot."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded. "Positive. I trust you, so they will, too. Go for it."

He looked nervous, but he slowly extended his hand toward the small creature. It didn't back away as Harry rested his hand on the top of its head. He scratched with a couple of fingers behind its ear, and it took a step closer to Harry.

I smiled. "There you go."

We knelt there for quite a while, the porlocks milling around us, sniffing us curiously, taking turns being scratched behind the ears. I don't know how much time passed before Harry glanced up at the sky again. The stars were beginning to peek through the darkness, shining brightly in the almost-absence of the moon.

"Time for whatever the next part of your plan is?" I asked.

He nodded, rising to his feet and extending a hand, which I accepted. Harry grinned. "I'm beginning to think this version of the plan is better. Think Fireflutter will let us hitch a ride?"

"Only one way to find out," I said, hopping over the fence and untying her ropes. I approached the creature and rubbed a hand down her back. "Do you mind?"

When she made no attempt to discourage me, I launched myself onto her back. When I looked back at Harry, he had an amused expression on his face.

"What? What did I do?"

He shook his head, grinning. "I was going to offer to help you up, you being short and all."

"But I handled it myself," I finished for him, crossing my arms defiantly over my chest. "Do _you_ need help up?"

Harry easily climbed up onto Fireflutter's back in front of me. "As if." He fished something out of his pocket, something I soon realized was a rough sketch of Hogwarts. A spot was marked on the edge of the map with a small X, but before I could figure out where it was, he folded the map in half and shoved it back into his pocket. He leaned forward and whispered something in Fireflutter's ear --- normally, my werewolf-sharp senses would have allowed me to eavesdrop, but he was incredibly quiet. He turned back to me, grinning. "Hold on tight. We have a bit of a flight."

I had just wrapped my arms around his waist when Fireflutter took off at a gallop. With three beats of her wings, we took flight.

To my surprise, Harry tensed up once we were in the air. I loosened my grip on him and leaned forward. "Scared, Potter?"

"It's no Firebolt" was his only reply. He smiled uneasily.

I tightened my grip and laid my head against his back. "She won't let us fall. _I_ won't let us fall."

"I know," he said, relaxing ever so slightly.

After about ten minutes, Fireflutter began to descend. When she hit the ground and Harry and I slid off, I saw we were on top of a hill on the edge of the grounds.

"Well, I can officially say I've never been this far from the castle before," I said, nearly breathless with awe. "What a view."

"It's an even better view on the full moon," he replied. I nearly stopped breathing, but he didn't notice. "I've been looking for a place for a little while now, sneaking out of the castle late at night once you had gone to bed or when you were sick, but I found this one just a couple weeks ago. Under the full moon, the castle looks... amazing. We'll have to come up here sometime on a full moon, just so you can see it, but you can certainly see the stars a lot better when the moon isn't full, so it's good that the full moon wasn't on your birthday this year, eh?"

"Yeah, it is. Good, I mean." I bit my lip, thinking for half a second I should just tell him. I knew I could trust him. I knew that he wouldn't just abandon me on this hill, especially not on my birthday. I knew that I'd rather tell him than have him accidentally find out some other way. But at the same time... it was my birthday. I didn't want to ruin my birthday with that. So instead, I tilted my head back to see the stars better. "You're right. The stars are... incredible. And I thought the view from Gryffindor tower was good."

I heard the smile in his voice as he replied. "Yeah." He sat on the grass, and I followed suit. He fished around in his other pocket, clutching something in his hand. "Well, I know it's not much, but after how... how absolutely bloody _insane_ this year has been, it might be nice to just... stop for a while. So it's not much, but..." He reached for my wrist and secured a small charm to my bracelet, after the dragon. It was a microscopic model of the Gemini constellation. "Have you ever stopped to think about how funny it is that the twins are among your best friends, yet _you're_ the Gemini of the group?"

I laughed. "I've never really thought about it, but you're right. That is funny." I looked down at the bracelet, now with a Quaffle, a bear, a dragon, and the stars. _He really has me figured out at this point,_ I thought to myself. "This is perfect, Harry. Thank you."

"Of course," he said with a shrug and a smile. "Tomorrow, we find out what the last task is. But for tonight... well, let's just... I don't know..."

I laid flat on my back and rested my hands on my stomach, wrist with the bracelet on top. "Enjoy the peace and quiet? Enjoy being alone?"

He laid down next to me and interlocked his fingers behind his head. "Something like that." He drew a deep breath and exhaled slowly, and I followed suit.

In that moment, it didn't matter that the darkness of the night pressed on us from all sides. It didn't matter that our only company was a dozing hippogriff and a sky full of stars. It didn't matter that the next day would begin the cycle of training for a Triwizard Tournament task all over again. It didn't matter that the spring night was plagued by a chilly breeze that whispered through the grass from time to time. It didn't even matter that I was a werewolf, that I was a Muggle-born, that I was anything other than Harry's best friend. 

"You know," I whispered, "if I could freeze time... I'd like to stay here, forever."

"I was thinking the same thing," he whispered back.


	68. Shadows on the Water

_I woke up in a cold sweat but I found you  
And I wade through my worries, they're crippling  
For crying out loud we'll wait  
Cause you've been talking in your sleep again  
Around all the dreams you have_

_We're seeing shadows on the water  
Oh the air's so honest  
We're seeing shadows on the water  
But we made a promise  
To let the rest of our lives decide_

_"Shadows"  
CHPTRS_

* * *

LUCY:

The nightmare returned a fourth time. 

I jolted awake, immediately throwing my blankets off and drawing a deep breath of the sweet air of the dormitory. Hints of smoke, cinnamon, lavender, rose all rushed to fill the lungs that mere seconds ago were filling with the waters of my nightmare.

I glanced at the clock. 6:24.

I realized with a second jolt that it was May 24, meaning Cedric and Harry would be finding out what the third task would be sometime before we all went back to bed. 

That unsettling thought propelled me out of bed. There was no way I was falling back asleep after that.

I heard Hermione turn the water of her shower off with a squeak, so I rushed to change into my robes so I could make it to the common room before she entered the dormitory again. Thankfully, it was empty, so I hurried to my favorite spot at the window seat and rested my head against the window. I closed my eyes and shivered, residual fear reminding me of the nightmare once again.

"Lu? What're you doing up?"

I opened my eyes just as Harry slid into the window seat across from me. "I could ask you the same question."

He shrugged. "Nervous about today, I guess. You?"

"I..." I looked away, out the window. Did I dare to be honest? Yes. "I've been having a recurring nightmare since the second task. I guess worrying about the third task on top of that just made it seem worse than usual."

"Yeah, I know how nightmares can be," he said. "Trust me."

I nodded, turning back to face him. "If anyone would, it'd be you."

He reached forward and poked my forehead with a small smile. "No headache, right? No searing pain, no flashes of green?"

"No, none of that," I said, chuckling quietly. "Just your typical, ordinary, meaningless nightmare."

"Doesn't mean it's not still frightening."

"It _is_ that," I remarked. I looked back out of the window, and my hands subconsciously started to fiddle with the bear charm on my bracelet. "I... in the nightmare, I'm at the bottom of the Black Lake. Alone, without Ron or Hermione or Gabrielle or merpeople. And somehow, I know that Cedric's not coming to save me. Which is ridiculous, of course," I added quickly, glancing at Harry before looking down at my hands. "I know he'd never abandon me or anything like that. But something about this nightmare just... unnerves me. No matter how many times it repeats."

"You know, Lu," Harry said after a moment, "if something had gone wrong and Cedric hadn't shown up, I would have still taken you up."

"But I wasn't your captive. Or 'treasure,' as they called it," I said with air quotes for sarcastic emphasis, looking up at him.

"Lu, I was about to start cutting you loose when Cedric got there. Trust me, I would never have left you down there even if you _weren't_ deathly afraid of water."

I couldn't help but smile. "That makes me feel a little better."

"I'm glad. Even if Cedric isn't around to save the day, I will be."

"I wish I could do the same for you in these stupid tasks," I muttered. "I hated just watching the first task, and the second one was even worse for a number of reasons." I shivered again, and not from cold. "Let's hope the third one is nice and easy, yeah?"

"Your optimism never ceases to amaze me," he said with a sigh, making me laugh.

I waited up with Ron and Hermione while Harry was gone. We expected he'd be back within the hour, but when an hour and a half had gone by without any sign of him, I considered running up to his dormitory, grabbing the Invisibility Cloak, and going to find him. Just before I did, though, he climbed through the portrait hole, calling "Bye, Hagrid!" over his shoulder.

"Where have you _been_?" Hermione inquired somewhat accusingly as he hurried over to where the three of us were sitting. 

"Are you alright?" I asked more gently, noticing how pale he looked. I shifted on the couch and gestured for him to sit next to me, which he did.

Ron studied Harry with a concerned look. "What's the third task, mate?"

That was a question he could answer. "A maze. They've turned the Quidditch Pitch into a maze."

"They _what_?"

Harry managed a tiny smile as he turned to look at me. "Yeah, Cedric and I were both upset about it too." A shadow crossed his face, and he dropped his head into his hands. "So after they showed us that, Viktor wanted to talk to me."

Ron and Hermione both stiffened, so I was left to prod him. "What did he have to say?"

"Well, he wanted to make sure Hermione and I were just friends, which of course I assured him we were. But then while we were talking, we saw Mr. Crouch-"

"Mr. Crouch?" Hermione interrupted. "Here, on the grounds?"

"No, Hermione, Viktor took Harry for a nice walk through Diagon Alley," Ron retorted with a roll of his eyes. 

Hermione rolled her eyes in response and looked back at Harry. "What did he say?"

Harry shook his head. "He wasn't in his right mind. Talking to a tree like it was Percy, saying he needed to see Dumbledore, something about You-Know-Who getting stronger... I left Viktor to keep an eye on him while I went to get Dumbledore. Snape got in my way, and by the time Dumbledore and I got there, Viktor had been stunned and Mr. Crouch was gone. Professor Moody is out looking for him now, and Dumbledore said to stay here until morning, I can't even send an owl to Sirius."

A stunned silence descended upon the four of us.

"Is Viktor alright?" I asked after a moment. Hermione looked relieved that she didn't have to be the one who asked. 

"Yeah, Dumbledore brought him back around. Just a stunning spell."

"And you?" 

He shrugged, lifting his head and settling back against the couch. "'M fine, I guess."

We stayed up late into the night talking, and we awoke at dawn the next day to send Harry's letter to Sirius. 

“Just go through it again, Harry. What did Mr. Crouch actually say?” Hermione asked as we watched the school owl fly off into the early morning light.

“He wasn’t making much sense. He said he wanted to warn Dumbledore about something. He definitely mentioned Bertha Jorkins, and he seemed to think she was dead. He kept saying stuff was his fault. He mentioned his son.”

“Well, that _was_ his fault,” Hermione muttered.

“He was out of his mind. Half the time he seemed to think his wife and son were still alive, and he kept talking to Percy about work and giving him instructions.”

“And... remind me what he said about You-Know-Who?” Ron asked.

“He said he’s getting stronger.”

Ron looked at me for half a second before turning back to Harry. “But he was out of his mind, like you said, so half of it was probably just raving... right?”

“He was sanest when he was trying to talk about Voldemort. He was having real trouble stringing two words together, but that was when he seemed to know where he was, and know what he wanted to do. He just kept saying he had to see Dumbledore.”

Nobody said anything for a moment, so I walked to the window and rested my elbows against the ledge.

Cedric had confirmed that Mum was part of the team that captured Barty Crouch Jr., along with Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Rabastan Lestrange. I hadn't said anything to Neville about it, but I did have to wonder if he knew and that was why he was always so nice to me. But that knowledge also left me wondering how many enemies I might have as a result of my last name. Barty Crouch Jr. may have died in Azkaban, but I wasn't sure about the other three. I was quite frankly too afraid to ask.

I turned back to the group when Harry let out a frustrated sigh. “If Snape hadn’t held me up, we might’ve got there in time. 'The headmaster is busy, Potter, what’s this rubbish, Potter?' Why couldn’t he have just gotten out of the way?”

Ron blinked. “Maybe he didn’t want you to get there! Maybe --- hang on --- how fast d’you reckon he could’ve gotten down to the forest? D’you reckon he could’ve beaten you and Dumbledore there?”

“Not unless he can turn himself into a bat or something.”

“Wouldn’t put it past him...”

“We need to see Professor Moody and need to find out whether he found Mr. Crouch,” Hermione said.

“If he had the Marauder’s Map on him, it would’ve been easy,” Harry replied with half of a shrug.

“Unless Crouch was already outside the grounds, because it only shows up to the boundaries, doesn’t-”

Ron was interrupted by a sharp "Shh!" from Hermione. The twins were heading up to the Owlery, arguing about Ludo Bagman.

“That’s blackmail, that is, we could get into a lot of trouble for that!”

“We’ve tried being polite; it’s time to play dirty, like him. He wouldn’t like the Ministry of Magic knowing what he did-”

“I’m telling you, if you put that in writing, it’s blackmail!”

“Yeah, and you won’t be complaining if we get a nice fat payoff, will you?”

The door opened, and they froze at the sight of the four of us. 

“What’re you doing here?” Ron and Fred asked in unison.

George and Harry replied, also in unison, “Sending a letter.”

“What, at this time?” Hermione and Fred asked.

For the first time in 24 hours, I burst out laughing, everyone else following suit.

“Fine, we won’t ask you what you’re doing, if you don’t ask us,” Fred said, covering the name on the envelope with his hand.

“Who’re you blackmailing?” Ron asked.

Fred instantly grew serious. “Don’t be stupid, I was only joking.”

“Didn’t sound like that.”

“I’ve told you before, Ron, keep your nose out if you like it the shape it is. Can’t see why you would, but-”

“It’s my business if you’re blackmailing someone. George’s right, you could end up in serious trouble for that.”

George shook his head as he went to tie the letter to an owl's leg. “Told you, we were joking. You’re starting to sound a bit like our dear older brother, you are, Ron. Carry on like this and you’ll be made a prefect.”

“No, I won’t!”

"Boys," I interjected, speaking for the first time that day. "Be nice. Ron, have some faith in me. I wouldn't let them blackmail anyone."

"Yeah, Ron, she's our common sense filter," Fred said. He tugged on one of my braids and joined George in nudging the owl out the window. "See what happens when you're not around, Cub? I get the worst sort of ideas."

I rolled my eyes. "You get the ideas anyway, Freddie, they just don't get very far when I'm not there to shut you up." I grinned at George. "At least you have a little more common sense."

"That's a dangerous thing to say, you know," he remarked as he backed toward the Owlery door, grinning cheekily. "I'm going to want to prove you wrong now."

"George Weasley-" I started to say exasperatedly, but he and Fred disappeared before I could finish my threat. I shook my head. "Those boys will be the death of me."

Hermione seemed less than amused when she looked at me. “You don’t think they know something about all this, do you? About Crouch and everything?”

I raised my eyebrows incredulously, my mouth falling open. "Are you kidding? No!"

“If it was something that serious, they’d tell someone. They’d tell Dumbledore,” Harry added.

Ron shifted his weight. “I dunno if they would. They’re... they’re _obsessed_ with making money lately.”

“Yeah, but blackmail?” Harry pressed.

Ron refused to look at us. “It’s this joke shop idea they’ve got. I thought they were only saying it to annoy Mum, but they really mean it, they want to start one. They’ve only got a year left at Hogwarts, they keep going on about how it’s time to think about their future, and Dad can’t help them, and they need gold to get started.”

“Yes, but they wouldn’t do anything against the law to get gold, right?” Hermione said. 

“Wouldn’t they? I dunno... they don’t exactly mind breaking rules, do they?”

“Yes, but this is the _law_. This isn’t some silly school rule. They’ll get a lot more than detention for blackmail! Ron, maybe you’d better tell Percy-”

“Are you mad? Tell Percy? He’d probably do a Crouch and turn them in!” 

"Let's go get breakfast," I interrupted. "Maybe we'll have time to go see Professor Moody before History of Magic if we eat quickly enough."

"Sounds like a good idea," Harry agreed quickly, also uncomfortable with the tension in the room. The bell ended up ringing before we could head to Professor Moody's office, but we were able to find him after class.

“Come in here,” he said when he saw us, gesturing for us to follow him into his classroom.

The door had only just been closed when Harry asked, “Did you find him? Mr. Crouch?”

Professor Moody collapsed into the chair behind his desk. “No.”

“Did you use the map?”

Professor Moody took a drink from his hip flask. I expected my nose to be hit with the tingle of firewhisky, but a different smell hit my nose instead. It felt oddly familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. Before I could wonder further what was in that flask, he answered.

“Of course. Took a leaf out of your book, Potter. Summoned it from my office into the forest. He wasn’t anywhere on there.”

“So he _did_ disapparate?” Ron asked.

Hermione shook her head. “You can’t disapparate on the grounds, Ron! There are other ways he could have disappeared, aren’t there, Professor?”

Rather than answering, Professor Moody appraised her with his magical eye. “You’re another one who might think about a career as an Auror. Mind works the right way, Granger.” He glanced at me and gave me the same up-and-down look --- but his eyes lingered on my midsection, right where I knew my bite mark was. I crossed my arms over my abdomen protectively, but I knew it was too late. I prayed that what Neville said was just a rumor, but something in Professor Moody's human eye made my stomach flip. He knew. “What're your thoughts on it all, Diggory? Put the brains your mother gave you to some good use.”

My heart jumped into my throat. “The map shows invisible people... m-meaning he either left the grounds, or...”

Professor Moody's eyes narrowed. "Or what, Diggory?"

I shook my head. "N-Never mind. That can't be right. Or at least... I don't want it to be."

"Blimey, Lucy, you don't think Krum killed him, do you?" Ron asked.

"No, no, not Krum, I just..." I bounced on the balls of my feet nervously. "That's the only other explanation I can think of that would explain why he would disappear from the map." I glanced at Harry, who was looking at me with an expression I had never seen on his face before. "Do you know if the map shows... you know...?"

"I have no idea," he replied after a moment. He turned to Professor Moody. "Did you see anyone on the map nearby who might have been capable of it?"

Professor Moody shook his head. “We can’t rule out kidnap, either.”

Ron blinked. “So d’you reckon he’s somewhere in Hogsmeade?”

“Could be anywhere. Only thing we know for sure is that he’s not here.” Professor Moody paused and dragged his hand down his face. “Now, Dumbledore’s told me you four fancy yourselves as investigators, but there’s nothing you can do for Crouch. The Ministry’ll be looking for him now, Dumbledore’s notified them. Potter, you just keep your mind on the third task. Should be right up your street, this one. From what Dumbledore’s said, you’ve managed to get through stuff like this plenty of times. Broke your way through a series of obstacles guarding the Philosopher’s Stone in your first year, didn’t you?” 

“We helped. Me and Hermione and Lucy helped,” Ron said.

A rare smile made its way to Professor Moody's face. “Well, help him practice for this one, and I’ll be very surprised if he doesn’t win. In the meantime, constant vigilance, Potter. Constant vigilance.” He paused and took another sip from his flask before speaking again. “You three, you stick close to Potter, all right? I’m keeping an eye on things, but all the same, you can never have too many eyes out.”

I took a step closer to Harry and bumped him with my elbow, not lowering my hands from my waist but trying to offer a smile. "Good luck getting rid of us now."

* * *

The three weeks between that morning and the full moon were among the busiest of my life.

All of my classes were spent preparing for final exams. Harry didn't have to take any, being a champion, but they loomed over Ron and Hermione and myself. We started by helping Harry train in pairs so the third person could study --- eventually, Ron got tired of studying and decided he wanted to help full-time, and I had the most experience with defensive spells thanks to Fred and George, not to mention the fact that keeping Harry alive was far more important to me than any exam grade, so Ron and I became his most constant helpers with Hermione joining us for at least a couple of hours every day before retiring to study.

While I did a bit of studying by night, I devoted a lot of late hours to reading and taking notes on _A Guide to Making Memories Last_. Cedric was right in saying it wasn't necessarily intended for any obliviated memories, but I found that I wasn't terribly bothered by that fact. Three nights before the full moon, I successfully extracted my first memory; it was of my birthday in bits and pieces, from Ron and Hermione giving me their gift at midnight to Cedric giving me the book at lunch to my night with Harry in the hills. It was surprisingly taxing to extract memories --- I was too depleted to try it again before the full moon --- but it was exhilarating, too, knowing I'd never forget whatever I chose to remember.

Trying to come up with an excuse for not being with Harry on the full moon was... difficult. Hermione wanted me to just tell Harry and Ron; we were both tired of having to come up with excuses. We argued for quite a while about it, but in the end, I won. I refused to lose, really.

I couldn't deny that I wanted to tell Harry. I didn't want to keep the secret from him anymore. It physically hurt me knowing that there was a barrier between us, a barrier he couldn't even see, didn't even know existed. And, according to Hermione, one he wasn't likely to know about any time soon --- according to her, he trusted me wholeheartedly.

I don't know if that made it easier or harder to keep the secret.

Hermione had tried her hardest to convince me to tell him. She had reminded me of how fiercely he defended Professor Lupin even after knowing about his condition, saying I had no reason to think Harry would think any less of me because of mine. 

"I know," I had said. I wanted to believe it, really I did, but the fear that had been instilled in me for as long as I could remember --- literally --- refused to be silenced. I scrambled for a new excuse. "But I know he'd worry about me, and I'm not worth that.

She had scoffed at that. "What about me, and the twins? What about Cedric? Does our worry mean nothing?"

I had grown red, with embarrassment and maybe even a bit of anger --- with myself, not with them. "Hermione, if I could go back in time and prevent you three from ever finding out, I would, I'm just a burden and none of you deserve that, and-"

"I'm going to have to stop you right there," she had said, holding up a hand. "It's not your fault, Lucy. You know that much, don't you?"

I had refused to answer. 

Her jaw had dropped. "Lucy, it's not, no matter what happened that night."

I had stepped backward, cracking my knuckles one by one, another new nervous habit. "You don't... you don't understand what it's like to be me, Hermione, no one does. Not you, not Cedric, not Harry, not even Professor Lupin."

"Then help us to understand."

I bit my lip, dodging what she said in my reply. "I've never told anybody about my... secret, and I'm _not_ about to start with one of the single most important people in my life."

"Even though we both know he would never do anything to hurt you? Even though we both know that it would do both of you a lot of good?"

I had shaken my head slowly back and forth, unable to meet her eyes. "Hermione, I'm not worth that."

She had taken a step toward me. "Yes, you are."

I had stepped backward again. "I should go see if he wants to work on the impediment jinx. I-I can do that much for him tonight."

"Lucy."

I had glanced up at her one last time; she stared me down. "Hermione, it would be unfair of me to tell him so close to the third task, even if I _wanted_ to tell him. We can have this conversation again first thing on the morning of June 25 if you want, but please don't try to make me do this before then."

She had considered this for a second before nodding. "Alright. That's fine. I'll just tell him tomorrow night that you're doing something with Cedric; he doesn't have the map, so he won't know any better. Not that he ever checks it anyway, apparently, or else he would have caught on by now... but still."

The full moon in and of itself was relatively easy. Without wolfsbane, I was nowhere near as sick as I had been on the fateful June full moon of 1994, and the Room of Requirement opened easily. And the next day, it turned out the lie about doing something with Cedric wouldn't be much of a lie after all.

Because after taking me to the Hospital Wing to get my wideye potion, Cedric asked if I'd teach him the Patronus Charm.

"You can say no, if you'd like, if you think it's cheating," he added sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck, "but I thought if anyone could teach me, it'd be you. And it might be helpful in the maze."

I laughed. "I'm offended that you think I _wouldn't_ want to teach you. Name a time and place and I'll be there --- truthfully, I doubt it'll take you very many tries; you _are_ three years older and wiser than I was when I learned."

So, that night, we found ourselves in the same History of Magic classroom where Harry and I had spent so many evenings with Professor Lupin.

It was odd, really, teaching my older brother something. Between Cedric and George and Fred, I was very often the person learning the advanced spell. But to be honest? I enjoyed every minute of it.

"You already know the incantation, I'm guessing?" I asked.

He nodded. "Expecto patronum, yeah?"

"That's it! Well, Harry and I learned with a boggart that turned into a dementor, being seeing as we have neither boggarts nor dementors, I'm afraid you'll just have to practice without feeling like you're drowning in your own misery."

"What a shame," he chuckled. "Well, once I get it down, I'll see if I can find something similar to challenge me. But it'll probably be easier to learn without that additional difficulty."

"I agree. Okay, so you know the incantation, but the incantation in and of itself isn't enough on its own to produce a patronus. It's a guardian, a beacon, a shield. Call it what you want. But it only works because it's a physical embodiment of your own inner light, so the dementor can feed on that instead of attacking you directly. And, if it's strong enough, the force of happiness can actually overwhelm the dementor entirely." I paused and twirled my wand. "Personally, I had to try a couple of different memories before my patronus was corporeal. Harry had a harder time than I did, but he was the one who actually held back the hundreds of dementors last June, so I don't know at this point whose is stronger." I snorted. "But anyway, that doesn't matter right now. The memory that works for me is the memory of our last night in Tahoe. I'm not totally sure what Harry's is, but I know it's at least that powerful, if not more so. So think now about something so happy that you feel like you glow inside at the thought of it. Close your eyes if it helps."

He closed his eyes, brow furrowing in concentration as he searched for a memory. "Okay. I think I have one."

"Good! So, whenever you're ready, say 'Expecto patronum' and focus with all of your might on the happiness in that memory."

Cedric opened his eyes and took a deep breath to steady himself before holding his wand out in front of him.

"Expecto patronum!" 

A couple of bright wisps escaped the tip of his wand, but they didn't take any form.

"Uh oh, Cedric Diggory just had his soul sucked by a dementor!" I exclaimed in my best cheesy Ludo Bagman impression. "Fortunately, he has several other happy memories! Let's see if this memory is good enough for those greedy, greedy dementors!"

Cedric laughed. "The twins' theatrics have certainly rubbed off on you."

"Well, let's hope my patronus-casting ability rubs off on _you_ ," I teased him. "C'mon, Ced, try to think of something happier. What was that last one?"

"Kissing Cho at the Quidditch World Cup," he admitted with a blush. "I really thought it'd work."

"Huh, I would think so, too. But what do I know? I've never been kissed. Maybe it's not everything it's made out to be. Think of another one, maybe something with Henry?"

Cedric nodded. "Maybe when we were sorted into the same house? Realizing I had a built-in best friend after we'd gotten along so well on the train?"

"Yeah, that sounds good! Try it!"

He closed his eyes for a moment and held his wand out. "Expecto patronum!"

This time, stronger wisps emerged from his wand and formed a fairly substantial --- though small --- shield.

"Yes! Closer! I think something like that would give you a chance to run the opposite direction," I said. "Try another one, just to see if you can get it stronger. It doesn't have to be corporeal to give you a fighting chance, you just need to be able to escape."

He tried a couple more memories, all about the same strength as Henry's memory. I told him to dig deeper, to try to find a memory that combined elements of all of the other happy memories.

Cedric closed his eyes again, and after a couple moments, he smiled. "I've got one. Expecto patronum!"

This time, the shield that formed was roughly the size of Professor McGonagall's blackboard; in other words, it was massive.

"Yes!" I exclaimed. "Yes yes yes! You would _definitely_ have enough time to get away! What memory was _that_?"

He was still smiling. "Entering the Tournament, because I wanted to and not because of Dad, with you and Henry and Cho there to watch. It was a great feeling, believe me."

I smiled back. "I bet. Do you want to try one more, just to see if you might be able to produce a corporeal one? We don't have to if you're tired, but considering you went from a couple of wisps to _that_ , I think you might have a good chance."

Cedric nodded. "Yeah, it never hurts to do something one more time. It's not in the nature of a Hufflepuff to settle for 'good enough.'"

"It's not in the nature of a Gryffindor either," I said with a definitive nod. "Alright, think of another memory. The best possible."

He shut his eyes tightly, then beamed. "I know exactly what to do." He opened his eyes again and adjusted his stance. "Expecto patronum!"

A massive bird, an osprey I realized, erupted from his wand. We watched in wonder as it circled over our heads. (A/N: Click [here](https://www.quotev.com/wheremyarmorends/activity/699559985) for a description of an osprey! Hopefully you all see why I chose it for Cedric!)

I turned to Cedric. "Alright, you've got to tell me. What was _that_ memory?"

"My birthday last year, with the Quidditch match. All of my favorite people in one place playing the sport I love. What could be better?"

"That moment you just had, maybe?" I asked with a grin. I hugged him tightly. "I _knew_ you could do it!"

"Because of you," he said, releasing me before releasing a happy sigh. "Thank you, Lu. That was... awesome."

I smiled. "Just another spell in your repertoire. I'm glad I was finally able to teach you something."

"Oh, you've taught me more than just _that_ ," he said with a disbelieving shake of his head. "Lu, you're the reason I want to be a healer."

"And you'll be the best!" I said. "But you need to win the Triwizard Tournament first."

"Do you really think I stand a chance?"

I blinked. "Was that supposed to be a legitimate question?"

"Well... think about it. Fleur's an absolute powerhouse, Viktor is a professional Quidditch player, and Harry is, well, Harry Potter."

"And _you_ are Cedric Diggory. Honestly, Cedric, it's like you don't even know how highly everyone thinks of you."

He blushed and glanced away. "Knowing how other people think of me is different from actually thinking the same of myself."

"Oh." I felt my heart sink. "Cedric, you-"

"Hey." He turned back to me and smiled. "It's okay. Really, Lu, it is. All of this --- being chosen, the training, the tournament itself --- has really helped. I've never been terribly confident, but I think right now is the closest I've ever felt to... being comfortable, I guess. When you're on a pedestal, the only way you can go is down, and I've always been so afraid of the pedestal catching fire and falling, burning me along with it. But I'm not quite so afraid anymore. It's like the wooden pedestal is being slowly filled with something stronger, like concrete, something that won't burn away even if everything else does." He chuckled uneasily, shaking his head. "I don't even know if that makes _sense_ -"

"It does," I interrupted. "It absolutely does. I just... never realized it was possible for someone to feel that way. I've always had the opposite problem."

He nodded, waiting for me to go on.

It was my turn to glance away. "When you start on the bottom, the only way to go is up. And it's a lot easier to go down than go up."

"You're certainly correct in that regard," he said with a humorless laugh. "Falling is easier than climbing."

"Yeah, falling off of my broom was certainly easier than hiking up Stoatshead Hill," I commented, making him laugh for real. I glanced back up at him. "We've done alright for ourselves, haven't we?"

He smiled as he nodded. "And it'll only get better from here." Cedric held his wand out in front of him. "Together? Just to make sure we've both got it down?"

I reached for my own wand, closing my eyes and going back to the shores of Lake Tahoe. "Together. Three..."

"Two..."

"One..."

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" 

My bear joined the osprey, and the two animals lapped the room --- one in the air and the other on the ground --- before fading with a flash of silver. 

It was beautiful.

* * *

I would have been perfectly happy if life had continued in just the same way until final exams, helping Harry during the day and studying and working on collecting my memories at night. I had successfully captured the memory of teaching Cedric the Patronus Charm, and I was planning on capturing the memory of winning the Quidditch Cup my third year next. 

But after the Friday before final exams, my nights became too full of worry to even think about anything else.

The day started normally enough. Transfiguration was just review, and Ancient Runes was... well, Ancient Runes.

Malfoy had been saying all along he thought Krum would win, no competition. He doubted Fleur because she was a girl, he doubted Harry because he was fourteen (even though everyone knew he didn't need a reason to bring Harry down), and he doubted Cedric (or at least, _claimed_ to --- I had reason to doubt his doubts) because he knew saying so would bother me. He'd ridiculed me all year for refusing to wear his stupid badges, and with the third task drawing nearer, he attacked me with renewed vigor. But I had heard from a number of girls in our year that he had been caught staring at me at the Yule Ball, mesmerized, by multiple people from all three schools, so I tolerated his attacks in silence knowing I had a weapon in my back pocket I could use against him whenever I couldn't take it anymore.

"I promise you I'll take the highest score in the class so you don't have to sit with him next year," Hermione muttered as we left.

"Or second-highest," I replied teasingly.

She laughed, looking a tiny bit embarrassed. "Right. That would be alright, too."

We headed to the Great Hall for lunch, but before we could come in, Ron flagged us down.

"What happened to Harry?" I asked, immediately recognizing the concern in Ron's eyes.

"He- how did you know something was wrong with- never mind. He... well, he fell asleep in Divination."

Hermione snorted, then grew serious. "Sorry. Can't blame him is all. Go on."

"And he started rolling around on the floor, clutching his scar... told Trelawney he just had a headache, of course, but I reckon he went to Dumbledore."

I felt my blood run cold. "The last time that happened..."

I spied Harry over Ron's shoulder, and it took all of my willpower not to sprint over. 

Instead, I walked over as quickly as I dared. "Harry, what did Dumbledore say?"

He looked over my shoulder at Ron and Hermione and gestured for us to follow him. We made our way to an empty classroom and sat in a loose circle on the ground. 

"I already wrote to Sirius," Harry said as I shut the door with a flick of my wand. "That's why I took a little longer." He massaged his forehead with his fingers. "Dumbledore said he thinks it's possible my dream... actually happened. Voldemort got a letter from an owl. He said something about how Wormtail’s blunder had been repaired. He said someone was dead. Then he said, Wormtail wouldn’t be fed to the snake; there was a snake beside his chair. He said he’d be feeding _me_ to it, instead. Then he did the Cruciatus Curse on Wormtail, and my scar hurt. It woke me up, it hurt so badly."

I pulled my knees to my chest, feeling a wave of panic rising in me. "Does it still hurt, Harry?"

He shook his head. "I'm fine now. And... well, while I was in Dumbledore's office, I sort of fell into his Pensieve."

"You... what? What memories did you see?" I asked, a little too quickly. If he had somehow seen Mr. Midgen talking to Dumbledore... the thought was terrifying.

If Harry thought it odd how unnerved I was, he didn't show it. "I saw Karkaroff's trial, and Barty Crouch Jr.'s. And Ludo Bagman's."

"Ludo Bagman's?" I echoed. "He was a Death Eater?"

"No, no, he wasn't, he just passed information to Death Eaters, supposedly by accident." Harry bit his lip and looked at me. "Your mum was there at Barty Crouch Jr.'s trial, Lu. Mr. Crouch was still the judge, but she was the one reading the accusations."

"Oh," I said, realizing that Harry now knew about Neville's parents. "That makes sense, I s'pose. Was there anything really notable about any of the trials? Anything new we don't already know?"

He shifted on the ground. "Snape was a Death Eater, too. But Dumbledore trusts him, for a reason he wouldn't explain to me."

"What?" the other three of us asked in unison.

Harry nodded, looking down at his shoes. "Yeah, I know. Oh, and Cornelius Fudge was there when I first arrived at Dumbledore's office. He reckons Madame Maxime attacked Crouch."

Hermione glanced at me, her gaze loaded with meaning. I raised my eyebrows in what I hoped was a _See, the wizarding world is prejudiced to everyone, Hermione, this is why I can't tell Harry_ type of gesture. She shook her head and rested her chin against her fist.

"Dumbledore reckons You-Know-Who’s getting stronger again as well?" Ron asked after a long pause.

"Yeah," Harry said heavily.

"And he trusts Snape? He really trusts Snape, even though he knows he was a Death Eater?" 

"Yeah."

"Rita Skeeter," Hermione said, jerking her head up.

"How can you be worrying about her now?" Ron asked.

"I’m not worrying about her. I’m just thinking, remember what she said to me in the Three Broomsticks? 'I know things about Ludo Bagman that would make your hair curl.' This is what she meant, isn’t it? She reported his trial, she knew he’d passed information to the Death Eaters. And Winky too, remember? 'Ludo Bagman’s a bad wizard.' Mr. Crouch would have been furious he got off, he would have talked about it at home."

"Yeah, but Bagman didn’t pass information on purpose, did he?"

"We can't know for sure."

"And Fudge reckons Madame Maxime attacked Crouch?"

"Yeah, but he’s only saying that because Crouch disappeared near the Beauxbatons carriage," Harry said. Oh, how blind he was to the prejudice...

Ron was not so blind. "We never thought of her, did we? Mind you, she’s definitely got giant blood, and she doesn’t want to admit it-"

"And I can't blame her," I said rather bitterly.

"Yeah, Ron," Hermione echoed. "Look what happened to Hagrid when Rita found out about his mother. Look at Fudge, jumping to conclusions about her, just because she’s part giant. Who needs that sort of prejudice? I’d probably say I had big bones if I knew that’s what I’d get for telling the truth."

"We should go eat lunch," I cut in. "We still have three classes today."

Everyone agreed, so we rose to our feet and headed to the Great Hall. The conversation was over, but my worries had just begun. Nothing about what Dumbledore had said to Harry was comforting in the slightest.

I was able to force myself to focus when it came to my final exams. The History of Magic exam, my last exam, was scheduled for the day of the third task, but Professor Binns let me take it the night before after dinner once I signed a magically-binding contract saying I wouldn't tell anyone what was on it. I was let in on a little secret none of the champions knew --- everyone's families would be in attendance for the third task. As Cedric's sister, Professor McGonagall (correctly) assumed I'd want to spend the day with him and my parents and had thus pulled the appropriate strings with Professor Binns. (No disrespect to him, of course, but it's not like he had anything better to do on a Friday night in June. I reckon having a student stick around for a while was the highlight of his week, even if I was just taking an exam.)

By the time I had finished the exam, the common room was nearly empty. I didn't see Ron or Hermione, but Harry was sitting in my favorite window seat, his back to the portrait hole as he gazed out at the stars.

I walked over and slid in across from him. "Trying to replace me already, Potter? I was only gone a couple hours."

"You're irreplaceable," he replied, turning away from the window to smile at me. "And you have good taste in window seats. This one has the best view of the stars."

I leaned my head against the cool window and nodded. "It does."

"How was the exam? Am I going to be glad I don't have to take it?"

I grinned tiredly. "It wasn't awful, but after already taking two today... oh well, it's over now, for better or for worse."

"Yeah, it is." He glanced back out of the window, his smile faltering.

"I would ask what's bothering you, but I already know the answer," I said quietly after a moment, looking up at the stars as well, "and honestly, it's bothering me too. But 24 hours from now, it'll all be over. Win, lose, or draw, you'll never have to worry about this stupid tournament ever again."

He nodded slowly. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Lu, I needed to hear that."

"Of course, it's true," I replied. "This hasn't exactly been a picnic for me, either. Once we get past tomorrow, what do you say we just, I don't know, play Quidditch until summer comes?"

"That would be... great. Beyond great." He sighed. "I miss Quidditch."

"Oh, me too. I can't wait to play for real next year."

"Merlin, I don't even want to _think_ about next year."

I snorted. "Well, think about it this way. This year has been hell on earth, right?"

"Right."

"How can next year be any worse than this year? Think about it. No Triwizard Tournament. No mass murderer out to kill you. No Chamber of Secrets. No Philosopher's Stone. Sure, knowing you there will be _something_ that goes wrong, but it can't _possibly_ be worse than this year."

Harry laughed out loud. "I'm personally hoping for a dragon invasion next year. _That_ I could handle. Well, actually, you'd probably just befriend them all, meaning we wouldn't get to fight them, but-"

I started laughing too hard to hear whatever he said next.

He grinned. "What? What did I say?"

"You know I would in fact try to befriend all of the dragons," I managed between fits of giggles.

"Well, yeah, that's obvious. You'd try to befriend any creature that overran the school, whether it's dragons or blast-ended skrewts or, I don't know, manticores. The bigger and more dangerous, the better, as far as you're concerned. Those porlocks sure are cute, though," he added with an adorable little smile.

I shook my head, still laughing. "You know what, I can't deny it. Congratulations, Potter, you've figured me out. And yes, yes they are."

"You'd think I've learned a thing or two in the last four years," he remarked. "Glad I could amuse you."

"I am certainly amused," I replied. I took a deep breath to stop laughing and released it in a sigh. "We should probably get to bed. Big day tomorrow."

He nodded, sliding out of the window seat and stifling a yawn. "Fair enough. G'night, Lu."

I let myself study his face for half a second longer than I would have otherwise. I always felt most at ease when Harry was right there beside me, where I knew he would either be completely out of harm's way or that at least harm would have to get past me first. I smiled, feeling my chest flood with warmth for this boy I loved so dearly. "G'night, Harry."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey, everyone. I just wanted to post a more personal note than usual, because as you all know, this story is about to take a dark turn.
> 
> Sunday, I lost my dog unexpectedly. She was only seven years old, and perfectly healthy until her last 24 hours of life. I was able to make it home to be with her for about her final 12 hours, and I'm so so so thankful that she didn't suffer for long, but to say I'm still reeling would be an incredible understatement. My dog was my best friend for all seven years she was a part of our family, and I'm going to miss her so much.
> 
> I considered taking a break from this story. I thought about waiting to work on it again until after Thanksgiving, maybe after Christmas, maybe even later. I wanted to wallow until I felt better. But... I realized that wallowing wouldn't make me feel any better --- continuing to write would. This story genuinely fills me with so much joy, and seeing your sweet comments week after week means more than you could possibly know.
> 
> So I'm going to continue with the story. I know that losing a dog isn't the same as losing a brother, but I'm still going to pour everything I can of myself and my own experiences right now into Lucy. I'm still going to do my best to channel all of this grief and try to turn it into something beautiful. Maybe Lucy and I will be able to heal together. If it gets to be too much for me, I'll take a break, but as of right now, I'm going to keep writing as a way of making sense of the horrible circumstances I've found myself thrown into and hopefully find healing and balance along the way. 
> 
> And... well, I thought you all might want to know that I buried my baby girl at sunrise. She died at 5:45 in the morning, surrounded by my whole family but looking at me, and my dad and I were able to dig a grave before the sun had risen. I didn't get to take a picture of the sunrise, but trust me when I say it was beautiful. While I obviously wish nothing like this had happened at all, I'm so unbelievably thankful that her death was peaceful and that the sunrise was beautiful and that I was present for both things, the horrible and the hopeful alike. To quote Cedric, "Even if everything else in the world changes, you can still count on the sunrise." And I did. I counted on the sunrise, and it was there for me.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who's read this far. I really hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know the next several chapters will be difficult, but I hope you all enjoy those too. They'll be the most raw, authentic, emotional chapters I've ever written, and I promise that this story has a happy ending. 
> 
> From here on out, I'm dedicating this story to Murphy, who will forever be the best dog I've ever loved. I hope she was watching the sunrise right alongside us.
> 
> Thank you for everything. Love you all. See you Saturday at midnight PST. ❤


	69. The Only Star That Guided Me Was You

LUCY:

I shot up to a sitting position, pushing back the darkness that had just engulfed me for a fifth time. I wasn't really drowning at the bottom of the Black Lake. I was safe. So why didn't I feel any better?

"Same old nightmare, Lucy," I muttered to myself, but those words weren't enough to slow my racing heart. It didn't matter how many times I had the nightmare --- I never got used to the terror that gripped me every morning when it woke me up.

I glanced at the clock. 6:24 again. I shook my head, realizing there was no way I'd get back to sleep. I changed into my robes for the day. As I dug through my trunk for my socks, I found the stuffed osprey I had gotten for Cedric --- since I had my patronus in stuffed animal form at home, I thought it would be only fair to do the same for him. I considered giving it to him before the task, but I thought he might appreciate it more if I gave it to him at the end of the night, when it was all said and done. If he lost, it would hopefully remind him of all of the good times he had over the year anyway, and if he won, well, it'd just add to the celebration. I had been working with the twins and Henry for the better part of the week to put together a joint party for Cedric and Harry for after the task. They were both Hogwarts champions, after all, and we figured that there would be no better way to officially set aside the rivalry throughout the year than with a huge party, whether they won or lost. 

As such, I wasn't terribly surprised to see Henry in the Gryffindor common room with the twins when I headed down, putting the finishing touches on what looked like the poster Dean had painted --- they were adding a couple of charms to make the letters change colors.

"Morning, boys!" I said, wedging myself between George and Henry. "Need any help?"

"Not with the charmwork, but if you wouldn't mind making sure Harry doesn't see any of the things we've stashed in the corners, that would be great," Fred replied. 

I looked around the room; the "things" were spilling out of every corner, sticking out from underneath every chair, and falling off of bookshelves. "How? Steal his glasses?"

George glanced around and laughed. "You have a point. We need to hide everything better."

I checked my watch. "And fast. He could come down any minute, I doubt he's slept very well."

"I'll have to try to sneak back down before Cedric wakes up, so I can take some of it with me," Henry added. "Lucy's right, we should hurry."

The four of us were a remarkably efficient team; we barely even needed to talk as we passed various posters and bottles and fireworks and bags back and forth. Henry disappeared through the portrait hole just before seven, and Harry came down not five minutes later.

I hoped for a nice, normal breakfast at the Gryffindor table since I knew I'd be spending the rest of the day with my family, but Rita _bloody_ Skeeter made that impossible.

Hermione spewed her pumpkin juice all over the front page of the _Daily Prophet_. She shoved it under the table to me so Harry didn't see it, and I cleaned away the pumpkin juice with a flick of my wand in order to read the article.

**June 24, 1995**

**HARRY POTTER “DISTURBED AND DANGEROUS”**

**The boy who defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is unstable and possibly dangerous, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. Alarming evidence has recently come to light about Harry Potter’s strange behavior, which casts doubts upon his suitability to compete in a demanding competition like the Triwizard Tournament, or even to attend Hogwarts School.**

**Potter, the _Daily Prophet_ can exclusively reveal, regularly collapses at school, and is often heard to complain of pain in the scar on his forehead (relic of the curse with which You-Know-Who attempted to kill him). On Monday last, midway through a Divination lesson, your _Daily Prophet_ reporter witnessed Potter storming from the class, claiming that his scar was hurting too badly to continue studying. **

**It is possible, say top experts at St. Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, that Potter’s brain was affected by the attack inflicted upon him by You-Know-Who, and that his insistence that the scar is still hurting is an expression of his deep-seated confusion.**

**“He might even be pretending,” said one specialist. “This could be a plea for attention.”**

**The _Daily Prophet_ , however, has unearthed worrying facts about Harry Potter that Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, has carefully concealed from the wizarding public. **

**“Potter can speak Parseltongue,” reveals Draco Malfoy, a Hogwarts fourth year. “There were a lot of attacks on students a couple of years ago, and most people thought Potter was behind them after they saw him lose his temper at a dueling club and set a snake on another boy. It was all hushed up, though. But he’s made friends with werewolves and giants too. We think he’d do anything for a bit of power.”**

**Parseltongue, the ability to converse with snakes, has long been considered a Dark Art. Indeed, the most famous Parselmouth of our times is none other than You-Know-Who himself. A member of the Dark Force Defense League, who wished to remain unnamed, stated that he would regard any wizard who could speak Parseltongue “as worthy of investigation. Personally, I would be highly suspicious of anybody who could converse with snakes, as serpents are often used in the worst kinds of Dark Magic, and are historically associated with evildoers.” Similarly, “anyone who seeks out the company of such vicious creatures as werewolves and giants would appear to have a fondness for violence.”**

**Albus Dumbledore should surely consider whether a boy such as this should be allowed to compete in the Triwizard Tournament. Some fear that Potter might resort to the Dark Arts in his desperation to win the tournament, the third task of which takes place this evening.**

My hands trembled with anger. I had half a mind to rip the newspaper in half. I could feel myself growing red in the face, and the ring on my finger burned scarlet with the combined fury of both Hermione and myself. 

“It’s about me, isn’t it?” 

I couldn't meet Harry's gaze.

“No, it's not, it's nothing,” Hermione lied on my behalf.

"Let me rephrase. Lucy, please give me the paper." I glanced up at him, and he cocked his head in a _Please?_ gesture. "It's written all over your face. You wouldn't get this angry if it were nothing."

I still held onto the paper, but Draco's shout across the Great Hall got our attention. “Hey, Potter! _Potter_! How’s your head? You feeling alright? Sure you’re not going to go berserk on us?”

"The only person going berserk will be _me_ ," I muttered, tossing Harry the paper and plunging my hand into my pocket for my wand. 

Harry lunged across the table and grabbed my wand arm. "Don't. It's what he wants."

"Oh, so you're allowed to attack him before Potions, but I can't right now?"

"Not today, Lu," he said, looking mildly amused. "Okay?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Tomorrow?"

His amused expression gave way to a smile. "We'll do it together tomorrow. I'll get him for Valentine's Day, and you can get him for this."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

I shook myself free from his grip. "I'm holding you to that."

While Hermione and Ron read the article over his shoulder, the twins turned toward me. 

"Valentine's Day?" they asked in unison.

I bit my lip, the flush of my cheeks now due to embarrassment rather than anger. "I'd rather not talk about it. Harry and I will sort it out tomorrow."

"What is there to sort?" George pressed.

"There will be nothing to sort after tomorrow," I said, cheekily dodging his inquiry.

George opened his mouth to ask another question, but Harry had finished the article. He folded the paper and handed it back to Hermione.

“Gone off me a bit, hasn’t she?”

I smiled. "Can I still go off on _her_ even if you're not bothered by it?"

Before he could answer, Ron tugged on Harry's sleeve to get his attention. “How did she know your scar hurt in Divination? There’s no way she was there, there’s no way she could’ve heard-”

“The window was open. I opened it to breathe.”

“You were at the top of North Tower! Your voice couldn’t have carried all the way down to the grounds!” Hermione said insistently. 

Harry shrugged. “Well, you’re the one who’s researching magical methods of bugging. _You_ tell me how she did it.”

“I’ve been trying! But I... but...” Her voice trailed off, and her eyes widened. 

"Rita Skeeter better watch out," Fred said with a laugh, "because _that_ right there is the face of a witch who has just had a breakthrough."

Hermione was running her fingers through her hair, then bringing her hand to her mouth, muttering to herself the whole time.

Ron looked at her askance. “Are you alright?”

“Yes... I’ve had an idea... I think I know... because then no one would be able to see... even Moody... and she’d have been able to get onto the window ledge... but she’s not allowed... she’s _definitely_ not allowed... I think we’ve got her! Just give me two seconds in the library, just to make sure!”

She jumped up from the table and bolted from the Great Hall. 

"Oi, we’ve got our History of Magic exam in ten minutes!" he shouted after her, but it was no use. Hermione was off doing what she did best. "Blimey, she must really hate that Skeeter woman to risk missing the start of an exam. What’re you going to do in Binns’s class, Harry, read again?"

He shrugged. "S'pose so."

But I spied Professor McGonagall over his shoulder and smiled knowingly. Mrs. Weasley had owled me ahead of time that she would be there for Harry. 

“Potter, the champions are congregating in the chamber off the Hall after breakfast. Miss Diggory, you may go on in now,” Professor McGonagall said. 

I rose from my seat and tossed my braids over my shoulder, ruffling the twins' hair just for the heck of it. I was nervous for the third task, sure --- I'd have been a fool not to be --- but I was oddly giddy too, thinking that within 12 hours, the Triwizard Tournament would at long last be over and we'd all be partying in the Gryffindor common room. 

Harry's face blanched. “But the task’s not till tonight!”

Professor McGonagall glanced up at me briefly --- torn between amusement and exasperation --- before looking back at him. “I’m aware of that, Potter. The champions’ families are invited to watch the final task, you know. This is simply a chance for you to greet them.”

"See you in a bit, Harry," I said, heading off to the chamber. I poked my head in and surely enough, four families were already assembled.

I darted toward Mum first and hugged her. 

"Cedric is going to be so excited!" I gushed. "It's great to see you!"

"It's great to be back," she commented, gazing fondly around the room. "It's been a while, hasn't it, Amos?"

Dad nodded, rocking back and forth on his feet. "Ced will have to take us down to our old common room. Did you ever go there in your time as a student, Susan?"

"Of course. That's where all of the board games are."

I laughed. "The Gryffindor common room needs board games! Hufflepuff has always had them all?"

"I don't see Gryffindors as having the patience required for a good old-fashioned board game," Dad remarked. "Most prefer much more destructive forms of entertainment, like entering dangerous tournaments underage and-" He stopped suddenly, beaming. "Ced, my boy!" 

Cedric grinned as he hurried over to hug Mum then Dad. "Come to watch the third task, have you?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Mum said as she studied him. "Merlin, Cedric Diggory, we'll have to buy you new robes again next year. You're still growing!"

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah, I reckon I am."

I glanced over my shoulder at the rest of the room. Fleur and Viktor were already there with their families, but Mrs. Weasley and Bill were standing by themselves, eyes on the door. Mrs. Weasley glanced over at me and smiled, and Bill lifted his hand in greeting. I waved back, then turned to my family. 

"I'll be right back. I think Harry is under the impression the _Dursleys_ of all people are coming for him."

Without waiting for a response, I marched over to the door, opened it, and marched over to Harry, who was sitting by himself at the Gryffindor table. I sat next to him, backwards on the bench, and leaned my elbows against the table.

"Harry, looks like you're done with your breakfast," I said casually, tilting my head so I was closer to his face. "Come on. Your family's waiting for you."

He didn't meet my eyes. "Lucy, I..."

"Harry, please don't tell me you were thinking of the Dursleys."

I found my answer in the silence, and in the way he turned to look at me with subtle surprise in his emerald eyes.

"Come with me," I said softly. "Like I said... your family's waiting."

We walked together to the chamber. Harry's face lit up when he saw Mrs. Weasley and Bill, and he immediately hurried over. I returned to my family, smiling. 

"Sorted?" Cedric asked, and the two of us watched as Mrs. Weasley pulled Harry to herself in a tight embrace.

"Sorted," I replied. I glanced away from the three of them and looked up at Cedric. "The day is yours, Ced. What do you want to do?"

He pursed his lips, thinking. His response was exactly what I expected. "I don't know. What do you three want to do?"

"Oh shut up," I chuckled, poking his ribs. "Don't try that. Not today. Today's _your_ day."

"Er... I reckon Mum and Dad would like to see their old common rooms. Maybe we could head up to the Gryffindor common room first, then play a game in the Hufflepuff common room?"

I grinned. "That's more like it. Let's go!"

We were just about to leave when Dad was near enough to Harry to call out to him.

“There you are, are you?”

Harry paused and turned to look at him. I hated the frightened look in Harry's eyes, and I hated the Dursleys for conditioning him to feel that way whenever an adult so much as addressed him --- Mrs. Weasley was one of the rare exceptions to this rule, and I loved her all the more for always making Harry feel safe. My dad, however, was not an exception.

“Bet you’re not feeling quite as full of yourself now Cedric’s caught you up on points, are you?”

“What?” Harry asked, eyes flickering between me and my dad.

I opened my mouth to say something, but to my surprise, Cedric beat me to it.

“Ignore him, Harry. He’s been angry ever since Rita Skeeter’s article about the Triwizard Tournament. You know, when she made out you were the only Hogwarts champion,” Cedric added. 

But Dad was not about to be stopped. “Didn’t bother to correct her, though, did he? Still, you’ll show him, Ced. Beaten him once before, haven’t you?”

I again opened my mouth to defend Harry, but this time, it was Mrs. Weasley who beat me to it.

“Rita Skeeter goes out of her way to cause trouble, Amos! I would have thought you’d know that, working at the Ministry!”

"Go," I mouthed to Harry, feeling my cheeks begin to burn yet again. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head as if to say not to worry about it before leading Mrs. Weasley and Bill out of the room. I felt angry and humiliated tears stinging the backs of my eyes, but I refused to let Dad see how upset I was --- I knew how easily his anger against others could be redirected my way. So instead, I swallowed my emotions and forced a smile to the forefront. "So, Mum, want to see your old common room?"

As expected, Mum was pleased to see that not much had changed in the decades since she'd graduated, though she did comment that there were a number of new scorch marks in the corner of the common room the Weasley twins often occupied. Dad was excited to see his old common room as well, and the four of us played a very evenly-matched game of Scrabble, seeing as none of us were Ravenclaws.

I sat at the Hufflepuff table with my family and Cedric's friends during lunch; Mum seemed particularly enthralled by Archie, whereas Dad made very easy conversation with Cho. Cedric, Henry, and I entertained ourselves by making plans to organize another Quidditch match over the summer, just like we had played on Cedric's birthday. Henry didn't have an exam that afternoon, so he joined us as we walked around the grounds, taking turns telling story after story of the various adventures that one experienced during their tenure at Hogwarts.

At dinner, I made eye contact across the room with Harry.

I offered a thumbs up and raised my eyebrows. "You okay?"

He offered a half-hearted one in return, and I noticed that his food was virtually untouched. I pulled a scrap of parchment from my paper and borrowed a quill from Henry's bookbag.

On one side: _I can't eat when I'm nervous, either. See?_ On the other: _But we'll be okay. I know we will. We'll eat as much as we want tomorrow, because this will all be over._

I wadded up the scrap and tossed it directly at Harry's head. My Chaser's arm guaranteed that it bounced off his forehead, and his Seeker reflexes guaranteed that he caught it midair before it could hit the table. He uncrumpled it and managed a grin, glancing up at me. I gestured to my equally-untouched plate, and he nodded weakly. 

I gestured for him to turn it around, which he did. I watched as a tiny bit of the tension drained from his shoulders, and he glanced up again. His nod was stronger this time, and I offered a final smile before turning back to the conversation at the table.

Professor Dumbledore rose to his feet a couple minutes later, and the Great Hall grew completely silent.

“Ladies and gentlemen, in five minutes’ time, I will be asking you to make your way down to the Quidditch field for the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament. Champions and families, please follow Mr. Bagman down to the stadium now.”

I rose to my feet, smiling as Cedric grabbed Cho and Henry by the arms as well. I glanced across the Hall --- Harry was leaving with all of the Weasleys, and Hermione as well. Deciding he was in good enough company without me, I followed my brother out. As soon as the doors closed behind us, I jumped onto his back.

He caught me, of course, laughing. "Too much walking for one day, Lu?"

"Well, this way, Cho can have one side and Henry can have the other." I tightened my grip and rested my chin on his shoulder. "You don't mind, do you?"

Cedric shook his head. "Of course not."

The summer evening was cool, and the sun painted the sky beautiful shades of pink and purple and orange and yellow.

"Hogwarts will always have the best sunsets," I murmured.

"Some things never change," Cedric replied in agreement, and I smiled, remembering the summer evening all those years ago when we had first had that conversation. Merlin... it felt so long ago, and yet like no time at all had passed. Time was a finicky thing, I had learned.

The rest of the walk to the Quidditch Pitch passed in comfortable silence. Cho and Cedric were holding hands, as were Mum and Dad. I clung tightly to Cedric's back, and I watched as Henry crept closer and closer to Cedric as the Quidditch Pitch grew nearer and nearer. When the time came to enter the stands, I darted over to Harry to let Cho and Cedric kiss without an audience.

I hugged him for several seconds; I don't know who was holding the other tighter. "You can do this," I said firmly. "Just keep a level head like I know you can, and do your best to remember that whatever happens tonight, everyone is so proud of you." I finally released him from the hug, but the way he held my gaze, it was as if we'd never broken apart.

"What a year," he said after a moment, shaking his head.

I managed a breathless laugh. "What a year. Good luck, Potter. See you on the other side of the maze."

"See you on the other side of the maze."

He smiled back at me, trying to appear more confident than he truly felt, and headed in the direction of Ludo Bagman. I tore my eyes away from his retreating form and turned to Cedric. His arms were already open, waiting for me, and I launched myself at him, burying my face against his neck.

"I'm so proud of you," I said in a voice only he could hear as he pulled me tighter. "Win, lose, draw, I'm _so_ proud of you, Cedric. What you've done this year... you're not the same person you were a year ago. And I thought you were the best a year ago. You're somehow even better now, and I can't wait to see what you do next. I love you."

"I love you too. Thank you for believing in me," he replied in an equally soft voice. "You always have." He set me down and grinned. "You know what sounds really good right now?"

I looked at him uncertainly, a small smile toying with the corners of my mouth. "What?"

He turned to Mum with the same grin. "Those pancakes you promised me last summer."

That effectively broke the tension, and everyone around laughed. He hugged her one more time, then Dad, then me again, then went to stand with Harry and the others. I found myself between Henry and George in the front row of the stands; I was just barely tall enough to rest my elbows on the edge of the railing.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin!" Ludo Bagman announced in a magically-amplified voice. "Let me remind you how the points currently stand! Tied in first place, with eighty-five points each: Mr. Cedric Diggory and Mr. Harry Potter, both of Hogwarts School!"

I cheered as loudly as I could, since it was the first time I could cheer for both boys at once.

"In second place, with eighty-one points: Miss Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy! And in third place, with eighty points: Mr. Viktor Krum, of Durmstrang Institute!"

All four champions turned to wave to the crowd, and I waved at both Cedric and Harry with the brightest smile I could manage. 

The moment was gone too soon, interrupted by Ludo Bagman's voice. "So... on my whistle, Harry and Cedric!"

Both boys turned back around and drew their wands. I held my breath as the countdown began.

"Three, two, one-" A sharp whistle sent both boys running into the maze. 

And then just like that, they disappeared from view. The task had begun.

Two minutes later, Fleur was allowed to enter. Two minutes after that, Krum darted into the maze.

The wait began.

I had managed to prevent myself from falling into worry prior to that moment. There was always something to do. I could help Harry, I could make party preparations, I could study for final exams, I could work on collecting my memories. But sitting there between Henry and George, I found myself with nothing better to do than try to ignore the anxious thoughts running rampant through my mind.

The night was silent and still save for the murmuring of the crowd. That is, until a scream pierced the night.

I must have jumped three feet in the air.

"Fleur," I choked out, terrified for the kind girl who had saved me from a great deal of humiliation on Valentine's Day.

Red sparks shot into the air, and the patrolling professors hurried to the site. She was lifted to safety on a stretcher less than a minute later, and brought to the entrance of the maze. Madam Pomfrey and Madame Maxime blocked her from view, but Professor Dumbledore announced to the crowd that she would be alright, and we all breathed a little easier for a while.

I found myself hoping that if the maze proved to be too much for Cedric or Harry, they would have the good sense to send up the sparks and be rescued instead of trying to be brave.

But as soon as the thought occurred to me, I became aware of the reality. Both Cedric and Harry would fight until the end, whatever the cost.

Before I could dwell on this thought any longer, a shout broke the silence. Cedric.

“What are you doing? What the _hell_ d’you think you’re doing?!”

My breath hitched in my throat. What was going on?

Viktor Krum's voice answered my question. "Crucio!"

When Cedric's pained yells met my ears, I felt my knees go weak. They lasted for ten seconds... fifteen... twenty...

"Why aren't they doing something?" Henry asked, his voice higher than mine with his panic. 

"I don't know," I replied, my voice little more than a whisper. Tears stung the back of my eyes. "Sparks, Cedric, send up the sparks, don't be brave, be _safe_ -"

After a couple more seconds, Harry's voice could be heard over the sound of Cedric's agony. "Stupefy!"

And then it was silent again.

"Thank Merlin for Harry," Henry muttered, his hands trembling as they gripped the railing in front of us. 

I nodded and took a deep breath to steady myself. After fifteen seconds of silence, red sparks once again rose into the sky, which was now dark blue but not dark enough to show any stars. Henry and I both held our breath as the stretcher was lifted from the maze, and I'll admit we both sighed in relief when we saw it was Viktor Krum and not Cedric.

Another tense period of time passed. We could still see the glow of spells fired, and from time to time, we heard the growls and snarls of various creatures in the maze. 

Then suddenly, Harry shouted, “Cedric! On your left!” A couple of seconds passed, and the sound of a struggle followed. "Stupefy! Impedimentia! Stupefy! Stupefy! Expelliarmus!"

"STUPEFY!" shouted Harry and Cedric together. 

Then it was Cedric yelling. "Harry! You alright? Did it fall on you?"

"No!"

Hermione leaned forward and called to me. "Does the 'No!' mean 'No, I'm not alright,' or 'No, it didn't fall on me?'"

"Why are you asking me?"

Ron leaned forward too. "You know why. You know him, Lucy."

I bit my lip. "I think it means 'No, it didn't fall on me,' but I guess we'll find out for certain in a moment."

I glanced away and watched for red sparks, but none came. The crowd was almost completely silent, but no new sounds met our ears.

The minutes dragged on --- whether it had been ten minutes or an hour, I had no idea --- and the crowd continued to wait in near silence.

That silence is why I heard the call of a bird, flying far above us. The short bursts were high-pitched, yet not piercingly so. Rather, its call was almost song-like. It was sweet and confident, assuring and melodic. 

When I looked up, I saw that the call belonged to an osprey, whose white feathers cast it in a ghostly type of glow.

My eyes did not leave the bird as it flew in a perfect circle over the Quidditch Pitch. I watched as, upon the completion of its circle, it settled on top of what I knew was once the location of a Hufflepuff banner, before the stands of the Quidditch Pitch had been altered to accommodate the crowd.

I could have sworn that the bird looked directly at me before flying away and out of sight. 

I have never been able to adequately describe the emotion I felt in that moment. But it is one I will never forget as long as I live.

* * *

CEDRIC:

"Avada kedavra!"

With a single flash of blinding green light, I found myself surrounded by stars. But these weren't the distant stars of the night sky --- they were so close I felt I could reach forward and touch each and every one. I did reach my hand forward, and a glowing door appeared in the stars before me. I laid my hand on the doorknob, but before I could twist it, a gentle voice, the only sound among the endless stars, stopped me.

"You have done so well, Cedric," it said. "So well. But there is one thing left to do. Wait just a bit longer, then you are free."

I lowered my hand from the knob and turned around slowly. As if through a telescope, I could see the graveyard. 

"What must I do?" I asked the voice, but there was no answer. So, I did as it said. I waited.

As I waited, I wondered what I would have said to everyone, if I had known this night would end this way.

I would have told Henry that I'd always loved him, and that I always would. I would have thanked him for being my best friend through everything. I would have told him not to cry for me, knowing some of my very best memories were spent by his side.

I would have told Cho to find a new dream, and that I loved her too. I would have told her I hoped I showed her the kind of love I knew she deserved, and that I hoped she would settle for nothing less than that in the years to come.

I would have told Bea not to hate the world for deciding my time had come. I would have told Adalyn I wouldn't have been the person I was without her. 

I would have thanked Professor Sprout for always believing in me. I would have thanked _everyone_ for believing in me.

I would have told Dad that I hoped I made him proud, one last time. I would have told him not to mourn for me, for my life had been good and whole, even if it didn't end the way he always dreamed it would. I would have told Mum that I hoped she still thought of me when she saw the color yellow. Her sunshine son, she always called me. I would have thanked both of them for bringing Lucy home, bringing Lucy into my life.

Lucy.

My Lucy.

I would have told her I was sorry we'd never get to live the life together I promised her.

I would have told her that it would be okay just the same.

I would have told her to breathe. In, and out. In, and out. One day at a time.

I would have told her to go out and let her inner spark ignite and turn into the brightest flame, a fire I could see even from where I was.

I would have told her not to blame the stars for taking me home.

I would have told her she'd always be my sister. Always and forever, and then beyond forever.

Suddenly, I found myself flying back toward the graveyard.

"Don't break the connection," the voice said.

I was getting closer and closer. I could see that Harry was straining, holding his wand out in front of him with sweat and tears pouring down his face. I could see a bright golden light, almost as bright as the stars behind me, as I flew faster and faster toward him. Suddenly, I was back in the graveyard, nothing more than a shadow of what I had once been.

"Hold on, Harry," I said. His eyes widened, but he didn't lose his focus.

This must have been what the voice meant.

Harry _had_ to hold on.

For Lucy, if for nobody else. Lucy needed Harry, especially if... there was no me.

One by one, other ghosts joined me. An old man, a Muggle from the sounds of it. Bertha Jorkins. Lily Potter, and James Potter.

We all seemed to understand what to do, though we didn't speak to each other at all.

Harry's father stepped closer to his son. “When the connection is broken, we will linger for only moments, but we will give you time. You must get to the Portkey, it will return you to Hogwarts... do you understand, Harry?”

"Yes," he panted, his face white and his hands around his wand even whiter.

I, too, approached Harry. “Harry... take my body back, will you? Take my body back to my parents, and Lucy? And... and take care of Lucy for me? Please?”

He nodded. "I will. I promise."

“Do it now, and be ready to run," James Potter whispered. "Do it now..."

"Now!" Harry yelled.

We moved as one, Voldemort's victims, and swarmed him. I gazed one last time upon the face of the man who had ordered my death, then, just as soon as I had done so, I felt myself getting lighter and lighter. I drifted upward, to the stars. I never once looked down.

I reached the door again, and this time, when I reached a hand forward, the voice did not tell me to wait. It did not say anything at all.

So I laid my hand on the knob, turned it slowly, and stepped into whatever lay beyond the stars.

* * *

LUCY:

There was a sudden flash of light at the entrance to the maze.

I saw Harry clutching the Triwizard Cup in his right hand and Cedric's wrist in his left hand. Before I even knew what I was doing, before anybody could stop me, I vaulted over the railing and sprinted as fast as my legs could carry me over to where they were. As soon as I was six feet away, I froze as if rooted to the ground.

Harry was heaving for breath, crying, shielding Cedric.

Cedric's eyes were staring up at the stars, vacant, unseeing.

A scream could be heard over the cheers of the crowd.

Then Professor Dumbledore was shouting Harry's name, asking what had happened.

Then the crowd began to fall silent.

Harry found his voice, lifting his head to look at Professor Dumbledore.

"He's back! He's back! Voldemort's back! Cedric, he asked me to bring his body back! I couldn't leave him! Not there!"

Professor Dumbledore gripped Harry's head in his hands. "It's alright, Harry, it's alright. You're home. You both are."

Cornelius Fudge's voice. "Keep everybody in their seats! A boy's just been killed."

That was the moment I was no longer frozen. Suddenly, I was running for all I was worth, out of the Quidditch Pitch, down the hill, through the grass, as far away as I could get. 

Once I reached the shores of the Black Lake, I found I couldn't run anymore.

I crumpled to my knees and screamed.

My throat knew well how it felt to scream. I had screamed before and after every transformation. 

No scream had ever hurt as much as that one.

I was frozen again, unable to move.

The darkness pressed in from all sides. My worst nightmare had become more than just a terror of the night.

My nightmare was real, and it was all around me.

I heard distant voices shouting my name, getting closer. Then I felt strong hands gripping my shoulders.

"We're here, Cub, we're here," George panted.

Fred's grip tightened. "We're here," he echoed. "We're here."

I didn't acknowledge what they said. I couldn't bring myself to nod, or speak, or move anything at all. I could feel myself trembling, I could feel the raw pain in my chest, but I couldn't bring myself to move.

After a period of silence, Fred's grip tightened again. "Dumbledore asked us to follow you and bring you to his office. We should go."

I still couldn't bring myself to speak or move, but I managed the slightest, slightest nod.

They pulled me to my feet, and I staggered forward in an attempt not to fall.

"Fred, it looks like they're emptying the stands," George muttered.

One of Fred's hands disappeared, and the hood of my robe was pulled over my head. 

"Just so nobody tries to bother you, Cub," George explained in a soft voice. 

I managed another nod. 

My legs trembled so violently as we made our way up to the castle I frequently tripped and fell against one twin or the other. They made sure my hood remained over my head, and their grips around me tightened with every stumble. Eventually, I found myself outside of Professor Dumbledore's office, and I freed myself so I could sink to the ground with my back against the wall. 

The twins followed suit on either side of me, wands drawn just in case. 

"We'll stay until Professor Dumbledore arrives with Harry," George whispered.

"You're safe here with us," Fred added.

But before he arrived, a large black dog appeared at the end of the hallway. I recognized it, and lifted my hand in greeting, the small action requiring monumental effort.

George tensed beside me; I remembered the conversation so many years ago when he confessed to being afraid of dogs.

"Do you know the dog, Cub?" Fred asked in a gentle voice.

I nodded and lowered my hood. 

Sirius recognized me with my hood down and bounded toward me, making a sympathetic whine in his throat as he laid down in front of me and rested his head on his paws. He let me scratch behind his ears, the rhythmic motion rather soothing. 

Professor Dumbledore didn't arrive for a very long time. Whether it was really ten minutes or two hours, I didn't know, but eventually, I heard distant footsteps, and Harry's voice, just a mumble.

“Professor, where are Mr. and Mrs. Diggory? And... and Lucy?”

His voice shook as he replied. “His parents are with Professor Sprout. She was Head of Cedric’s house, and knew him best. Lucy is right here.”

I looked up from Sirius to see that Harry and Professor Dumbledore had arrived. Sirius bounded over to Harry and nuzzled his head against his leg, and the twins pulled me to my feet. 

Professor Dumbledore whispered something to the twins that I didn't catch, and they nodded. They slowly let go of my arms, and I didn't fall.

"Be back in a bit, Cub. You're in good hands now," Fred said, and he and George took off at a jog in the same direction we had come. 

I looked at Harry, but he was looking down at Sirius. Professor Dumbledore murmured the password, and the four of us climbed the winding staircase to his office. Once the door closed behind us, Sirius transformed into a man and looked wildly back and forth between the two of us.

“Harry, Lucy, are you alright? I knew it, I knew something like this... what happened?”

Professor Dumbledore conjured three chairs with a flick of his wand. Harry sat in the middle one. I sat to his left, Sirius to his right.

“What happened?” Sirius asked again.

Professor Dumbledore looked at me for a long second. "Lucy, does the name Barty Crouch Jr. mean anything to you?"

I managed a small nod.

He sighed heavily, looking at Sirius. "The real Alastor Moody has been living out of a chest since the beginning of the school year." He looked at me. "The Professor Moody you know was really Barty Crouch Jr. all along, drinking polyjuice potion from his hip flask." 

He then launched into a story I didn't fully comprehend. Words like "Imperius Curse" and "house elf" were frequently used, but by the end of the story, all that I understood was that Barty Crouch Jr. was to blame for everything that had gone wrong that year.

When the story was over, I heard a soft rush of wings. For half a second, I wondered if it was the osprey returning, but a flash of red and gold informed me it was Fawkes. 

The bird landed in between Harry and me, looking back and forth between the two of us.

"'Lo, Fawkes," Harry mumbled.

Our hands reached forward to stroke the feathers at the same time, and when our fingers grazed, I found that suddenly, Harry was my lifeline. I twisted my hand around so that our fingers intertwined, and his fingers tightened around mine. He was the only thing tethering me to anything tangible and warm and real, and I got the feeling he felt the same way about me.

Silence fell, and Professor Dumbledore leaned forward. “I need to know what happened after you touched the Portkey in the maze, Harry.”

“We can leave that till morning, can’t we, Dumbledore? Let him have a sleep, let him rest! And what about Lucy, why aren't her parents here to hear this, too?” Sirius burst out.

Unfazed, Professor Dumbledore continued looking at Harry. “If I thought I could help you by putting you into an enchanted sleep and allowing you to postpone the moment when you would have to think about what has happened tonight, I would do it. But I know better. Numbing the pain for a while will make it worse when you finally feel it. You have shown bravery beyond anything I could have expected of you. I ask you to demonstrate your courage one more time. I ask you to tell us what happened. And Lucy... I know you would rather hear this now with us than with your parents come morning. You and Harry have always understood each other beyond what anybody else ever could. I ask you to be brave as well.”

Fawkes, sensing Harry's reluctance, made a noise deep in his throat that seemed to make the candles in the room shine a little bit brighter and seemed to hold the chill seeping into my bones at bay. I offered Harry a reassuring squeeze.

He took a deep breath and began to talk. 

"We decided to take the Triwizard Cup together. We'd saved each other's necks a couple times each. Neither of us felt right taking it by ourselves. So we each grabbed a handle, and the cup was a Portkey. We found ourselves in a graveyard. We pulled out our wands, and a figure appeared, holding what looked like a baby. Before we could do anything, my scar hurt, more than I think it ever has before. Then... then I heard Voldemort tell Wormtail... 'Kill the spare.'"

Stars filled my vision as the reality of my brother's last moments struck me like a bolt of lightning. But Harry's fingers tightened around mine, keeping me anchored. I held a little tighter to him, determined not to lose him, too. 

The story continued, and I paid as much attention as I could to the details of what Harry had gone through. I offered reassuring squeezes in what I hoped were the right places, though I didn't fully understand everything he was saying. I felt like I was drowning, but I gamely held on to Harry, my only hope for staying afloat in the storm.

The mention of the golden beam of light that connected Harry's wand to Voldemort's brought me back to the surface for a brief moment.

“Priori Incantatem,” Professor Dumbledore said.

“The Reverse Spell effect?” Sirius asked disbelievingly.

“Exactly. Harry’s wand and Voldemort’s wand share cores. Each of them contains a feather from the tail of the same phoenix. This phoenix, in fact. Fawkes. Mr. Ollivander wrote to tell me you had bought the second wand, the moment you left his shop four years ago, Harry.”

“So what happens when a wand meets its brother?”

“They will not work properly against each other. If, however, the owners of the wands force the wands to do battle, a very rare effect will take place. One of the wands will force the other to regurgitate spells it has performed in reverse. The most recent first, and then those which preceded it...which means that some form of Cedric must have reappeared.”

Harry and I tightened our grips on each other at the same time.

“He came back to life?” Sirius asked.

“No spell can reawaken the dead. All that would have happened is a kind of reverse echo. A shadow of the living Cedric would have emerged from the wand. Am I correct, Harry?”

Harry's grip tightened again. “He spoke to me. The... the ghost Cedric, or whatever he was, spoke.”

“An echo, which retained Cedric’s appearance and character. I am guessing other such forms appeared, less recent victims of Voldemort’s wand.”

“An old man, Bertha Jorkins, and...”

“Your parents?”

“Yes.”

“The last murders the wand performed in reverse order. More would have appeared, of course, had you maintained the connection. Very well, Harry, these echoes, these shadows, what did they do?”

"They... they protected me," Harry said slowly. "All of them. Voldemort seemed afraid of them. My dad... my dad told me what to do. And Cedric asked me to bring his body back, and... and to..." Harry's eyes met mine for the first time. "And to take care of you for him."

I dropped my gaze, feeling pain tear through my chest anew. 

Fawkes hopped down to the ground and healed Harry's leg with his tears. Sirius had buried his head in his hands. Harry and I were both shaking, our fingers still locked together.

“I will say it again. You have shown bravery beyond anything I could have expected of you tonight, Harry. You have shown bravery equal to those who died fighting Voldemort at the height of his powers. You have shouldered a grown wizard’s burden and found yourself equal to it, and you have now given us all that we have a right to expect. You will come with me to the Hospital Wing. I do not want you returning to the dormitory tonight. A sleeping potion, and some peace. Sirius, would you like to stay with him?”

Sirius nodded, and Professor Dumbledore turned to me.

"Am I correct in guessing you would rather face your friends than your parents tonight, Lucy? You can either go with Harry, or return to your dormitory. The choice is yours."

It took me a couple of seconds to find my voice --- I had not used it in quite some time. I glanced up at Harry before meeting Professor Dumbledore's eyes again.

"I d-don't want to see my parents," I managed, my voice trembling violently. I was cold, so cold. "I-I'll go to the common room to tell Ron and Hermione that Harry'll be in the Hospital Wing."

It was settled. But before we left, Professor Dumbledore had a final comment.

"You two will understand each other's pain in a way no one else will, as the one who doesn't know life without Cedric and the one who had to see his life end. Help keep each other above water, whatever that looks like as you find yourselves in the depths of grief. As Harry has explained, that was Cedric's final wish, and I happen to think it incredibly wise."

Neither of us spoke, but we didn't need to. Our fingers were still firmly intertwined, white with the effort of holding so tightly to each other. The Muggles say a picture is worth a thousand words --- I would argue that a picture of our hands that night would be worth a million.

The world stood still for a moment.

Then it began to turn again.

Sirius changed back into a dog, and I parted ways with the other three at the staircase.

I placed one foot in front of the other all the way up to the common room. I used my voice again to croak out the password, and I stepped through the portrait hole to find a common room utterly devoid of the cheer it always had. 

Before I even had both feet on the ground, Ron's arms were wrapped around me. Half a second later, Hermione's were wrapped around me, too. Then Ginny's, then Neville's. 

I slipped away after a couple of seconds, looking down at my toes and wrapping my arms around my midsection. 

"Harry's spending the night in the Hospital Wing, if you want to see him. I... I'll be in the dormitory."

With that, I sprinted across the common room and up the stairs.

* * *

_Can there be a day beyond this night?  
I don't know anymore what is true  
I can't find my direction, I'm all alone  
The only star that guided me was you  
How to rise from the floor  
When it's not you I'm rising for_

_"The Next Right Thing"  
Kristen Bell_


	70. You're What I Know About Love

_What is this hollow kind of helplessness I'm feeling?  
This type of terror is new  
And the fact that I can hardly breathe is now revealing  
How much I've changed 'cause of you_

_You light the world for me  
You live life fearlessly  
Braver than the bravest of us do  
You trust, you hope, you dare  
You choose to feel and care  
I thought that I was strong 'til I bumped into you_

_What do I know about love?_

* * *

HARRY:

Though the night was not as peaceful as Dumbledore surely hoped it would be, the morning still dawned. Upon leaving the Hospital Wing, I talked to Mr. and Mrs. Diggory about what had happened and tried to give them the tournament winnings, but they refused. As soon as our meeting was over, I hurried up to the Gryffindor common room.

I needed to see Lucy. I needed to know she was okay.

I needed to keep my promise to Cedric.

When I made my way up to the common room, I scanned the room for Lucy, but she wasn't there. Ron and Ginny were speaking in low tones in the corner of the room, and Hermione was leaning against the wall next to the door leading to the girls' dormitories with her arms crossed over her chest. I felt like I didn't need to explain myself, so I headed toward the door, but before I could reach for the handle, she stepped in front of it, blocking my way.

"Hermione, let me go up," I said, trying to step around her.

"She said she wanted to sleep."

"Then I'll just let her know that I'm there and I'm alright and I've talked to her parents, then let her sleep. I need to see her, now."

"She can come down once she's awake. Honestly, Harry, she's fine, Ginny was with her all night, and I checked on her this morning once you left the Hospital Wing."

"She is _not_ fine," Ginny said fiercely, coming to stand behind me. "Just because she's not ready to cry yet doesn't mean she's fine. Hermione, let him up."

"But it's the girls' dormitories! She can come down when she's ready." She successfully stopped another one of my attempts to get around her. "Besides, the stairs are enchanted, Harry. The only way you'll be able to get up is if a girl is standing on the stairs so you don't come sliding back down."

"So stand on the stairs, Hermione," I said. "Or Ginny, I don't care. I don't care that it's the girls' dormitories. If that's where she wants to be right now, I'll be there, too."

She still looked loath to break the rules. "I suppose I can go get her-"

I took a step closer, feeling a defensive surge of anger rising in me. "Cedric asked me to take care of her. I promised him I would. And I intend to keep that promise."

Ginny, taking advantage of her temporary shock at what I had said, ducked around her, opened the door, and planted herself on the staircase. 

"Go, Harry," she said, holding the door open. "We'll leave you two alone for a while. We could all use some sleep, too."

I nodded as I started up the stairs. "Thanks, Ginny."

"Harry?" Hermione called just as I reached the door of the fourth-year dormitory. 

I whirled around, irritated. "Yes?"

"If she's asleep... she's a deep sleeper. A _very_ deep sleeper. Waking her might take a while, especially since she was awake all night."

My irritation faded to nothingness. How had I not known that about Lucy, the girl I considered my best friend?

The one I almost rescued by mistake in February, before I realized Ron couldn't possibly be Cedric's hostage?

The one I had to try to rescue now, not from the depths of the Black Lake but from the depths of her own grief?

I nodded. "Thanks."

Hermione nodded back, sighing shakily, and I stepped into the dormitory.

Lucy was curled in a ball on her side, but she wasn't asleep. She didn't look over when the door creaked open, instead staring at the wall. I crossed the room and stood in her line of vision.

"Hey, Lu," I said softly.

She blinked up at me with a storm raging in her eyes, but no evidence that she'd been crying. "Hey," she replied. She sat up and tucked her hair behind her ears. It was the first time other than the Yule Ball her hair hadn't been braided, as far as I could remember. She studied me for a second, but I glanced away from the intensity of her gaze and played with the edges of her top blanket.

"I met with your parents."

To my surprise, she managed a weak laugh. "I'm sorry."

I smiled the slightest bit. "Your dad was nicer this time than last."

"That's good."

Silence fell again, and Lucy's eyes still didn't leave my face. After a minute, she slid to the right and gestured for me to sit with her.

"You look as tired as I feel. Come on."

I obliged, kicking off my shoes and sliding under the covers with her, leaning back against her headboard. Our hands found each other, this time her left and my right.

"How are you?" I asked.

She tensed slightly. "To be honest, I haven't the slightest clue. All I know is I'm glad you're here."

"Where else would I be?"

"I don't know." She paused. "Hermione said she wouldn't let anyone up, but I'm glad she let you up."

"Well, I made sure she did. Ginny, too."

"You're the only person I want to see right now, Harry." Her voice cracked on my name. She swallowed and tried again. "I-I mean... I guess if anyone understands, it'd be you, right?"

Before I could reply, Lucy was finally crying. She laid her head against my chest and sobbed.

I held her close to me, closer than I'd ever held anybody. I wrapped my arms around her as tightly as I could without hurting her, as if that alone would be enough to protect her from the living hell that had become her reality overnight. As if that alone would be enough to protect us both from the catastrophic storm brewing on the horizon. I held her close to me as she cried, knowing I would do anything if it meant I could bring Cedric back to her. 

I couldn't recall ever seeing Lucy cry. It would have broken my heart any day, whatever the reason, but the way she cried that day, the way her whole body trembled, was something that would haunt me forever. 

At one point, I recalled the way Cedric had comforted her after the second task, running his hand up and down her arm. I started to do the same, slowly, gently, and her sobs grew weaker and weaker. Once she was calm enough to hear me, I pulled her closer and whispered that she could sleep because I'd be there whenever she woke up.

She nodded, still trembling, tears still coursing down her flushed cheeks, but in time, her eyes fluttered shut, and she relaxed into my arms. A couple minutes later, she was asleep.

I fell asleep at some point, too. It was late in the afternoon when the door creaked open, frightening me awake.

"Oh. I-I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were both asleep," she stammered, gnawing on her bottom lip. "Lucy's parents are waiting outside the common room. They need to talk to her before they head back home to... to make arrangements."

I nodded slowly. Hermione took a couple steps closer. 

"Merlin, I hate to wake her up, she needs the sleep..."

I nodded again, glancing down at the girl sleeping in my arms. One hand was loosely curled around a fold in my robe, and the other was tucked between her head and my chest. Even though I had definitely jolted awake when Hermione opened the door and my heart was still racing from the initial fright, she was somehow still asleep, her cheeks and nose still red but the tear tracks on her cheeks mostly dried.

"They're leaving soon?" I asked in a whisper, wanting to let her sleep as long as possible. Something told me sleep would be hard to come by for her in the coming days, weeks, maybe even months.

Hermione nodded. 

I sighed, reluctantly shifting on the bed and rubbing Lucy's arm a bit.

"Lu, I'm sorry, but you need to wake up," I said softly.

"You're going to have to try a lot harder than that," Hermione commented with a soft laugh. "I've had to dump water on her before."

"Well, I'm not going to do _that_." I shook her a bit more aggressively. "Come on, Lu, you have to wake up. I'm sorry, I'd rather just let you sleep, but you need to wake up. Your parents are waiting for you, so you need to wake up."

After nearly two minutes of talking louder and louder bit by bit, her eyes opened.

"Sorry, Lucy," Hermione said. "Your parents need to talk to you before they go home."

Lucy nodded sleepily, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand. She noticed me with a somewhat startled look, then blinked a couple of times. 

"You stayed?" she asked.

"Where else would I be?" I replied for a second time that day.

Lucy ran her fingers through her hair then got up and headed down the stairs, leaving Hermione and I alone in the dormitory for a moment.

"I think she needed to cry," she remarked quietly. "I'm glad you were there for her."

I nodded, rubbing the back of my neck. "Well. Least I could do."

"You... you said something about Cedric?" she asked after a moment.

I nodded again. "I'm not ready to talk about it a third time in 24 hours. Twice was more than enough."

I made my way back down to the common room then, Hermione behind me. We sat with the Weasleys, waiting for Lucy.

Neville came over after a couple minutes, looking as if he'd been crying too. "How is she?" he asked tentatively.

I shook my head slowly in response. "She said she doesn't know."

"Oh. Oh, okay." Neville looked around sheepishly. "Do you mind if I sit with you?"

Ron moved over to make room. "Not at all. Go ahead, mate."

I turned to the twins. "Where did you go last night, once I showed up with Dumbledore?"

"He asked us to check all of the secret entrances to the castle," Fred replied. "He knows we know about them. We didn't want to tell Lucy, of course, because it would have frightened her even more, but we didn't find anything anyway."

"How did she know the dog?" George asked. "The dog sure seemed to know her."

"Er... must have been a stray from the Magical Creatures Reserve," I lied. It was nice to know Sirius had been there to comfort her before I had gotten there. I had seen him, of course, but in my stupor, I hadn't thought much of it. "You know how she is with creatures."

Neville nodded enthusiastically. "Remember that lesson with the nifflers? Especially the baby niffler?"

I nodded too, knowing well the way creatures always gravitated toward her. The way _everyone_ always gravitated toward her.

A couple minutes later, the portrait hole opened, and Lucy climbed back through. I automatically shifted so she could sit between Hermione and me, which she did. 

Nobody spoke, everyone's eyes on Lucy. Studying her. Trying to read her mind. She couldn't bring herself to look up, instead tracing a scorch mark on the floor with her finger. 

When she did speak, her voice shook, but she didn't start crying again. "There will be a small funeral here on Tuesday for anyone from the three schools who wants to go. Then another one on Saturday at home for family and friends." She heaved a shaky sigh. "I need to write something for Tuesday, but I... I don't know..."

Her finger froze mid-circle.

"I don't want to start writing tonight," she said. "I'll take tomorrow to work. I just... it's just..."

"Not fair," Ron finished for her. 

She nodded. "Yeah. That." Lucy glanced up at the window, stiffening when she saw the position of the sun in the sky. "I'm going back to bed, but I... I'll see you all in the morning."

"Lucy, you haven't eaten today," Hermione said worriedly. "Don't you want to-"

"N-No," she interrupted, pushing herself to her feet. "I'm the furthest thing from hungry."

"I can bring you something if you don't want to come down to the Great Hall," Ginny offered. 

"N-No, it's okay. Thanks, though. I-I'll eat in the morning." 

Lucy met my gaze for a second before looking back down. 

"See you all tomorrow."

We all watched her go, wanting to follow but knowing better. We eventually made our way down to dinner, the Great Hall quieter than it had ever been. I felt dozens of stares. Everyone wanted to know what had happened. 

I tried to ignore them, but as soon as I had finished eating, I couldn't take it anymore. I jumped up and stalked from the hall with only a short explanation to Ron and Hermione. I went straight to my own dormitory, resisting the temptation to go up and be with Lucy again. 

Alone with my thoughts for the first time in a very long time, doubt began to creep into my mind.

Lucy might have wanted me in the initial shock since I had been the only one there, but would she feel the same way once she realized it was my fault?

If I hadn't insisted we take the Cup tighter... if we had taken the Portkey back sooner... if I'd taken the Killing Curse instead... maybe Lucy would still be alright...

I realized with a jolt that I couldn't go back in time and save the day. No matter how much I regretted it, the past was the past. I couldn't change it.

But I could change the future. I swore to myself in that moment that every moment for as long as I lived, I wouldn't let anything ever come close to hurting Lucy way ever again. I'd protect her with my life if need be. 

As long as I was around, she'd never ever cry like that again.

Perhaps Cedric understood better than I did that I would do that for her. Perhaps that was the reason for his final request. 

My promise was one I intended to keep.

* * *

_What do I know about love?_

_Everything I thought I did  
You've gone and changed it, kid  
You're what I know about love_

_"Kristoff Lullaby"  
Jelani Alladin_


	71. A Place I Cannot Find

_I've seen dark before, but not like this  
This is cold, this is empty, this is numb  
The life I knew is over, the lights are out  
Hello darkness, I'm ready to succumb  
I follow you around, I always have  
But you've gone to a place I cannot find_

_"The Next Right Thing"  
Kristen Bell_

* * *

LUCY:

I was no stranger to pain.

I was bitten by Fenrir Greyback when I was five years old. Ever since that fateful day that stole me away from my family and thrust me into an unfamiliar and frightening world, once a month, sometimes twice a month, my bone structure became that of a wolf, breaking and pulling my skin along with it. I became a monster, an unstoppable monster, one that could only be stopped by a potion that poisoned me. And in the morning, once I was no longer a monster, I found myself praying I did nothing throughout the night to hurt anyone else --- if the only blood spilled in the night was mine, I considered it a victory, no matter how many slashes had been inflicted or how many bones had been shattered.

As a child, I was taken to St. Mungo's for a good deal of my transformations. They told me that I helped my father with his research. Experimental spells, new variations of the wolfsbane potion, conflict training for new recruits who had been lucky enough to avoid a confrontation with a werewolf in their lifetime. Even in my physical pain, once I was old enough to understand what had been done to me, the emotional pain of humiliation seemed worse.

Even outside of the lycanthropy, life had never shied away from asking me to shoulder more pain. My infamous encounter in the Forbidden Forest was Hogwarts legend. I'd been bloodied and bruised by the sport I loved. I'd been subject to stares from everyone I met, some judgmental, some disgusted, all of them curious. Even the people who knew the truth, people I'd loved and trusted, had the power to hurt me, and I knew all too well that in a single moment, one could let slip my secret --- accidentally or otherwise --- and ruin my life forever.

I was no stranger to pain.

But nothing could have prepared me for the pain of writing in the past tense about him.


	72. I Only See Clouds

_It feels like falling  
It feels like rain  
Like losing my balance  
Again and again  
It once was so easy  
Breathe in, breathe out  
But at the foot of this mountain  
I only see clouds_

* * *

LUCY:

His death left me frozen in place, frozen in time. The world, however, didn't freeze. It rushed past me, dragging me along, and I couldn't seem to breathe properly no matter what I did.

Before I knew it, I was standing in the dormitory bathroom, a crumpled piece of parchment in one hand and a mascara wand in the other. My hand shook so violently I poked myself in the eye when I tried to apply it, and I couldn't hold back a cry of frustration.

Lavender hurried into the room. "Lucy? Are you alright?"

"I c-can't do my own mascara," I managed, willing away the tears trying to spring to my eyes. "W-Would you mind-"

"Here," she said gently, turning my face toward her. She took the mascara from my hand and twirled it against my eyelashes. "Do you want any other makeup? At least maybe a little bit, to cover these up?" She traced the dark circles under my eyes, and I studied my reflection in the mirror.

"I can't go out there looking like this," I replied. "I-I don't want to look like I'm wearing makeup, but I-I can't look like... like this, either."

Lavender nodded. "I understand. Accio makeup bag!"

The bag from the Yule Ball flew into her hand, and she immediately dug out my foundation and began applying it.

"You can do this, Lucy," she murmured. "It'll be over before you know it, then you can wipe all of this makeup off and sleep as long as you'd like."

"Thank you," I whispered, clenching tighter the piece of parchment in my hand. On it was a eulogy I'd written for the best person I'd ever known. For the person I had always counted on. For the person I had always turned to when the world turned upside down.

But this time, the world was upside down and there was no _him_ to turn to.

The thought brought tears to my eyes, and Lavender abruptly stopped sweeping the brush over my face.

"Look at me," she said.

I obeyed, blinking rapidly to try to prevent the tears from falling.

"That's it. Just hold it together a little bit longer. You're doing so well."

She resumed with the brush, and I forced myself to focus on every detail of the sensation. Anything to stop me from thinking about what I was about to do.

When we emerged from the bathroom, Hermione was waiting.

"Parvati went to be with Padma," she said to Lavender. "They're down in the common room."

Lavender nodded and headed down the stairs, tossing my makeup bag onto my bed.

Hermione turned to look at me, and offered a weak smile. "You look better."

"Amazing what a little makeup can do, isn't it?" I remarked, remembering all too well the last time I'd said that. After the Yule Ball, when we were up far too late whispering about how amazing the night had been, even if it hadn't ended the way we expected. Merlin. That felt like a lifetime ago.

I felt the world starting to spin. My vision blurred.

Hermione rushed forward and grabbed me by the elbow.

"Breathe," she said.

I tried. In. Out. In. Out. Still the world spun.

Hermione's grip tightened. "Lucy, we need to go. It's starting in ten minutes. Ginny's waiting in the common room for us."

But her voice sounded far away. All I could see was a blur of red in front of me. All I could feel was the sting of grief inside of me.

* * *

_I feel out of focus  
Or at least indisposed  
As this strange weather pattern  
Inside me takes hold  
Each brave step forward  
I take three steps behind  
It's mind over matter  
Matter over mind_

_"Sorrow"  
Sleeping At Last_


	73. I Will Not Say Goodbye

_They keep saying time will heal  
But the pain just gets more real  
The sun comes up each day  
Finds me waiting, fading, hating, praying  
If I can keep on holding on  
Maybe I can keep my heart from knowing that you're gone_

_I don't wanna feel better  
I don't wanna not remember  
I will always see your face  
In the shadows of this haunted place  
I will laugh  
I will cry  
Shake my fist at the sky  
But I will not say goodbye_

_I will curse  
I will pray  
I'll relive everyday  
I will shoulder the blame  
I will shout out your name  
I will laugh  
I will cry  
Shake my fist at the sky  
But I will not say goodbye_

_"I Will Not Say Goodbye"  
Danny Gokey_

* * *

LUCY:

With my parents back in Ottery St. Catchpole, I found myself sitting between Professor Sprout and Henry in the front row. It was the first time I'd seen Henry since I jumped over the railing. He looked nearly as awful as I felt.

I had offered to go first.

It would be the first time I had said his name aloud since Saturday before the task.

I had been unable to write his name the day prior. Every time I wanted to, I had instead drawn the rough outline of an osprey.

When Professor Dumbledore nodded to me, my hands tightened around the piece of parchment, and I placed one foot in front of the other until I was at the front of the Great Hall.

The sight of so many faces before me was overwhelming. I looked down at the paper in my hands, but all of a sudden, the words I had written seemed altogether inadequate. I had written about what he meant to _me_ , who he was to _me_. I looked up again. Hundreds of faces, waiting expectantly. Hundreds of faces, there for _him_. There for the boy I had been lucky enough to call my brother. There for the boy that they had been lucky enough to call their friend.

I folded the paper and tucked it into my robes.

"H-Hi. I-I bet you're wondering why I just put away my only notes." I took a deep breath, trying to offer a smile to the crowd. "I spent hours on those words, after all. Trying to somehow explain just how special he was to me. But now, looking at you all... I realize just how much he meant to everyone, n-not just me."

I paused then, rubbing the back of my neck. 

"I know you are all probably thinking of the Cedric you knew, the Cedric you loved."

I had done it. I had said his name. I could do this.

My eyes found his friend group, the ones who had been there early in the morning for his fifteenth birthday picnic, the ones who had cheered the loudest after every Quidditch match, the ones who had clapped him on the back when his name came out of the Goblet of Fire...

"To some of you, he was the Hufflepuff Golden Boy. I remember all of the times I heard you shouting his name in the halls, wanting to tell him about the exam you aced or the board game you won or the date that went well because you knew he of all people would care about even your smallest accomplishments. On another note, I also remember all of the invites to Hogsmeade, all of the valentines..."

My eyes found Jenna Gordon, and I couldn't help but manage the smallest smile.

"And yes, I even remember the time someone slipped him a love potion and it took Henry and I working together to make sure he didn't make a complete fool out of himself."

That got a couple of laughs; it seemed I wasn't the only one who remembered that night. Jenna blushed, looking torn between laughing and crying, and I offered her one last _It's okay_ type of smile before shifting my gaze to the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. They were sitting in the second row, just behind Henry.

"To some of you, he was a Quidditch star. Captain, Seeker. He beat Harry last year; I remember you were all really excited about that, even though he begged Oliver for a rematch. He spent all last summer working on plays and plans, determined to win the Quidditch Cup fair and square. You can thank me for at least some of his love for Quidditch, by the way. We spent hours in the sky together as kids. And I mean _hours_."

I glanced over at Madam Pomfrey, sitting between Professor Sprout and Beatrice Haywood.

"To some, he was a natural healer with a very bright future. He worked an internship at St. Mungo's last summer, and even before that, he spent a lot of his free time here at school volunteering in the Hospital Wing. He didn't just care about physical injuries and illnesses, though. He always offered his shoulder to people who were hurting on the inside as well."

I swallowed hard. It was getting harder and harder to speak as I continued to list all of the ways he would be missed. I turned toward the sea of yellow. The Hufflepuffs' faces were all pale and tear-streaked. I realized with a pang how much he'd hate to see his housemates hurting so much.

"To some, he was a prefect, an aspiring Head Boy, a leader. I remember the nights I would go down to the Hufflepuff common room to ask him a question and find him tutoring a group of first-years in Transfiguration or helping someone revise their essay. He always found time for everybody."

I looked down at my toes.

"I guess that leaves me," I said in a quiet voice.

I drew a deep breath and released it in a shaky sigh. Then, I looked back up.

"Cedric was and will forever be remembered for everything I've already said. But to me... he was even more. He was the person I looked to when my world turned upside down. He was the person who gave the best hugs. He was the person I could run to after a bad day, as well as a person I could run to after a good day. He was my brother, and so much more. And... I know my life will never be the same without him. There will always be a hole, one that nobody will ever be able to fill..."

Tears burned the backs of my eyes, and I rocked back and forth on my feet. I took another trembling breath to keep the storm at bay just ten seconds longer.

"And... and that's okay. Because be that as it may, I wouldn't trade the years I got to have him by my side for anything. And I'm glad you all got to know him, too, because more than anything, Cedric was the light to me. And I know he was light to you all, too."

* * *

HENRY:

A single tear slid down Lucy's cheek as soon as she was sitting beside me again. 

"You did well," I whispered. 

"Th-Thanks. Good luck," she whispered back as I drew my own parchment and took her place at the front.

I froze once I turned to the crowd.

Cedric had always been the one to do the talking.

We were both shy, but he was always the one to do the talking.

He never wanted me to be uncomfortable when he knew he could do something to help.

But there I was on the stage, alone, without him to support me, without him anywhere around to come bail me out if I was in over my head.

Cedric was gone.

I was left behind.

_How did Lucy do this?_

I tried to take a deep breath before talking, but I found I couldn't.

Cedric was gone.

I was left behind.

I lifted the parchment and scanned what I had managed to write the day before with a hand trembling so badly it was remarkable I had been able to hold the quill at all.

"Cedric was my best friend."

I swallowed hard.

_I loved him._

I swallowed again.

"We met on the train. I know it's hit-or-miss on the Hogwarts Express for the first time. Sometimes the boy you shared your lunch with that one day ends up knocking you off your broom in Quidditch Cup final. Sometimes the girl who said she liked your shoes ends up breaking your heart on Valentine's Day. Most often though, you just end up in different houses, and your lives take different courses. But sometimes, you get lucky and sit next to your best friend. I got lucky."

I paused to breathe. My hands were shaking.

"I got lucky," I said again. "I woke up late that day, so I hadn't had the time to eat breakfast, or comb my hair, or even tie my shoes. Well, I ended up tripping on my untied shoelaces as I tried to run across the platform. My suitcase went flying, I landed flat on my face, and I tore massive holes in both knees of my trousers. I was a mess, no doubt about it."

I glanced up. A couple of people were snickering. I glanced over at Lucy, who looked as if she knew exactly where this story was going. I cleared my throat, feeling a little stronger, and kept going.

"Enter Cedric. Not a hair out of place, his collared shirt perfectly ironed, his shoelaces, of course, tied and secure."

A couple more people managed laughs. I smiled, too, remembering the scene so vividly. It was far nicer to recall that than to recall the memory of his body in the grass of the Quidditch Pitch he loved so much... I forced that thought away and continued.

"He started gathering the belongings that had been launched out of my suitcase without second thought, asking if I was alright. He offered me bandages from his own bag for my scraped knees. He followed me onto the train, and a friendship was born. I liked Quidditch, he liked Quidditch. I liked Chocolate Frogs, he liked Chocolate Frogs. It was... the easiest start to a friendship imaginable. Twelve hours later, we were still talking as we chose the beds next to each other in the Hufflepuff dormitories. Merlin, I couldn't even begin to tell you everything Cedric's friendship means to... _meant_ to me."

I froze again, sadness stabbing me anew. I looked down at my parchment, but the words swam around through the lens of tears. I tried to blink them away, but they spilled down my cheeks instead. I searched for my voice, and eventually found it.

"I think we all had those moments with Cedric. Moments where we fell flat on our faces --- sometimes literally, other times merely figuratively --- and he was there, right there, with a kind word and a hand up. And I guess if I have one goal for myself moving forward... even though... even though a life without him right now seems _impossible_..." I choked back a sob. "I want to be like that for others. I'll never be Cedric. No one will ever be Cedric. But I'll never stop trying to be as kind as he was, as caring as he was, as friendly as he was... Lucy's right, he was light to me, too. And I know it seems dark right now without his light, trust me, but I just... I think... I think if we all try to be a little more like him, maybe we'll feel a little less alone."

With nothing further to offer, I returned to my seat. Madam Pomfrey and Professor Sprout each offered a couple words as well, both reduced to tears by the end, and the rest of the small ceremony was over in the blink of an eye. 

Lucy and I pushed ourselves to our feet and turned just as the crowd started pressing to the front, trying to talk to us. The Quidditch team was there first, Mary throwing her arms around Lucy and crying into her shoulder. Lucy rubbed the younger girl's back and murmured reassurance in her ear, but I could see the way she was trying to force her own tears away.

Once the team left to talk to Professor Sprout, Cho arrived and fell apart. Lucy and I both did what we could to help, knowing she had been too upset to even attempt a eulogy the way we had, but I could hear the way Lucy's voice was shaking even as she tried to comfort the older girl.

Lucy was about to break. She needed to get out before she did.

* * *

HARRY:

I had seen how deathly pale Lucy was when Cho ran over. She looked the same as she had when Cedric saved her from the lake. It terrified me. She needed to get out before she collapsed.

But would she let me help? Would she even want me to help?

I had gone up to her dormitory a couple of times the day before to see if she needed anything. If she wanted me to keep her company. But every time I offered, she shook her head, her hair falling in her face, and said she was alright.

As if I would believe that she could _possibly_ be alright.

I hadn't seen her that morning before the funeral. Hermione and Ginny had worked together to get her down to the Great Hall and to Henry as quickly and quietly as they could, and by the time I arrived with the Weasleys, Hermione and Ginny had already saved us seats toward the back. Hermione said she didn't want me sitting where people would stare --- I wouldn't have minded the stares if it meant being closer to Lucy.

But there I found myself, a huge crowd of people separating me from her. I could see how close she was to falling apart. I wanted to help.

But would she let me help? Would she even _want_ me to help?

* * *

GEORGE:

I followed Harry's gaze. His look of concern was completely justified; Lucy was pale and beginning to hyperventilate. She looked around wildly, as if she were trying to escape.

I looked back at Harry and nudged him forward. "Go."

Harry's eyes didn't leave Lucy, but he stiffened.

"Harry-" I nudged him a little harder. "Go. Get her out of here, take her somewhere quiet. She needs you."

"Do you think she'd even want to see me?" 

"Don't be ridiculous. I know for a _fact_ there's no one else she'd rather see right now. Like I said, she needs you. Go."

I shoved him into the aisle.

* * *

HARRY:

Once in the aisle, my feet moved of their own accord. I pushed my way through the crowd, but now that I was in the thick of things, I couldn't see her anymore.

Lucy had never been tall in the first place. But now, with the weight of her loss already pressing down on her shoulders, she seemed smaller than ever.

For every one person I got past, two more blocked my way. Everyone wanted to try to talk to Cho and Henry and Lucy, everyone wanted to be as close as possible to the site of the most poignant tragedy, everyone wanted to share their sorrows with the three people who understood it most.

I felt tears beginning to claw their way up my throat. Grief pressed in from all sides in the form of tear-stained faces and echoing sobs and desperate embraces. My heart broke for all of the pain around me, Lucy's most of all.

I forced my tears away and fought through the crowd with renewed vigor. Getting Lucy out was the only thing on my mind.

* * *

HENRY:

I scanned the Great Hall, looking for a path that would allow Lucy to escape. She was hyperventilating, and she needed to leave.

One of the Weasley twins --- George, I thought --- waved his arms to get my attention. He pointed to the aisle, and I soon saw that he was pointing to Harry, who was coming as quickly as he could in Lucy's direction. I nodded to show that I understood, and looked down to tell Lucy that Harry was on his way to get her out of there.

In the five seconds I had looked away, Lucy had disappeared.

* * *

LUCY:

I couldn't breathe.

I needed to get out.

I gasped for air, but grief had tied a rope around my neck.

I had never been so glad to be so small for my age.

I ducked under people's arms, darted through the tiniest gaps between chairs.

I tried again to force air into my lungs, but sorrow had tightened the rope.

I needed to get out.

I couldn't breathe.

* * *

HENRY:

I knew I would never spot Lucy in the crowd, so I kept my eyes on the doors to the Great Hall, praying she would find her own way out.

Ten seconds... fifteen... twenty...

_There she is._

She burst into a clearing and sprinted toward the doors, hair flying behind her.

At the same moment, Harry nearly ran right into me.

His eyes widened in panic when he didn't see her. "Where's-"

I grabbed him by the shoulder and pointed him in the direction Lucy had just run. 

* * *

HARRY:

"She just ran out the doors," Henry said. "Go. I'll stay here to talk. Keep her out of the way for a while."

I nodded. "Thanks."

I hurried in the direction Lucy had gone, beating myself up for not getting there in time.

I needed to keep my promise to Cedric. As much as I could.

I started to run.

* * *

GEORGE:

Fred appeared at my elbow. "Lucy just ran out. Should we go after her?"

"No, Harry's on his way," I said, watching as he ducked and weaved through the crowd, running as fast as he could manage. 

Fred and I watched until he left the Great Hall at a sprint. I glanced back up at Henry, who had also followed Harry's progress. 

He blinked a couple of times, dragged his hand over his face, and turned to a Ravenclaw sixth-year whose name I couldn't remember who had just tapped him on the shoulder.

"Henry can't be doing well, either, but I doubt he's got a Harry the way Lucy has," I commented after a moment.

"I think Cedric _was_ his Harry," Fred said softly, grabbing my shoulder. "Let's go see what we can do."


	74. It All Comes Undone

_Slowly, then all at once  
A single loose thread  
And it all comes undone_

_"Sorrow"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

I couldn't breathe.

I found myself on the edge of the Black Lake, the same place I had screamed at the sky Saturday night. This time, though, the sun was shining. 

How could the sun show its face after the world had ended?

I crumpled to my knees. 

The fact that there would be another funeral on July 1 was inconsequential. The first part of letting go had already passed.

I couldn't breathe.

When I lifted my hands to my throat in an attempt to claw away grief's chokehold, I found myself not wanting to fight it. So instead, I buried my head in my hands and coughed, a weak protest against my own insignificance.

Who was I to think anything I could say would be good enough to memorialize my brother? 

I felt a tear course down my cheek, the only outward indicator of the torrential rainstorm brewing inside. I watched as this tear dripped onto my robes, and as the robes absorbed the drop, leaving only a darkened patch in its wake.

The fact that I could hear Harry's voice calling my name in the distance was inconsequential. The second part of letting go was still in front of me.

I couldn't breathe.

* * *

_This is not black and white  
There are no clear solutions  
I'm just trying to get it right  
And in spite of all I should've done  
If I cannot break your fall  
I'll pick you up right off the ground  
If you felt invisible, I won't let you feel that now_

_"Invisible"  
Linkin Park_

* * *

HARRY:

I skidded to a stop and knelt beside Lucy. She didn't seem to have heard my shouts, didn't seem to know I was there, so I said her name again, this time much more quietly.

"Lucy."

She rubbed a hand against the side of her neck, breathing heavily. But she had gotten to the Black Lake much sooner than I had, so I knew it wasn't from running. She was breaking down.

_What do I do?_

_What would Cedric do?_

I reached forward and tucked a lock of hair away from her face. She always, always, _always_ had it braided. Maybe she felt suffocated by having it down and in her way-

Suffocated. She felt suffocated.

I removed her hand from her neck and held it loosely in my own.

"Don't do that, Lu," I said softly. "Let yourself breathe."

I received a tiny response. She squeezed my hand ever so slightly.

I nodded encouragingly. This felt closer to the right thing to do. "Squeeze harder if you need to. Just breathe."

I looked over her shoulder to make sure nobody had followed me. As far as I could see, we were alone. 

"Do you want me to go get somebody else?" I asked quietly. "Mione, Ginny, the twins?"

Lucy shook her head. "Y-You. I want... you."

I rubbed my thumb up and down against her hand, which seemed so cold compared to mine. Though it was the end of June, a chill breeze whispered around us. The sun was shining, but it didn't seem to offer any warmth.

"Are you cold?" 

She blinked hard, as if I had asked a difficult question. Then she managed to choke out, "I can't... feel my hands."

I immediately reached for her other hand. Surely enough, it was freezing, too. I brought her hands to my chest, which would be warmer than my hands. An idea occurred to me, so I focused on taking deeper breaths.

"Breathe with me," I said. "Or as best as you can, anyway."

She nodded, closing her eyes and trying to match me. After five minutes, she was calmer. After ten, her eyes shot open, and she looked up to the sky.

A white bird was circling overhead, crying out occasionally.

"I didn't notice it was there earlier," she whispered. She took another deep breath in sync with me, her hands still trembling as she pulled them away and into her own lap. Her eyes remained fixed on the bird.

I shifted so I was sitting next to her again and rested my elbows on my knees. We watched the bird circle over the lake, still breathing in sync with each other, though I wasn't quite sure who was following who. After a few more circles, it dove down suddenly, fully submerging itself in the lake.

Before I could wonder aloud why on earth the bird had done that, it emerged from the lake again. Then it looked in our direction for half a second before flying away over the hills. 

When it did not appear again, she tucked her knees to her chest and turned to me. "Thanks, Harry."

I nodded. "'Course. Are you feeling better?"

"I..." Her eyes welled with tears.

I kicked myself mentally. "I'm sorry, that's such a stupid question to ask-"

"No, stop, it's not." A tear escaped and coursed down her cheek, and she wiped it away hurriedly. "I always feel better when you're around."

That made me feel a bit better. I had been so scared that she'd hate me, that she'd push me away, that she'd never want anything to do with me ever again. But there she was, looking me in the eye. A bit of color was returning to her cheeks, and her breathing was more regular, though she was still shaking.

I really should have asked a more intelligent question, but when I saw her shiver, instinct took over before I could think better of it. "Are you cold?" I asked again.

"I don't know." She shivered a second time. "Maybe."

Before I could make a comment about how people who shiver are typically considered cold, she inched closer to me and rested her head against my shoulder. I automatically wrapped an arm around her to protect her from the cold, the wind, whatever came next. We were silent for quite a while before she spoke again.

"Hermione keeps wanting me to talk about it," she said in a voice barely above a whisper. "'How are you feeling, Lucy?' 'What are you thinking, Lucy?'" She burrowed her head against me, shivering again. "I never know what to say, Harry."

"You did well earlier," I replied. "Everyone was really proud of you. Did you really not have any of that planned?"

"Really, I didn't," she admitted. She pulled the folded parchment out of her pocket and started to read it out loud. "'I can't believe I have to write this, but here I am. It's not fair. It hurts. Cedric was there for me after every dark night, there for me through every difficult season, but it's _because_ he's not here that I'm in the darkest season of all...'" Lucy's voice trailed off, and she shoved it back in her pocket. "The rest of it is just about how great of a brother and friend he was to me. I might still be able to use parts of it on Saturday, if my parents want me to... to say something." She heaved a shuddering sigh. "I can't believe he's..."

Unable to finish her sentence, she buried her head against my chest and began to cry. After a couple of minutes, I rubbed her arm the same way that had helped on Sunday morning, but this time, she only cried harder. 

I froze.

_I'm making it worse._

_Cedric would be so much better for her right now._

"I'm not helping, am I?" 

"No, you are," she choked out. "I'm sorry. Please don't leave me."

I softened again. Tears pricked at the back of my eyes.

I pulled her closer to me. "Where else would I be?"

And for once, my inner voice had no rebuke. No more doubts dared to creep in.

I had a promise to keep, to Cedric. I had a promise to keep to myself, too.

Where else would I be?


	75. Emphasis

_Death is promised to the bee  
Whose sting protects the colony  
Was its life worth nothing more  
Than honey for the queen?_

_Life is a branch and it is a dove,  
Handcrafted by confusing love.  
Sign language is our reply,  
When church bells make no sound._

_In hollow towers and empty hives,  
We craved sweetness with a fear of heights.  
Was it all just a grain of sand  
In an hourglass?_

_The smartest thing I’ve ever learned  
Is that I don’t have all the answers,  
Just a little light to call my own._

_Though it pales in comparison  
To the overarching shadows,  
A speck of light can reignite the sun  
And swallow darkness whole._

_Death is a cold, blindfolded kiss.  
It is the finger pressed upon our lips.  
It puts an unwanted emphasis  
On how we should have lived._

_Life is a gorgeous, broken gift.  
Six billion pieces waiting to be fixed.  
Love letters that were never signed,  
Sent to where we live._

_But the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard  
Is that I don’t have to have the answers,  
Just a little light to call my own._

_Though it pales in comparison  
To the overarching shadows,  
A speck of light can reignite the sun  
And swallow darkness whole._

_"Emphasis"  
Sleeping At Last_


	76. Wait for Dawn

_I used to know where the bottom was  
Somewhere far under the ocean waves  
Up on a ledge I was looking down  
It was far enough to keep me safe  
But the ground was cracked open  
Threw me in the ocean  
Cast me out away at sea  
And the waves are still breaking  
Now that I awaken  
No one's left to answer me_

_My inside's out, my left is right  
My upside's down, my black is white  
I hold my breath, and close my eyes  
And wait for dawn, but there's no light  
Nothing makes sense anymore, anymore_

_"Nothing Makes Sense Anymore"  
Mike Shinoda_

* * *

LUCY:

The farewell feast was the first time I'd left Gryffindor tower since the funeral.

Hermione would bring me food that I was never able to finish. I would sit in silence with Harry while we watched Ron and Hermione play chess, both of us just trying not to think about anything other than the game in front of us. Ron was sure to hug me every morning when I came down once everyone was back from breakfast and again every evening when I went to bed before everyone left for dinner. The twins tried to make me laugh sometimes, and occasionally I was able to manage a smile. Ginny and Neville smuggled Luna up to the common room one day when Harry and Ron and Hermione went down to see Hagrid, the only time other than when I was asleep that Harry left my side, and I just sat in silence as Luna and Neville talked about creatures and plants respectively and Ginny braided and unbraided my hair.

I couldn't bring myself to be awake when the sky was anything but blue. The sunset reminded me too much of the last moments I got to spend with him. The stars reminded me too much of the nights that I had already spent by myself but with the knowledge that he'd be there in the morning, with the knowledge I'd never have again. But the sky, the blue sky, reminded me of my family, somewhere halfway across the world, blissfully unaware of the way _my_ world had just been shattered... again. Somehow... the blue sky gave me the slightest glimmer of hope.

I didn't really want to go to the farewell feast, but Professor McGonagall was able to convince me the morning of. I had always liked her, of course, but she had never seemed so... human. She said she was sorry she hadn't gotten the chance to talk to me on Tuesday before it had gotten to be too much for me and that she was always just an owl away over the summer if I needed anything. Tears glistened in her eyes when she reminded me that Cedric was the most gifted Transfiguration student she'd ever had --- no offense to me, of course, but ash wands were among the best at Transfiguration, and it helped to possess natural talent beforehand --- and said that she understood how it felt to lose someone who had once been so foundational. She also reminded me that though attending the feast would surely be difficult, the first step was always the hardest.

"Life will unfortunately always have its difficulties," she said. "Some will be relatively trivial, while others will seem absolutely insurmountable. But what makes life so significant is that you have the choice to keep going, even when it seems that it would be best to give up. Once you make the decision to start moving forward, I think you will see that your path from here will become clearer with every step you take out of the darkness."

So, that evening, I didn't go to bed when everyone left. I walked into the Great Hall with my friends surrounding me and filled in the empty seat between George and Fred. My distress must have been written all over my face, because Harry's foot found mine under the table, and his eyes pulled me in like gravity.

"I know," he said softly. "I know. It's hard. But you did it."

"If you leave, Cub," George muttered, glancing around the room, "they'll just stare even more."

"Yeah, Cub, don't let those stares get to you," Fred echoed. "People are just concerned. At least they're staring for the right reasons. It's not like you have a unicorn horn growing from your forehead."

I managed to smile for half a second at the utter ridiculousness of his attempt to cheer me up. "Yeah, I guess."

The Great Hall filled slowly. Everyone at the Hufflepuff table stared at me at one point or another. I met Henry's eyes at one point, and we exchanged a look laden with meaning. I couldn't bring myself to look at the empty seat next to him. His eyes filled with tears, and I clenched my fists under the table to prevent myself from doing the same.

I could already see how worried everyone was for me. I refused to cry and give them even more reason to worry.

When one of Henry's fellow Hufflepuffs got his attention and he looked away, I glanced around the room and blinked rapidly to keep the tears away.

The banners over our heads, usually brightly colored, were black this year. My chest hurt at the sight. I realized I would be wearing black on Saturday. My chest hurt even more.

I glanced up at the teachers, and I felt my face heat when I realized that most of them were looking at me.

I offered a small wave to Professor McGonagall. _I did it. I'm here._ She offered a small smile in return. _I know. I'm proud of you._

Professor Moody --- well... the real one --- was looking at me, too. His facial expression was impossible to read. But I didn't feel threatened by him. Not anymore. Barty Crouch Jr.'s interpretation of Mad-Eye Moody was clearly good enough to fool those who knew him well, but I could already see the difference between the false and the true. This Professor Moody kept his eyes on mine; his gaze didn't wander down to the scar on my stomach. This Professor Moody had a different light in his eyes, too. It was almost gentle as he studied me --- gentle was never a word I would have used to describe Barty Crouch Jr.'s Moody.

I glanced over to Professor Dumbledore just as he rose from his seat. The Hall was quiet in the first place; it went silent.

“The end of another year.”

His eyes found me first, then drifted to the Hufflepuff table. I didn't need to follow his gaze to know he was staring at the empty spot.

“There is much that I would like to say to you all tonight, but I must first acknowledge the loss of a very fine person, who should be sitting here, enjoying our feast with us. I would like you all, please, to stand, and raise your glasses, to Cedric Diggory.”

I could barely whisper his name along with everyone else, but I did. I stared down at the table as Professor Dumbledore continued.

“Cedric was a person who exemplified many of the qualities that distinguish Hufflepuff house. He was a good and loyal friend, a hard worker, he valued fair play. His death has affected you all, whether you knew him well or not. I think that you have the right, therefore, to know exactly how it came about.”

Harry and I exchanged a panicked glance. 

All of the air seemed to disappear from the room.

I bowed my head as if to brace for what I knew was coming. Blood roared in my ears and nearly drowned out the sound of Professor Dumbledore's voice.

“Cedric Diggory was murdered by Lord Voldemort.”

As expected, the room erupted with whispers. Everyone who had been in the stands had been cheering too loudly on Saturday night to hear Harry's shouts. I felt the twins go rigid next to me. 

"You knew, didn't you," George whispered, more of a statement than a question.

I managed the tiniest nod, keeping my eyes fixed on my hands in my lap.

“The Ministry of Magic does not wish me to tell you this. It is possible that some of your parents will be horrified that I have done so, either because they will not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, or because they think I should not tell you so, young as you are. It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Cedric died as the result of an accident, or some sort of blunder of his own, is an insult to his memory.”

My head shot up. "People have been thinking it was his own fault?" I asked in a voice that trembled violently.

When nobody would answer me, I had half a mind to storm out of the Hall, but George kept me in place.

"Some people," he whispered. "The rumors have been brutal. But everyone knows the truth now. It's okay."

Professor Dumbledore went on. “There is somebody else who must be mentioned in connection with Cedric’s death. I am talking, of course, about Harry Potter.”

Harry glanced over at me, pain in his eyes.

I suddenly understood.

Some of the rumors speculated that _Harry_ had killed Cedric.

That thought was even worse than people blaming Cedric.

"I believe you," I whispered urgently. "I believe _you_. I don't care what the rumors say."

He nodded once before Professor Dumbledore spoke again and we both turned to him.

“Harry Potter managed to escape Lord Voldemort. He risked his own life to return Cedric’s body to Hogwarts. He showed, in every respect, the sort of bravery that few wizards have ever shown in facing Lord Voldemort, and for this, I honor him.”

Harry's name was easier to say. Once everyone --- except a couple of Slytherins, of course, who refused to stand for Harry --- had resumed their seats, Professor Dumbledore continued.

“The Triwizard Tournament’s aim was to further and promote magical understanding. In the light of what has happened --- of Lord Voldemort’s return --- such ties are more important than ever before. Every guest in this Hall will be welcomed back here at any time, should they wish to come. I say to you all, once again: in the light of Lord Voldemort’s return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort’s gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.

“It is my belief --- and never have I so hoped that I am mistaken --- that we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you in this Hall have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Many of your families have been torn asunder. A week ago, a student was taken from our midst. Remember Cedric. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory.”

With that, the feast began, but I could no longer hold back the grief like a wave that swept over me. I kept my head bowed as a steady stream of tears fell into my lap. 

George ate with one hand, rubbing small circles on my back with the other. Fred passed me my glass of water every couple of minutes.

Eventually, the storm passed. I scrubbed my cheeks with the sleeve of my robe, coughed a couple of times, and looked up.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all studying me with concern. I swallowed hard and wiped my eyes.

"Sorry," I managed. "Just... just hearing about..."

"Don't apologize, Lucy," Ron said. "We understand. Try to eat something now, mate, it doesn't get much better than this feast."

I nodded. I might have smiled if I hadn't just cried for ten minutes. "You're right about that," I replied. I plunged a fork into my mashed potatoes and managed to swallow.

The warmth was nice. It combatted the darkness and cold that was slowly overtaking me from the inside out.

Harry and I helped each other pack after the feast. It seemed too monumental a task for either of us to attempt alone. It also gave Ron and Hermione a chance to be alone without having to worry about us.

Once everything was packed, we wandered back down to the common room.

As tradition would dictate, we found ourselves shoulder-to-shoulder in front of the fireplace. Neither of us spoke until the common room was empty. 

"I've never dreaded going home so much," I admitted. "If this is how you feel every year, I..."

My head found his shoulder.

"A year ago, we were excited about the World Cup," he commented. "And laughing about the Scabbers/Peter Pettigrew situation."

"A year ago, I was upset about having to go two months without my brother." I choked on my tears. "Harry, I don't want to go home, because home is where he always was. Here, there are places that I can hide. He was never in my dormitory, at least not that I can remember. He only came up to this common room a couple of times. But at home, he was everywhere, I'm going to have to look at the pictures on the wall and walk past his room and- and-" The tears spilled down onto my cheeks, and Harry wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I covered my face with my hands, a couple more sobs escaping. "It physically hurts, Harry," I said weakly. "It feels like someone's punched a hole through the center of me. I can't breathe, it's so cold, I... I..."

Harry pulled me closer. "I wish there was something I could say to make it better," he said in a choked voice. It sounded like he might cry, too.

"Just please don't leave me," I whispered. "Please. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you, too."

I had always felt safest when Harry was around. Which, come to think of it, was somewhat contradictory. Danger seemed to follow him wherever he went. And yet... I didn't care. I knew that we were strongest when we were together, like Professor Dumbledore had said. 

We were now inextricably tied together. Whatever the future held in store for one of us would affect both of us. 

"I'm here, Lu," he said. "Right here."

I nodded, letting a new wave of sorrow and fear sweep me away in the tide as I buried my head against the warmth of Harry's chest, the warmth of Harry's presence.

He was there. He was right there.

* * *

"Goodbye" and "I'm sorry."

Those were the words that defined the day after the farewell feast.

I wasn't ready to say goodbye. Not to Fleur, not to Viktor, not to any of the Beauxbatons or Durmstrang students. But they all seemed to want to say goodbye to me. They all seemed to want to see how the poor boy's poor little sister was holding up.

I would have been a lot better if I hadn't been also dealing with "I'm sorry" after "I'm sorry" after "I'm sorry."

A couple of people seemed to understand. Fleur, for instance, didn't say much, opting instead to hug me tightly and promise to write me whenever she could. Viktor did say "I'm sorry," but before I could choke out some type of reply, he hugged me too, saying that if I ever wanted to see one of his matches, I'd have the best seats in the house because he had always promised that to Cedric. Hagrid nearly broke my ribs with the ferocity of his hug, since I hadn't been able to make my way down to his hut with the others.

And Harry... Merlin, Harry.

At one point, Maxence tried to make his way over to me. Poor kid, really. Harry's _Don't you dare_ glare was enough to keep him fifteen feet away from me. 

Harry never left my side, with only one exception. He trusted Archie enough to let him grab me by the arm just before we got on the train.

Archie pressed his well-loved copy of _Lord of the Rings_ into my hands. "Take it this summer, too. You need it more than I do. It'll help. You'll understand it more now."

"Are you sure?" I asked. "I don't know how much reading I'll be doing-"

"It'll help," he said again. His voice softened. "Please just take it, Diggory. Open it to where I placed the bookmark."

I obliged, only to discover it wasn't really a bookmark at all. Instead, a picture of a sunrise fell into my hand. The date on the back was June 25, 1995. The familiar sting met my eyes, and Archie took the picture from me before a tear could land on it.

"When Cam's brother died in February, we went to Cedric first. I knew he'd be able to help, somehow. And well, what he said that night has stuck with me ever since. He said that the fact that the world keeps spinning after it falls apart isn't really as cruel as it seems. Because-"

"Some things never change?" I finished for him, my voice cracking.

"Exactly. Like sunrises."

A tear escaped and coursed down my cheek, and I hurriedly wiped it away. 

"I never went back to the castle that night," Archie said. "I had my camera with me, to take pictures of the third task to show my parents. Once they let us out of the stands, I told Cam I'd see her in the common room in the morning, and she left with the Hufflepuff girls in our grade. I wandered the hills all night, wanting to stay up to see the sunrise. I thought maybe you'd miss it."

I shook my head, eyes fixed on the picture in his hand. "I did. That night, I just- I just-"

"Hey, hey, it's okay. You have it now. And look... it's bright yellow." Archie tucked it back into the book and closed it gently. Then he wrapped his arms around me, and I let myself relax the slightest bit. He had been like an older brother to Archie, too. He had loved Archie, too. Archie pulled away and managed a smile. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

I nodded. "I'll try."

"Well, that's not very convincing." Archie gave me a pointed look. "I'll be there tomorrow. Give me a better answer then."

With that, he turned around and gestured for me to follow him onto the train.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had snag a car that the four of us could have to ourselves. I put the book into my bag and shoved it into the overhead compartment. My bag was next to Cedric's trunk. Mum and Dad hadn't wanted to take it home on Sunday, so the responsibility fell to me. Henry had been nice enough to pack it so I didn't have to, but I was still the one who had to take it home.

I was still the one whose room was right next to his.

I was still the one who had to return to one less light in the house.

I was still his sister.

I took a deep breath through my nose as I sat down, feeling drowsiness tug at my eyelids. Harry and I had been up much later than usual, even for the last night before heading home, because neither of us wanted to be alone. Long after my tears had dried, I had kept my ear pressed to Harry's chest, taking comfort in the steady beat of his heart.

He was there. He was right there.

As the train pulled out of the station, Harry's voice broke the silence.

"Lu?"

I blinked and turned to face him, sitting up straighter in the seat. "Mhm?"

"I think I'm ready to tell Ron and Hermione about it. Do you want me to wait until you fall asleep?"

"Who said anything about me falling asleep?" I asked through a yawn.

Harry managed a small smile. "Stubborn as always. Do you want to stay, or do you want me to go find the twins or Ginny and Neville for you so you're not alone while we talk?"

I bit my lip, weighing my options. I wanted to leave, I didn't want to hear it again. But I didn't want to leave Harry, either. I was always safest with him.

"I'll stay," I whispered.

I pulled my Gryffindor scarf tighter around my neck. The day was sunny and warm, but I'd been cold all day. Hermione muttered something to Harry about a low-grade fever, something about a respiratory infection from how much I'd been crying, but I couldn't bring myself to care. I just knew I was cold and my head pounded and my chest hurt, and the scarf helped with all three.

Harry nodded. "Okay."

He held out a hand, the question in his eyes, and I accepted it, my right hand sliding easily into his left. I inched closer to him, and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. It was how we'd been sitting the first time he told the story. It felt right to do it again.

I couldn't bring myself to look at Ron or Hermione as Harry talked. I traced the pattern on the carpet with my eyes, I watched the countryside roll by on the other side of the window, I let my eyes unfocus as I stared at our intertwined hands.

Once the story was through, Hermione wondered aloud what Professor Dumbledore might be doing even as we spoke to combat the rise of Voldemort. My eyelids grew heavier and heavier as the conversation swirled around me in indistinct mutters and murmurs, and I woke up with my head on Harry's shoulder a couple hours later. I realized we were still holding hands. I gently released my hold and sat up.

Three heads immediately turned my direction.

"You missed the lunch cart," Ron said, holding out a sandwich. "You hungry?"

I shook my head and pinched the bridge of my nose. My headache had somehow gotten worse with sleep, and my eyes felt puffy. 

Hermione shot Harry a meaningful look, and he reached forward to feel my forehead. His eyes widened slightly, but he quickly regained control of his facial expression and reached down to loosen the scarf around my neck. 

Hermione shuffled around in her bag and pulled out a jar full of water. "I thought you might need this," she explained, passing it to me.

"Thanks, Hermione," I said, my voice little more than a croak. I took a long sip, wincing slightly as the water aggravated my raw throat, and glanced over at Harry. His eyes were fixed on Hermione's bag, and I soon saw why. The _Daily Prophet_ was poking out of the top.

She followed his gaze and looked back at him. “There’s nothing in there. You can look for yourself, but there’s nothing at all. I’ve been checking every day. Just a small piece the day after the third task saying you won the tournament. They didn’t even mention Cedric. Nothing about any of it. If you ask me, Fudge is forcing them to keep quiet.”

I choked on my water, making all three of them jump and turn to me with concern written all over their faces. I coughed a couple more times and managed to choke out, "Nothing at all? My brother was... was... _nothing_?"

Harry shook his head in disbelief and turned back to Hermione. “He’ll never keep Rita quiet. Not on a story like this.”

Hermione's demeanor changed. A slight puff of her chest, a slight flush in her cheeks, a slight glint in her eyes. She was proud of something. 

“Oh, Rita hasn’t written anything at all since the third task. As a matter of fact, Rita Skeeter isn’t going to be writing anything at all for a while. Not unless she wants me to spill the beans on _her_.”

“What are you talking about?” Ron asked.

“I found out how she was listening in on private conversations when she wasn’t supposed to be coming onto the grounds.”

Harry blinked. “How was she doing it?”

“Well, it was you, really, who gave me the idea, Harry.”

“Did I? How?”

“Bugging!”

“But you said they didn’t work-”

“Oh, not _electronic_ bugs. No, you see, Rita Skeeter is an unregistered Animagus. She can turn...” She reached into her bag and pulled out a second jar, though this one didn't have water. “...into a beetle.”

My jaw fell open. Hermione was _brilliant_. 

Ron stared at the jar. “You’re kidding. You haven’t... she’s not...”

“Oh yes she is!” Hermione passed the jar to Ron, and he examined it for himself.

“That’s never- you’re kidding!”

“No, I’m not. I caught her on the windowsill in the Hospital Wing. Look very closely, and you’ll notice the markings around her antennae are exactly like those foul glasses she wears.”

Ron passed the jar over to Harry and me. Surely enough, the markings were there.

"She was there the night Hagrid told me about his mum," I said. 

“Exactly! And Viktor pulled a beetle out of my hair after we’d had our conversation by the lake. And unless I’m very much mistaken, Rita was perched on the windowsill of the Divination class the day Harry's scar hurt. She’s been buzzing around for stories all year.”

“So when we saw Malfoy under that tree...?” Ron started.

“He was talking to her, in his hand. He knew, of course. That’s how she’s been getting all those nice little interviews with the Slytherins. They wouldn’t care that she was doing something illegal, as long as they were giving her horrible stuff about us and Hagrid.”

Hermione took the jar back. Beetle Skeeter was pressing up against the glass, looking directly at me.

I managed a smirk. _Good luck getting my secret now._

“I’ve told her I’ll let her out when we get back to London. I’ve put an Unbreakable Charm on the jar, you see, so she can’t transform. And I’ve told her she’s to keep her quill to herself for a whole year. See if she can’t break the habit of writing horrible lies about people,” Hermione said with a triumphant smile as she tucked the jar back into the bag.

Suddenly, the compartment door opened to reveal Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle.

“Very clever, Granger,” Malfoy drawled. “So you caught some pathetic reporter, and Potter’s Dumbledore’s favorite boy again. Big deal.”

None of us spoke, and his smirk widened.

“Trying not to think about it, are we? Trying to pretend it hasn’t happened?”

“Get out,” Harry snapped, his hand white around the wand in his pocket but his neck growing red. 

Malfoy didn't heed him. “You’ve picked the losing side, Potter! I warned you! I told you you ought to choose your company more carefully, remember? When we met on the train, first day at Hogwarts? I told you not to hang around with riffraff like this!”

He jerked his head vaguely toward Ron and Hermione, but his gaze fell directly on me.

“Too late now, Potter! They’ll be the first to go, now the Dark Lord’s back! Mudbloods and Muggle-lovers first! Well, second. Diggory was the f-”

I shielded my face with my arms as something like a bomb went off in the compartment. A gentle hand lowered them, and a grinning Harry looked back at me. 

"Don't worry, Lu, we took care of it," he said, intertwining his fingers with mine and pulling me to my feet.

He was right.

Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were all sprawled on the floor, unconscious. Ron and Hermione had drawn their wands, too, and two redheads appeared through the smoke hanging in the doorway. 

“Thought we’d see what those three were up to,” Fred said as he planted his foot on the small of Crabbe's back.

George followed him into the compartment, stepping on Malfoy. He glanced down at Crabbe. “Interesting effect. Who used the Furnunculus Curse?”

Harry raised his wand hand with a smirk, still holding mine with his other hand. "That would be me."

George smiled and quirked his eyebrows. “Odd. I used Jelly-Legs. Looks as though those two shouldn’t be mixed. He seems to have sprouted little tentacles all over his face. Well, let’s not leave them here, they don’t add much to the decor.”

Ron and the twins wasted no time in kicking the three unconscious boys into the hallway. I absorbed the scene with disbelief.

Harry laughed when he saw the dazed expression on my face and released my hand to pat my shoulder. "Don't worry, Lu, Malfoy won't get away with anything anymore."

I blinked, watching as the compartment door slid closed again and Fred made a show of dusting off his hands. "I can see that," I managed after a moment.

Fred smiled and pulled a deck of cards from his back pocket. “Exploding Snap, anyone?”

I curled up on my side across the seats and watched the five of them play, not feeling terribly up to it myself but appreciating the distraction.

Halfway through the fifth game, Harry's head snapped up. “You going to tell us, then? Who you were blackmailing?”

George frowned. “Oh. _That_.”

“It doesn’t matter. It wasn’t anything important. Not now, anyway,” Fred said.

“We’ve given up.”

"What?" I asked, sitting up. "Why?"

My question prompted the other three to bombard them with several more questions --- primarily "Why does Lucy get to know and we don't?" --- and Fred caved.

“Alright, alright, if you really want to know, it was Ludo Bagman.”

Harry jolted. “Bagman? Are you saying he was involved in-”

George shook his head, glancing at me with a look of concern before turning back to Harry. “Nah. Nothing like that. Stupid git. He wouldn’t have the brains.”

“Well, what, then?” Ron asked.

“You remember that bet we had with him at the Quidditch World Cup? About how Ireland would win, but Krum would get the Snitch?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, the git paid us in leprechaun gold he’d caught from the Irish mascots.”

Ron cocked his head. “So?”

Fred cut in. “ _So_ it vanished, didn’t it? By next morning, it had gone!”

“But... it must’ve been an accident, mustn’t it?” Hermione asked hopefully.

George barked out a harsh laugh. “Yeah, that’s what we thought, at first. We thought if we just wrote to him, and told him he’d made a mistake, he’d cough up. But nothing doing. Ignored our letter. We kept trying to talk to him about it at Hogwarts, but he was always making some excuse to get away from us.”

“In the end, he turned pretty nasty. Told us we were too young to gamble, and he wasn’t giving us anything.”

“So we asked for our money back.”

Hermione gasped. “He refused?” 

“Right in one,” Fred mumbled.

I slapped my hand to my forehead. _Slimy git._

“But that was all your savings!” Ron burst out.

“Tell us about it. ’Course, we found out what was going on in the end. Lee Jordan’s dad had had a bit of trouble getting money off Bagman as well. Turns out he’s in big trouble with the goblins. Borrowed loads of gold off them. A gang of them cornered him in the woods after the World Cup and took all the gold he had, and it still wasn’t enough to cover all his debts. They followed him all the way to Hogwarts to keep an eye on him. He’s lost everything gambling. Hasn’t got two Galleons to rub together. And you know how the idiot tried to pay the goblins back?”

“How?” Harry asked.

“He put a bet on you, mate. Put a big bet on you to win the tournament. Bet against the goblins.”

“So that’s why he kept trying to help me win! Well... I did win, didn’t I? Technically? So he can pay you your gold!”

“Nope. The goblins play as dirty as him. They say you drew with Cedric, and Bagman was betting you’d win outright. So Bagman had to run for it. He did run for it right after the third task.”

I muttered a couple of choice words about Ludo Bagman under my breath, but in the silence of the compartment, everyone heard. 

Ginny came in a couple of minutes later and joined the game. She begged and begged for me to join, but I refused time and time again.

She finally convinced me to join the last game. I was rubbish, of course, being as exhausted as I was, but for the first time since Saturday night, it was like I could breathe just a tiny bit more easily. Something about sitting between Harry and George with Hermione and Ron and Fred and Ginny laughing across from us felt like home. More like home than my actual home would feel, anyway. 

When the train slowed to a stop, Ron reached up and grabbed Cedric's trunk as I grabbed my own. I held my hand out to take it from him, but he shook his head.

"Mum owled this morning. We're driving you home today. Your parents weren't up for it and asked if we would mind, which of course we don't."

"Oh," I said, flushing slightly. "Alright. I can still carry his-"

Ron shook his head again. His gaze lingered on the bag in my hand for a second before he met my eyes again. "I think you have enough. You don't need to carry this, too."


	77. In the Wake of Devastation

_When you were standing in the wake of devastation  
When you were waiting on the edge of the unknown  
And with the cataclysm raining down, insides crying "Save me now"  
You were there impossibly alone_

_"Iridescent"  
Linkin Park_

* * *

HARRY:

Ron gestured for Lucy to follow Ginny and Hermione out of the compartment, and I was about to follow, but an idea struck me like lightning as the twins turned toward the door.

“Fred, George, wait a moment.”

They turned, perplexed expressions on their faces, and I dug through my trunk to pull out the Triwizard money. I shoved it into George's hands.

“Take it.”

“What?” Fred asked after a second.

“Take it. I don’t want it.”

George pushed it in my direction. “You’re mental.”

I stepped back and snapped my trunk closed. “No, I’m not. You take it, and get inventing. It’s for the joke shop.”

“He _is_ mental,” Fred muttered. 

“Listen. If you don’t take it, I’m throwing it down the drain. I don’t want it and I don’t need it. The Diggorys refused to take it. Trust me, I tried. But I could do with a few laughs. We could _all_ do with a few laughs. I’ve got a feeling we’re going to need them more than usual before long.”

George shook his head. “Harry, there’s got to be a thousand Galleons in here.”

I smiled. “Yeah. And? Think how many Canary Creams that is.” When neither of them said anything, I added in a more serious voice, “Just don’t tell your mum where you got it, although she might not be so keen for you to join the Ministry anymore, come to think of it.”

“Harry-” Fred started to say.

I drew my wand to cut him off. “Look. Take it, or I’ll hex you. I know some good ones now. Just do me one favor, okay? Buy Ron some different dress robes and say they’re from you.”

I pushed past them before they could try to give it to me again and stepped deliberately Crabbe, Goyle, _and_ Malfoy, but I didn't get terribly far.

"Harry!" George called to me.

I whirled around, keeping my wand levelled at them, and raised my eyebrows.

"Thanks," he said. Fred nodded.

I tucked my wand away. "Like I said. Buy Ron some new dress robes. And for the love of Merlin, make Lucy laugh again. Please."

I turned and bounded off the train. Lucy was standing with Ginny, but her fever-flushed face was paler than it had been all day as she looked around wildly. I realized with a jolt she'd never been at King's Cross without her brother. 

Mrs. Weasley swept me up into a hug. “I think Dumbledore will let you come to us later in the summer. Keep in touch, Harry,” she whispered to me. My spirits lifted at the thought, knowing that being with the Weasleys meant being closer to Lucy. The diaries were great, but there was only so much that could be communicated through words. Not that Lucy and I had spoken much to each other in the past week, anyway --- more often than not, I just held her as she cried, or as she mourned in silence. I wasn't sure how well I'd be able to do that with the diaries, but, well, I was going to try.

“See you, Harry,” Ron said with a clap on the back.

Hermione gave me a quick hug. “Bye, Harry!”

I hugged her back, then turned to the Dursleys, who were glowering at me. 

_They can wait,_ I decided, turning to Ginny and Lucy. Ginny jerked her chin in Lucy's direction, and I nodded and stepped swiftly to her side.

"C'mon," I murmured, taking her by the hand and pulling her behind a barrier. 

"Harry," she whispered, her tear-filled eyes finding mine. She jumped up and threw her arms around me, and I held her tightly.

"I'll see you soon, alright?" 

"Be safe," was her only reply. "Please. I mean it, I can't lose you too, I don't know what I'd do, Harry."

"I'll be alright. I promise." She reluctantly released me, and I wiped a rogue tear away with my thumb. "Write me after tomorrow?"

Lucy nodded. "Write me back?"

"Of course."

We walked together back to the others. Everyone looked terribly concerned --- for Lucy more so than me, I hoped. I glanced at Lucy one more time before following the Dursleys. Once in the back of the car, I double-checked to make sure the diary was right on top. I would be there the second she wrote me the next day.

Where else would I be?


	78. What About Me?

_You've got your peace now, but what about me?_

_Thought we had the time, had our lives  
Now you'll never get older, older  
Didn't say goodbye, now I'm frozen in time  
Getting colder, colder_

_One last word  
One last moment  
To ask you why you left me here behind  
You said you'd grow old with me_

_"You Said You'd Grow Old with Me"  
Michael Schulte_

* * *

LUCY:

I opened the door to Cedric's room only to rest his trunk at the foot of his bed. 

Books and soil and evergreen soap.

Yellow walls and Magpies posters.

A stack of letters from his summer at St. Mungo's.

His uniform from St. Mungo's hanging on the outside of his wardrobe.

Curtains parted to show the sunset over the forest.

It was too much to take.

I shut the door behind me and sprinted to my room.

I couldn't sleep that night. I could hear my parents' muffled cries down the hallway until well after midnight, but I couldn't bring myself to face them.

I wasn't their daughter, after all.

Cedric was the glue that held our family together.

I may not have been their daughter, but I was his sister.

With Cedric gone, there wasn't much to say.

The next morning dawned altogether too soon.

When my mom poked her head in and said I should start getting ready, I pulled myself out of bed and made my way to the shower. The steam helped keep my congestion at bay just a bit longer, aided by the Pepperup Mum had left on my nightstand, and I slipped my dress over my head.

There was a soft knock at my door. "Lucy?"

"Ginny," I breathed, throwing the door open. 

She wrapped her arms around me and held tight for a moment. "Mum thought we girls should head over and see if you needed help with anything last-minute. Mione's here too, downstairs with my mum." She pulled apart and studied me head to toe. "You need to brush your hair. But other than that, you look alright."

"I was just about to," I said, reaching for the brush and dragging it through my wet hair. "It might still be a bit wet by the time it starts."

Ginny shook her head. "It's warm outside. It'll dry quickly." There was a brief pause. "Merlin, you look exhausted."

I nodded. "Didn't sleep."

"At all?" came a surprised voice in the doorway.

I shook my head as Hermione came in. She immediately sat next to me on my bed and studied me for herself.

"You poor thing," she said after a moment.

I couldn't think of an intelligent response, so I just averted my eyes and kept brushing my hair. We eventually went back downstairs to find that Mrs. Weasley and my parents had made their way outside. A small crowd had already gathered, and I spotted Henry first. His curly hair was combed and his suit was neatly pressed, but I could tell that he hadn't slept either. He was standing silently with Cho, who had wisely not worn mascara, and I saw Luna approaching the pair of them from behind. I watched Cho's mother embracing mine, both women crying. Archie and his father arrived with a pop nearby, but I quickly made my way in the direction of the male Weasleys.

I didn't have a better answer for him yet.

Ron was the first person to hug me, fiercely and protectively. I tucked my hair behind my ears, not used to having it in my face, and turned just in time to see Percy apparate. He turned his red tie black with a touch of his wand and ran his fingers through his hair. His eyes landed on me, and he hurried in my direction.

"Are you alright, Lucy?" he asked, not waiting for an answer before he hugged me, too, in a surprisingly similar way to Ron.

I managed a nod as he let go. I turned to the twins, who were studying me with the same look they gave a product that wouldn't work for a reason they hadn't yet figured out. 

I reached forward and brushed ash off of Fred's shoulder. "Inventing without me? I'm insulted."

"You look like you were too busy partying, hungover and all," he quipped back.

"Staring at the ceiling, more like," I replied with a roll of my eyes.

"Same difference. You've never liked parties," George said with a half-hearted smile. He pulled me to him in a hug. "Don't worry, Cub, you can invent with us again soon enough."

A couple minutes later, Mum waved me over, so I went to sit between her and Henry.

The ceremony was short and sweet --- symbolically so.

Voldemort's name was not mentioned. Neither was Harry's.

It focused on his life, not his death.

It was supposed to be happy. But I couldn't bring myself to be happy for the life he lived because of how much he would miss in his death.

That day by the Black Lake, I had felt hope for my future for the first time.

We were supposed to live together until I found an employer that would have me, or until he found something that would cure me. And then from there, everything was supposed to be so easy. Everything we left unsaid that day meant even more than what we did say. From there, we were supposed to find my family in America. From there, we were supposed to finally not have to worry about the full moon anymore. From there, we were supposed to raise our kids to be the best cousins ever, the cousins we never had, and we were supposed still play Quidditch together on the weekends with our friends, and I was supposed to still send him snickerdoodles every time I baked a batch, and he was supposed to still send me letters about his healing work, and we were supposed to still have our matching pygmy puffs...

I reached for the two pygmy puffs hanging around my neck. Mum had handed Cedric's to me, saying she reckoned I had been the one to give it to him. I had nodded and added his charm to my chain without a second thought.

It was supposed to be a good luck charm.

That was when the tears began to flow, freely, rapidly, completely unstoppably.

Silent tears. I didn't make a sound. After the service was over, I could talk well enough, I could even manage a smile well enough. But the tears continued to fall no matter what I did.

I cried when Fleur and Gabrielle and their mother came up to me afterward. I cried when Viktor and his father came up to me, too.

I cried when I saw Professor Sprout crying. I cried when I saw Professor McGonagall crying, too.

I cried saying goodbye to Cho. I didn't have anything I could offer to her to take away the sting of losing her lover. I cried saying goodbye to Archie, too. I didn't have a better answer for him yet.

I cried when the Weasleys and Hermione left. They all promised to write, of course, which I didn't doubt for a second at the time, but still I cried.

Finally, it was just my family and Henry. His parents had apparated home with his sister, but Henry wanted to stay just a bit longer. I invited him up to Cedric's room, because he said he had something he wanted to leave there.

He pulled a small piece of parchment from his pocket and tucked it into Cedric's pillowcase. I could tell the corner of the parchment had been folded and unfolded many times. He didn't offer an explanation, but he didn't need to. His eyes landed on a picture next to Cedric's bed, of when we were little. I was missing my two front teeth and laughing as I clung to Cedric's back.

He didn't lift his eyes as he spoke to me. "He really loved you, you know."

"I know," I whispered back. The tears were falling faster than ever. 

Books and soil and evergreen soap.

Yellow walls and Magpies posters.

Smiles that brightened every room.

Hugs that seemed to radiate the same healing power as a spell or potion.

"No," Henry replied. He blinked. "I mean yes, he did, you _do_ know, but... he loved you even _more_ than you know. You were his world. His greatest fear wasn't werewolves, it was losing you. He never had nightmares about werewolves. When he woke up in the middle of the night, it was because he dreamt he lost you. In our fourth year, to petrification. In our fifth year, to Sirius Black. And this year, he had a recurring nightmare that he couldn't save you from the lake in time. He loved you, Lucy, more than you know."

The tears were a flood now. A tiny sob escaped my throat, and Henry looked up at me for the first time. A number of puzzle pieces clicked into place in my head. 

I took a shaky breath, looking at the picture of Cedric and Henry that Cedric kept just behind the one of the two of us. They were twelve, flying toward each other in Diagon Alley after a long summer apart. "He loved you too, Henry. More than _you_ know."


	79. When the Nightmares Take Me

_But now those lonely lullabies  
Just dampen my tired eyes  
Because I can't forget you  
Because I can't forget you_

_I'll dissolve when the rain pours in  
When the nightmares take me  
I will scream with the howling wind  
'Cause it's a bitter world and I'd rather dream_

_"Lonely Lullaby"  
Owl City_

* * *

HENRY:

I laid awake that night. I didn't toss and turn. I just stared at the ceiling and let the darkness overcome me inch by inch.

I had left the letter that had lived under my pillow since February under Cedric's.

He would never read it. He would never get to know how I felt about him.

I got the feeling Lucy understood, but it went unspoken. I got the feeling Lucy understood many unspoken truths, really, things I had never even considered once in my seventeen years of existence. She'd always had the look of someone who was tragically wise beyond her years, but without Cedric to bring light to those haunted eyes, it was more pronounced than ever. 

But that night, it wasn't Lucy's eyes I was remembering.

Cedric's eyes were all I could see. 

I had left a piece of parchment in Cedric's pillowcase to replace the one I had taken before leaving Hogwarts. I shot up out of bed and grabbed my wand, lighting it with a quick "Lumos!" 

Cedric's handwriting on a scrap of parchment. _Have faith in the sunrise._ His handwriting had always been far neater than anyone else's in our year. Professors loved him for it. I asked him about it once. He blushed and said he felt bad if people had to work hard to read his handwriting. Because that's just who Cedric was.

_"I've kept it in here for... years."_

He'd been putting his faith in the sunrise for years. Was that how he was so unfailingly optimistic for everyone except himself? Had he always known there'd come a day the sun would rise for us and not for him?

_"I pull it out whenever I have nightmares."_

What I said to Lucy was true. His worst nightmares were always about losing her. Losing her to monsters in the Forbidden Forest. To the Chamber of Secrets. To Sirius Black. To the merpeople at the bottom of the lake. I let myself wonder for half a second if he'd ever had a nightmare about losing me.

_"I never used it more than I did last summer. I just needed the reminder nearly every night that no matter how long the night is, the sun will always rise."_

He wanted to help people. He wanted to heal people. He wanted to save people. He was born to do that. He was never meant to die before he got the chance to change the world.

I set the parchment on my nightstand and buried my head in my hands. 

A couple nights before the third task, Cedric and I were drinking bottles of butterbeer with our roommates, having the time of our lives. Cedric was such a lightweight it was hilarious. Two bottles in, he was buzzed. Three, tipsy.

That night, we talked him into four.

He didn't have final exams, and none of the rest of us cared too much about ours. We still had seventh year to go after all. A couple of silencing charms, a dozen or so bottles, the radio loud, and a Golden Snitch flying around the room created the perfect atmosphere for chaos. Fun, mindless, youthful chaos.

"Magic Works" came on. I knew it was Cedric's favorite song. I jokingly offered to run up to get Cho from the Ravenclaw common room, but, drunker than I was, Cedric's eyes bugged out of his head.

"No time, no time!" he exclaimed. "Come on, Henry, dance with me!"

Our roommates shoved me toward him, laughing hysterically, and I danced with Cedric. It was hilarious at the time, not at all romantic. He twirled me and dipped me and we spun until we were dizzy. But toward the end of the song, he grew serious.

_And don't believe that magic can die  
No, no, no, this magic can't die_

_So dance your final dance  
'Cause this is your final chance_

The song had been right.

The magic between us hadn't died with him. It was evident in the way my heart felt as if it would break at the thought of him, the way everything within me still wanted him, the way nothing felt real about the past seven days, the past seven nights.

I knew in my head he was never coming back, but my heart was still waiting for him.

Cedric's nightmares hadn't come true. Lucy was safe and warm in her bed, back home in Ottery St. Catchpole.

My nightmares had come true. But never, never, not even on the darkest night, not even in my worst nightmare, did I imagine he would die the way he did.

I crumpled to the ground and sobbed.


	80. Only a Moment Ago

July 1 - 2:03 PM

_Hey, Lu, I don't know what time it ends, but I'm here whenever, okay?_

July 1 - 11:27 PM

_I'm heading to bed, Lu, but if you need anything, I'll keep the book close. I don't know if I'll sleep anyway, but... well, I'm here if you need me. I hope everything's going alright for you._

July 2 - 4:01 AM

_I just had the worst nightmare. Please write me soon to let me know you're okay. I know I'm probably just being paranoid, but, well, you were involved in this nightmare. I need to know you're okay._

July 2 - 11:22 AM

_I hope you're alright. I'm sorry if I said something wrong. Please just tell me if I did. You've never been angry with me, Lu, and I'd hate to start now..._

July 2 - 8:01 PM

_I didn't see anything on the Muggle news about an attack. I hope you're okay._

July 3 - 6:52 AM

_I'll keep the diary close today. Please write me._

July 4 - 5:47 AM

_Please, Lu, just one word. I just need to know you're okay. I'm going to ask if anyone else has heard from you. The solitude is killing me._

July 5 - 8:02 PM

_If talking about him is too much, do you want to try good thing bad thing? Just two sentences every day? That would be better than this._

July 6 - 3:58 PM

_Should I try sending a letter? Maybe if you see that you'll remember this diary exists? Would that get your attention? Would you remember me then? Or are you remembering me and just not wanting to talk to me? I don't know how to feel, but scared is as close as I can get to describing this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. What did I do wrong? Please tell me._

July 7 - 9:23 AM

_Nobody else has heard from you, either, even though everyone's apparently tried to send letters. Ron said you must just be grieving to yourself. And that's fine, really it is, if that's what you need, but please just tell me. We don't have to talk about it, we could talk about anything you want. Good things, bad things, stupid things. I just want to talk to you when you're ready to talk to me. Please, Lu, I just want to hear from you, I just need to know you're okay._

July 8 - 7:09 PM

_I just sent Hedwig back to the others. Once she returns, I'll send a letter to you. Part of me feels like I should stop writing, I don't want to be a bother, but I just can't bring myself to let a day go by without writing at least a sentence. I don't want you to think I'm not thinking about you, because I am. More and more every day, really. If you want me to stop writing you, just say so, but until then, I'm not giving up on you, Lu. You've never given up on me. I'm right here for you, whenever you're ready._

July 9 - 6:17 PM

_I saw a white bird today, like the one we saw at the Black Lake. You never did tell me why it was so special to you, but I thought of you when I saw it. I hope that wasn't a sign something horrible happened to you. I never did pay much attention in Divination. For all I know, it could be. I just don't know anymore. Nothing makes sense. Your silence least of all._

July 10 - 11:59 PM 

_Am I talking to myself? Or are you reading all of these? I don't know which would hurt less._

July 11 - 10:15 AM

_I'm going to write the letter today, so it's ready to go as soon as Hedwig is._

* * *

_July 11, 1995_

_Dear Lucy,_

_It's me. Harry, if you couldn't already tell from the handwriting._

_I'm sorry, I know we already have the diaries, I know you're probably not responding to me on purpose, but just in case you forgot or you lost it or something else happened, I wanted to write a letter just so you knew I still cared. I said I'd write, and you did too. What happened?_

_Please just tell me you're okay. I know you might be mad or hurt or... or I don't know exactly, but I just need to know you're okay even if you hate me. Do you hate me? What did I do? Merlin, I'm so sorry for whatever it was. I just want to talk to you again. I miss you. Why haven't you talked to me?_

_Ron said you might be grieving on your own, and it's fine if you are, but please just tell me. I miss you. It's so lonely here without you. Ron and Hermione are nice enough in the letters they send me, but they just don't understand. Not like you do._

_I should probably stop writing before I ramble too much and become annoying, but I just... I need to know you're okay, Lu. I know how much you're hurting and Merlin, I wish I could be there to help you. I'm still waiting for the Weasleys to come and save me from this hellhole. As soon as they do, I'm rushing to your house. Being apart from you hurts like hell, Lu. Not hearing from you is even worse. Please write me, somehow. ~~I need you.~~ I hope you're okay. I don't know what I'll do if you're not. _

_Sincerely, Harry Potter_

* * *

July 12 - 5:23 PM

_I just sent Hedwig with a letter to you. I hope you write me back one way or another. I get more worried every day._

July 13 - 2:20 AM

_I had another nightmare that something happened to you. Are you okay?_

July 14 - 1:04 AM

_I can't sleep. I'm so scared of having that nightmare again. It was terrible. I think not hearing from you is really making my imagination go off the rails, but I still can't shake this horrible feeling that there's something going on that's more serious than just not writing._

July 15 - 2:30 AM

_"No news is good news" has got to be the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. I can't believe Hermione really included that in a letter. Good news is good news. No news is better than bad news, I guess, but this silence feels an awful lot like bad news._

July 16 - 7:18 AM

_Hedwig just came back, but without a reply. What happened, Lu, what did I do?_

July 17 - 10:54 PM

_Good thing: Nothing bad happened on the news._

_Bad thing: I still can't shake the nightmares. About you, about Cedric, about Voldemort. I dread sleeping every night._

_Do you mind if I talk to you like you're actually there? I don't want to sleep yet. Maybe this would keep the nightmares at bay._

_Do you remember the Quidditch match where Lockhart screwed us both over? Merlin, I can't even begin to imagine how terrifying that must have been for you, to be blinded so suddenly and without warning. Well, maybe not entirely without warning. You were always suspicious of Lockhart. Second year was terrifying, honestly, now that I think about it. Everyone thinking I was the Heir of Slytherin, all of the petrifications, Hermione's especially. It was horrible. But at least you were there then, every step of the way. That night in the forest with the acromantulas was the night I think you really started to grow more into your Gryffindor side. You've always been brave, but I think that year was really the beginning of you starting to feel comfortable in red and gold. I still remember how you looked on the first train ride with your brother's Hufflepuff scarf around your shoulders. I think you look better in red and gold, personally, but that could just be me being selfishly glad you're in Gryffindor with me. I don't know what we'd have done without you these past four years._

_That was all over the place, wasn't it? If you're reading this, you must be thinking I'm... pathetic. Insane. And maybe I am. I just miss you, Lu, so much. I wish I knew what I did so I could make it better._

_I should probably sleep now, but I... I think I feel a little better. We'll see._

July 18 - 11:27 PM

_Good thing: I didn't have a nightmare last night._

_Bad thing: It's so hot in my room even writing takes effort. But I still want to talk to you like you're actually there, since it helped last night._

_Is it hot in Ottery St. Catchpole, too? Are you maybe writing a letter to me right now? Or are you asleep, like I should be? Never mind, you're probably not asleep. You should really get more sleep than you do, Lu. Sleep is good for you, you know. It is funny when you fall asleep in the common room, though. I still remember Fred and George turning your hair red our first Christmas at Hogwarts, that was great. And when you fell asleep in DADA that one time. You hid it so well I didn't realize you were asleep until you whispered something and I looked over to see your eyes were closed. Do you always whisper in your sleep? I'll have to ask Hermione sometime, she'd know the answer, I bet._

_I know, I'm one to talk about sleep. I'm writing this at 11:35 at night, after all. But... you should still get more sleep than you do. You look so tired sometimes. So if you happen to be reading this right now, sleep, will you? I'll go to sleep now, too. Oh, and look at the stars if you think of it. I'll do the same._

_I miss you._

July 19 - 10:05 PM

_Good thing: It's not 11:30 when I'm writing this._

_Bad thing: I've been falling asleep all day and it got me in trouble._

_How do you manage to stay awake on those days every couple weeks where you look so tired? Do you have a secret superpower? I don't think I've ever seen you drink coffee. Do you put something in your pumpkin juice? Do the twins have a Stay-Awake cupcake?_

_I know, I know, I'm being stupid. I just... I'm just trying not to think about the emptiness in my chest right now. I don't know what to do without you anymore. I know you don't need me at this point, but I need you. Please just let me know you're okay. Please. I understand if trying to send a letter to the others is too much effort or something, but me? Please. I don't care if it's just a simple "I'm alright," I just need something. Please, Lu, I'm losing my mind without you._

July 20 - 9:32 PM

_I thought I was taking care of you that last week of school, but you were taking care of me too. I felt like I was helping. I felt like I was doing something to make it better, however small it was. It helped me feel a little less alone in my own emotions. Now I'm just talking to myself hoping you're fine but never knowing for sure. I need you, Lu, don't you see? I thought maybe you needed me too, and maybe you don't, but I... the loneliness is killing me. Nobody understands the way you do._

July 21 - 11:47 PM

_Are you looking at the stars, too? They're pretty tonight._

July 22 - 2:01 PM

_Good thing: I got letters from Ron and Hermione._

_Bad thing: They don't tell me anything of value. They're so vague._

_Why does nobody want to talk to me, really talk to me? What did I do, Lu? Do you know?_

_Even when our little group of four has argued in the past, the two of us have always been on good terms. I can't remember a time any of us were mad at you, really, except for Hermione a time or two. You're just so easy to get along with. The closest example I can think of would be when we thought Hagrid might have been the one to open the Chamber of Secrets, but in the end, you were right, and even then, we were never mad. At least, I wasn't. I've never been mad at you. I don't think you've ever been mad at me. Before now, anyway._

_Merlin, I miss you. I'm sorry. Please come back._

July 23 - 11:45 PM

_Do you remember how we watched the stars together two months ago today? I'm sitting here tonight looking at the stars just thinking about you. How did everything go so horribly wrong in those two months, Lu? What happened? What did we do to deserve any of this?_

_Remember how we wanted to stop time? Be forever in that moment?_

_Yeah... me too._

July 24 - 8:31 PM

_Good thing: I found a new place to hide from my aunt and uncle._

_Bad thing: This heat wave is horrible._

July 25 - 11:02 PM

_Good thing: They haven't found me yet._

_Bad thing: I still haven't heard anything about you. No one's heard from you. At all._

* * *

HARRY:

It was shortly after sunset on July 26 when my scar exploded with pain.

I was in my room when it happened, about to send my daily note to Lucy that never got a reply, when searing pain brought me to my knees. It subsided ever so slightly, leaving me feeling sick to my stomach with tears stinging my eyes. I pushed myself to my feet and rushed to the bathroom, but before I could be sick, the pain returned a second time. This time, it was even worse, and a loud shout escaped me.

I heard motion downstairs, but I couldn't bring myself to care. I pressed my hands to the scar, then dropped my hands when I heard footsteps pounding up the stairs. I leaned forward and hissed in pain, praying they'd just leave me alone.

"Sick?" Aunt Petunia called through the closed door.

"Yeah," I managed through gritted teeth.

"Want some water?"

I blinked. Was she offering to help me? Had the pain killed me? Was I not on Earth anymore? "I-I'm alright," I said. "But thanks."

I heard the click of her heels leaving, and she called something down to Uncle Vernon about how I was fine. I leaned back and rested my head against the bathroom cabinet, trying to control my breathing. But still my stomach churned.

Something horrible had happened. I just knew it.

I closed my eyes and waited for the pain to pass. It did after a couple of minutes, but my heart continued to race. I eventually returned to my room, rubbing the back of my neck and walking slowly.

As soon as I entered my room, I heard a harsh laugh. I jumped three feet in the air.

It had sounded like it was right behind me. Maybe even closer. Like it _was_ me. But it wasn't me. It wasn't _my_ laugh.

Not that I had really laughed in more than a month anyway.

Thoroughly unnerved, I returned to the diary, left open on my bed. Suddenly, the pages filled with my handwriting and not hers seemed to mock me. As if the laugh and the silence of Lucy were related. 

I lunged for my quill and scribbled yet another note. But this one was nearly illegible between how quickly I was writing and how badly my hands were shaking.

_My scar just hurt. A lot. I don't know why. But I'm scared, I'm so scared. Please write me, Lu, I know it sounds crazy but I can't help but feel like you were involved and I can't explain why I feel that way but I do and it's just a gut feeling and I hope to Merlin it's wrong but I just don't know anything anymore. Please just write me, I've never felt like this before in my life. I need to know. I need to know you're okay. Please._

I stared at the page until my eyes grew unfocused. 

Something was wrong.

Something had felt wrong all month. I had tried to brush it away. Ron and Hermione, too. Everyone tried to say she was alright, because none of us could handle the possibility that she wasn't.

But that night, her silence was deafening. 

* * *

_Why has the music stopped?  
Where did all the happy people go?  
I know they were there, songs everywhere  
Only a moment ago  
I only blinked my eye  
And now the world that I used to know is changing on me  
Why can't it be  
Only a moment ago?_

_"Only a Moment Ago"  
The Partridge Family_


	81. Rose

**July 24, 1995**

**IN MEMORIAM: CEDRIC DIGGORY**

**While the _Daily Prophet_ may be silent, I refuse. My name is Susan Diggory.**

**My son should be sitting across from me at the kitchen table right now, telling me excitedly about the transfigurations he will learn come September when he returns for his seventh year of Hogwarts. He should have spent the morning outside flying with his sister, Lucy, training for the upcoming Quidditch season. He should be welcoming his father home from work in an hour or two. But he is not here. I am alone at the table. Lucy spent the morning in her room journaling in an attempt to understand this horrific grief at only fifteen. His father will return from work and immediately go up to our bedroom. We have been eating every meal in our bedrooms; the sight of his empty chair at the proper dining table is too much to take.**

**One month ago, on the evening of June 24, I hugged my son for what I did not realize — could not have known — was the last time. Seventeen years old, with bright eyes and a smile for everyone he met, Cedric, a Triwizard Tournament competitor, was a light to this world, and our home will forever be darkened by his absence.**

**His light should still be here.**

**His light was extinguished by Voldemort.**

**I know you do not believe me. I know you do not _want_ to believe me. But the longer you doubt me, the stronger he will become.**

**I was an Auror for many years, retiring only to raise my family. I am re-joining the forces once Lucy returns to Hogwarts. Cedric was taken from us, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that nobody else suffers the way we have at the hands of Voldemort.**

**Not again.**

**In this matter, silence is cowardice with no guarantee of safety. The longer the Ministry is silent, the longer the wizarding population as a whole is silent, the stronger he will grow in secret. Your silence will not spare you in matters of life and death.**

**Lives are on the line. Yours. Mine. Your spouse's. My spouse's. Your daughter's. My daughter's. Your son's.**

**My son's.**

**Silence and denial will only make Voldemort stronger.**

**You may have noticed that I am no longer afraid to say his name.**

**I would rather face my fears with boldness than hesitance if it claims my life just the same.**

**I hope you make the same choice.**

* * *

LUCY:

I was downstairs buttering a slice of toast for dinner when someone knocked on the door.

I froze. Nobody had come to the door since Cedric's funeral. I set the knife down and hurried upstairs to where Mum was staring at a picture on the wall. I made a point of looking only at her — I knew the picture was of Cedric teaching me to fly.

"Er, Mum," I stammered. "Someone's at the door."

She didn't look as alarmed as I expected she'd be. She didn't even look away from the picture. "I told her how to bypass the protective enchantments. You can answer it. She's here to talk to you, after all."

I blinked. "Who?"

Mum turned to me for the first time. "When I went to the Ministry to demand my piece about your brother be published, I bumped into an old friend. She asked specifically how you were doing, and I would trust her with my life, so I said she could talk to you herself. She lost a brother in the war, and I'm sure she'll be able to help you process your emotions. You can wander in the forest as long as you don't wander too far, if you'd rather not have your parents overhearing."

"Alright," I said, my cheeks already flushing at the thought. I rubbed the back of my neck. "Do you want to talk to her now, or-"

"You can talk to her first," Mum insisted. "Do you have your wand with you, just in case?"

I nodded. I had gotten in the habit of carrying it with me everywhere I went, tucked into my bra like it had been for Quidditch matches. 

"Now go ahead, I'll see you in a bit. This will be good for you."

I nodded and hurried down the stairs.

"Coming!" I called, skidding to a stop in front of the door. I took a deep breath before opening it. "Sorry I took so long," I said apologetically. "We haven't had company since the beginning of the month. I needed to make sure you weren't, well... you know."

The woman, smiling, nodded. "I completely understand. I'm not the Dark Lord." She extended a hand. "Rose. And you must be Lucy?"

I shook her hand and nodded back. "I am. My mum explained... well, I know why you're here. I'm allowed to go to the forest as long as I don't wander too far."

"Let's go, then," Rose said, gesturing for me to follow her.

I shut the door behind me quietly, hesitating just a moment. Something felt off. But I couldn't place a finger on what exactly it was.

Was it the fact that I hadn't heard from a single soul since the funeral? No letters. No newspapers, save the one Mum brought hot off the presses. Not even diary messages from Harry.

Harry. Thinking of him hurt. I wrote to him every single day, yet I hadn't received one word in reply. I tried sending letters to Hermione and Ron, asking if Harry was okay, but I never heard back from them, either.

Was it the nightmares? I'd been having the worst dreams imaginable, trying to wrap my head around what had happened in the graveyard. On the night of the 24th, I had the recurring nightmare again. Drowning. Alone at the bottom of the Black Lake. No Cedric coming to save me.

The nightmare that had come true in nearly every way.

Or maybe it was all of these combined. The uneasiness of the month was putting me on high alert.

 _Stop overreacting,_ I told myself. _If Mum trusts her, that should be good enough for you._

 _You thought the same about Professor Moody, and look how that turned out,_ a voice in the back of my mind reminded me.

 _That was different,_ my more sensible side snapped back.

"Everything alright, Lucy?" Rose called.

I turned around and nodded. "Sorry. Just lost in thought."

"I understand, too well," she replied with a sad nod.

I fell into step with her, and we headed toward the forest. "To ease my mind, and I'm sorry if this seems rude, you're not a Death Eater disguised as a well-known Auror, are you?"

Rose's laugh was sudden and loud. I hadn't heard laughter in so long. "I am not." She showed me her right forearm. "See? No Dark Mark here."

I turned bright red and managed a small smile. "Thanks. Sorry to be so paranoid, I just-"

"You're Susan's girl through and through," Rose said, patting my shoulder. "I understand. Being the daughter of an Auror teaches you caution. Teaches you to protect yourself. Being the sister of one taught me the same, perhaps even more so when he died than I understood when he was alive."

I bit my lip, unable to find a reply. To say I was sorry wouldn't feel right. At the very least, it never felt right to receive it. So I merely nodded and continued walking in silence.

"That being said," she continued after a moment, "perhaps vulnerability isn't the worst crime. How are you feeling, Lucy? Really feeling?"

"I don't know," I whispered.

"Oh, of course you don't. I'm sorry. It's so hard to sift through all of the emotions. Let me see if I can help. Sad?"

"That much I know to be true," I replied with a weak laugh.

"Perfect! That's one. How about lonely?"

My chest hurt at the thought. Lonely without Cedric. Lonely without my friends. "That too."

"To take that one a step further, isolated?"

"Yes."

"Forgotten?"

I bit my lip. _That was oddly specific._

My hand instinctively went for my bracelet from Harry. Was it even _possible_ for him to forget me?

The feeling roared back, the unsettling pinch in the bottom of my stomach that suggested danger.

I undid the clasp and let the bracelet fall to the forest floor as we walked, and I was careful to step on it.

It pained me to do it. It wasn't because of how I felt toward Harry. I still loved him, fiercely. Even if he hadn't written me like we had promised. Even if he _had_ forgotten me, somehow.

It was just a precaution. Because he surely knew I still loved him, since he had seen everything I had written. If I stopped writing, maybe he'd come to my rescue, somehow.

If something happened and someone went looking for me, I hoped they'd find the bracelet. If my gut feelings telling me to run weren't justified and nothing ended up happening, I could always grab the bracelet later.

"I hope I haven't been forgotten," I said finally. "Sometimes I feel that way, I guess."

She laughed again. "Sorry, that probably came out of nowhere. Let's move more generally. Are you angry?"

I crossed my arms over my midsection. "I try not to be. Anger never gets you anywhere in life."

Rose hesitated for a second. "Are you sure?"

I hesitated too. This conversation was not going at all how I expected. But what _had_ I expected?

 _You're just being unfair to someone trying to help,_ I scolded myself. _Get a grip._

"I try not to be," I said again. "But I suppose I feel angry sometimes."

"With whom? Anger is a very general emotion. Who receives the most of it?"

I blinked. "Er... I'm not sure. Again, I try not to-"

"Are you angry with the Ministry for allowing such a dangerous event to take place, maybe?"

My feet suddenly stuck to the forest floor. I looked up just as Rose turned around. 

"Are you?"

I looked down at my shoes. "I..."

"You're allowed to say yes, Lucy," she said softly, coming closer to me. "I wouldn't blame you if you were. Barty Crouch pushed for it, remember? Cornelius Fudge allowed it, Dumbledore agreed to it. You're allowed to be angry with them, because their decisions took your brother away."

I couldn't find words to say in response before she spoke again.

"Are you angry with your father, maybe, for giving Cedric the idea in the first place?"

My head shot up, and I merely stared at her. She smiled. 

"Is that also true?"

"How do you know-"

"I've known your family for years, Lucy. I was your mother's best friend in school, though I was in Hufflepuff and she was in Gryffindor. I was your father's friend, too. I know how he is. From what I've heard about Cedric, he doesn't seem the type to enter the tournament of his own volition."

"It was me," I choked out, too far beyond grief for tears. "My dad pressured him, sure, but _I_ was the one who gave him the idea of doing it for himself and not for Dad and- and-"

"Ah..." she said thoughtfully. "Are you angry with yourself, Lucy?"

"Yes," I spat out, tightening my arms around my waist. "I blame myself for not talking him out of it. If anyone could have, it would be me. But I- I'm most angry with Voldemort. He's ultimately the one who- who k-"

I suddenly felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up. 

Then, the world around us was bathed in a sickly green glow.

I whirled around. I looked up, through the trees.

The Dark Mark hung over our house.

I felt as if freezing water had been dumped over my head. I couldn't breathe, couldn't think. I couldn't move, either, at first.

But my werewolf senses were heightened. So I could hear the several twigs snapping in every direction, surrounding me completely.

I was trapped.

They wanted me too.

I knew I didn't have time to grab my wand out from its hiding place.

"I'm sorry, Harry," I whispered as I reached for it anyway.

The world around me went black before I could move my hands an inch further.


	82. Not Cautious Enough

LUCY:

"Rennervate!"

My eyelids shot open. 

A cave. A dark cave.

Several beams of wandlight, all pointed at me.

"Thought you were clever, didn't you?"

I blinked, squinted, swiveled my head to face the voice. But with my hands tied behind my back and my legs bent awkwardly beneath me, I lost my balance and landed hard on my shoulder, my cheek scraping against a sharp protrusion of rock on the way down. 

Rough hands grabbed me by the collar and pulled me back to an upright position.

I was too weak, too dazed, too confused to fight back.

_How did I end up here?_

"I _said_ ," the voice repeated, "thought you were clever, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you mean," I managed.

A figure stepped into the middle of the circle of wandlight. I couldn't see his face because of the way he was only lit from behind, but I could see what he was holding out in front of him like a trophy. It was a wand — mine, I realized half a second later.

"Nice hiding place for this you had. Bet you thought you were clever." He spun the wand on his fingers a couple of times. "As kind as it is for the Dark Lord to even _consider_ you for his ranks," the voice continued, "you're going to need a proper wand before you're able to do his bidding. Unicorn hair is the hardest to persuade. Am I correct in assuming that is your core?"

"And what if you are?" I asked. I don't know what was faster, my heart pounding in my chest or the thoughts racing in my mind. "And what do you mean, the Dark Lord? What would Voldemort ever want to do with me? What makes you think I want anything to do with _him_? What's this about his bidding?"

"It's quite simple, really, or at least as simple as such a lofty goal as the Dark Lord's can be." The voice was maddeningly calm, maddeningly silky. Maddeningly familiar. "He wants you to join us. You're not just any Mudblood. It is not entirely filthy Muggle blood in your veins, after all. You have Fenrir Greyback to thank for that."

_Muggle blood? Fenrir Greyback? They know?_

I struggled against the ropes, panic rising in my again.

_If I can just get my wand-_

"Hold her back."

The ropes tightened around my wrists, and hands grabbed my upper arms. I strained, but it was no use. I was small, I was weak, I was exhausted.

My only hope was my wand.

"Yes, Lucy Diggory, we know about everything. Your mother was a cautious one, yes, but not cautious enough."

_He said was. Mum is dead. They killed her._

I absorbed his words in shocked silence. I stopped resisting the hands holding me back.

_If not even Mum could survive, I stand no chance._

"I know what you did to her," I said, voice shaking, breath coming even faster. "And I reckon you did the same to Dad. But what do you want with me, why didn't you kill _me_?"

"In all fairness, that many stunning spells could very well have killed a typical Mudblood. It was more of a test, really, to make sure you were in fact a werewolf. We needed to take you quietly, and we doubted you would go without a fight."

"Damn right! Just a couple seconds longer, and I would have-"

"Would have what? Disarmed ten of us at once? Suddenly learned how to apparate? Sent your patronus after us?" 

The cave echoed with harsh laughter.

"I would have _tried!_ " I said loudly once the laughter died down. I strained forward again, trying to get to my wand. I knew it was pointless, but he was right. I wasn't going without a fight.

"And you would have failed," the voice replied with the same maddeningly calm tone. He paused a couple of seconds before declaring, "You are helpless without your wand."

I watched with horror as he snapped my wand in half. 

"No!" I cried, unable to help myself.

Cedric had gone with me to get my wand. That wand had chosen me, right away. The right wand on the first try. It was something of a miracle.

I had been so afraid I didn't really belong in the wizarding world. I had been so afraid no wand would choose me. I had been so afraid that I was destined to be an outcast, destined to never belong, destined to never find a place in the world I had fought so hard to love even though the world seemed to want nothing to do with me. 

But my fears had vanished when I first held my wand in my hand, when I first felt magic light and exhilarating and powerful all at once coursing through me. 

I had told the Sorting Hat that my wand might have been everything I had ever wanted in life. I had told the Sorting Hat that it was a channel for the power entrusted to me, a way to keep everyone I loved safe. I realized in that moment, when I saw my wand in two pieces, that it had been so much more.

"Your choices are simple," the voice said, throwing the wand halves at me. A single strand of unicorn hair connected the two. I knew it wouldn't be enough to ever produce magic again. "Join us, or die."

"No," I said again, eyes fixed upon the broken wand in front of me.

"There are no other options. Do you really think the wizarding world cares about you? Your brother was only enough to make headlines when your mother blackmailed the Minister himself into letting her publish the article that sealed her fate. If he was worth no more than that, what makes you think you're any more worthy of being remembered than he is?"

I sagged forward, no longer straining, and the hands released me. I found it nearly impossible to coax air into my lungs. It was as if his words had dealt a physical blow.

_He's right. I'm nothing compared to Cedric._

"Do you really think the wizarding world cares about werewolves?"

Another blow.

"You've fought your entire life to keep your secret. Why? Because you've seen firsthand the way wizards feel about people like you."

I closed my eyes, my pain beyond the point of tears.

"Lord Voldemort sees your plight and has decided to take pity. He is willing to take you in, to let you join in the fight to reform the wizarding world into a more perfect society. Even a Mudblood such as yourself will be able to have a place in it, if you cooperate. If not, you will die. So again..."

A footstep closer to me.

"Join us, or die."

I straightened up and set my jaw in a hard line. "Kill me, then."

I waited for the sight of Cedric's face before me again. I braced for the green flash of light, the incantation I'd heard in my nightmares too many times in the past month, but nothing of the sort happened. Harsh laughter once again filled the cave, and a finger was jabbed into my forehead.

"The Dark Lord will not so easily give up on you. You would be a most valuable asset if you agreed. Think on it tonight. Perhaps if you are still unconvinced come morning, we will think of something to bring you to reason."

* * *

_Why do my knees have to hurt now, of all times?_

I knew it was growing pains. They had started shortly after returning home for the summer, and there were nights that they kept me awake for hours on end. It was no surprise that my knees were hurting in that moment, but it was surprising that of all the different pains I could have noticed...

My knees ached with too-familiar growing pains. My wrists were raw from the now-familiar feel of rough ropes. My cheek stung from where I had scraped it on the rock. The damp frigidity of the cave's air was uncomfortable against the exposed skin from where my robes had been torn open.

"Do you have a better answer?" a different voice asked.

"I would sooner die than join forces with the person who killed my brother," I replied, venom dripping from every word. "You're bloody _insane_ , all of you, to think I would consider it for a _second_."

"In that case, perhaps this will get you to consider the generous offer. Crucio!"

The scream that tore from my throat was far worse than any I had ever produced. Pain like I had never known coursed through my entire body. It might have been ten seconds or ten days, I would never have known, but every moment that passed allowed the fire to spread, allowed the knives to dig deeper, allowed the pain to consume me more and more. 

Suddenly, it stopped. 

"Someone heard her!" a new voice shouted. "Take her and go!"

With a jolt and a crack, I was lifted from the floor of the cave only to be dropped onto the floor of another one.

The suddenness with which I had been apparated was too much for me, and I slipped into unconsciousness.


	83. Too Late

GEORGE: 

"Look, boys, I'm just as worried about her as you are," Professor Lupin said, massaging his forehead. "Believe me. But that doesn't mean we can just show up on her doorstep. It's entirely possible her family is grieving privately, and we can't intrude upon that, as concerning as the silence is."

Fred and I exchanged a heavy look. It had been the same conversation all week. Everybody was worried, but nobody wanted to risk making a bad situation worse. Mad-Eye had warned us all, too, that apparating to the Diggory doorstep could very well kill us — according to him, Susan Diggory would probably fire spells first and ask questions later, especially after the article in the _Daily Prophet_ had proven to be so controversial.

"If Harry tells us she doesn't say anything for his birthday, George and I are going ourselves." Fred crossed his arms over his chest. "We know Lucy. While it's incredibly out of character not to reply to letters for nearly a month now, forgetting or ignoring Harry's birthday is a sure sign something is seriously wrong. His birthday is today, so if he responds to our letter saying he didn't hear from her at all, we're going to go find out why."

Dad cleared his throat, and I glanced over, fearing a protest. Instead, he nodded, staring down at the floor. "That's fair. But I'll go with you, just so-"

Dad was interrupted by a loud crack. Percy was suddenly standing in the middle of the kitchen.

He looked thoroughly distraught. It was the most emotional I had ever seen him. "Dad! Professor Lupin! I went home to get one of my old schoolbooks for reference, and the Dark Mark was over the Diggorys' house, I could see it from the Burrow, and I would have gone myself, but I knew better than to go alone and-"

"Say no more," Professor Lupin said, disappearing with a crack. Dad followed suit, and Percy followed half a second later.

Fred and I didn't think twice before disapparating too. 

We landed with a thud on the dirt road just outside the property line.

Fear like I had never known before filled my chest at the sign of the Dark Mark hovering above the house. I couldn't breathe.

Before my brain could even comprehend the sight before us, instinct shouted at me to move. The five of us sprinted forward at the same time, wands drawn. 

It was quiet. Too quiet.

Completely silent, I realized.

We were too late.

Professor Lupin and Dad fired two "Homenum revelio"s ahead of us. 

There were no people in the house.

The front door was wide open, so we entered without difficulty. 

We saw Mr. Diggory's body first, at the base of the stairs.

I remembered learning in DADA with Moody — well, with Fake Moody — that being killed by the Killing Curse stops the body from decaying, ironically enough. I learned that day that it was true. He could have been asleep if not for the way his eyes stared at the ceiling and his face was frozen in a shocked expression. 

"He was trying to guard someone," Professor Lupin muttered, hurrying up the stairs.

I refused to let myself consider the possibility that Lucy was dead. I followed him next, everyone else on my heels.

Mrs. Diggory was in the hallway, surrounded by broken glass. Her wand was still clutched within her grasp. She had tried to fight back.

"Oh Merlin," Percy choked out behind me. I could barely hear him over the blood roaring in my ears.

I opened the door to my left. It was the bathroom, and it was empty.

I then darted forward and opened the next door, on the right.

It was Lucy's room.

She wasn't there, dead or alive.

But her dog was.

Fred jumped in front of me as the dog charged at us, whimpering with relief. I stepped around and entered Lucy's room. 

"We'll check the other rooms," Dad said, rushing down the hall with Percy.

Though the hallway had been a mess of broken glass and scorch marks, Lucy's room seemed untouched. The journal that had been mentioned in the _Daily Prophet_ article poked out from under her pillow, and her bed hadn't been made. It looked like she hadn't unpacked her school trunk — all of the books on her bookshelf were third year level and lower. 

"Where are our letters?" Fred asked, still trying to simultaneously comfort the dog and keep him away from me.

I looked around the room again, expecting a stack of at least a dozen letters, opened or unopened or some combination thereof. But her room was relatively bare, with her bed in one corner, a wardrobe in another, a bookshelf separating the two, and a dog bed off to one side. But, based on the fur-covered blanket at the foot of Lucy's bed, it looked as if he'd been sleeping with her every night.

"She's not here!" came a call from Percy that sounded like it was exactly halfway between relief and panic. 

"Could she have run away?" Dad wondered aloud, his voice carrying in the eerie stillness of the house. 

"Check and see if anything is missing, boys, or for any sign she left voluntarily," Professor Lupin said before anyone could reply, poking his head in the doorway. His face was pale and drawn. I reckoned mine was, too. "I'm going to find Alastor and bring him here. I don't want to alert the Ministry yet."

"But Lucy's still out there somewhere!" Percy said, his voice shaking. "Shouldn't the Ministry immediately begin investigating so we find her as soon as possible?"

Professor Lupin shook his head solemnly. "Not yet, Percy. I know a place she could have been taken, a place the Ministry wouldn't think to check. I will go there with Arthur as soon as Alastor arrives."

He disappeared with a crack.

"Dad," Percy persisted, "I should go back to the Ministry and raise the highest level of alarm I can-"

"Perce, Perce." Dad's voice was tight. The last conversation between the two of them had been... disastrous, to say the least. "Trust Professor Lupin. Come on, let's go downstairs and look for any signs she left of her own volition."

"What're we looking for, Dad?" Fred asked. "What do you mean by signs?"

"Anything that she would have taken with her if she planned to leave," Dad answered. "Missing clothes, missing suitcases, a note. You two comb her room, since you know her best, while Percy and I check downstairs for anything."

We nodded as the pair of them left, then exchanged a quick but meaningful look before dividing up the room.

"Anything you could offer us, Tuck?" Fred asked quietly. "What happened to her?"

Tuck merely whimpered quietly in response.

My heart was still pounding. My hands shook, my right still gripping my wand, as I opened the trunk at the foot of her bed.

I was right — she hadn't unpacked. Her schoolbooks were still in there, along with her school robes, Quidditch robes, and a number of other odd and ends that made sense to bring with her to Hogwarts.

Fred closed her wardrobe door gently. "No notes. Not very many empty hangers. A teddy bear buried in the back, a couple of photo albums that looked like they'd been intentionally placed at the very back, but who could blame her?" He glanced around the room. "The reminders of him would have been everywhere. I'm surprised she didn't paint her walls something other than yellow."

"Nothing unusual in her trunk. She just never unpacked." I sighed. "Again, who could blame her? The article made it sound like she's barely left this room." I froze. "Wait a second, Fred, did you see her wand?"

"Oh. Merlin. No. I didn't. Did you?"

"No. I didn't." I stepped out into the hallway and hurried down the stairs two at a time.

Percy glanced up with a worried expression. "What is it? What did you find?"

"Nothing. But that's just it," I said.

Dad entered the room. "Go on, George."

"Her wand isn't in her room, meaning she still has it, wherever she is. Unless..." I froze. "We should check outside. It's possible that if there was a fight, it happened outside."

"If?" Fred asked. "George, you know _damn_ well Lucy wouldn't go down without a fight, there _must_ have been a fight."

"Unless whoever took her knew that about her and intentionally caught her off-guard so she couldn't fight back." I glanced up at Percy. "Do you have access to individual records of violations of the Trace?"

Percy rubbed the back of his neck. "I can see what I can do. Y-You know I'd do anything for Lucy. She's family at this point."

And for a moment, the tension between the three of us and Percy vanished.

He seemed to notice this and panicked. "I'm going to go check now. Just... just owl me if something comes up, and I'll do the same."

With a final glance, he disapparated.

"I'm going to see if I can find any sign of a fight," Fred piped up after a moment. He grabbed me by the shoulder. "Let's go. Dad? You coming, too?"

"I'll stay and greet Remus when he returns." The look Dad gave us was heavy. "Be careful, boys."

We nodded and left the house at a jog, Tuck at our heels.

The sun was beginning to sink. It was getting late. Fred and I lit our wands as we entered the forest, and, oddly, we were aided somewhat by the green glow of the Dark Mark still hovering over the house.

After five minutes of careful searching, Tuck let out a small, excited, desperate bark. I dropped to a knee to examine the site closer.

There was a glitter in the middle of a clearly-defined footprint, about Lucy's size.

"What is it?" Fred asked. "Wait, no, don't touch it, it might be cursed if someone wanted us to find it."

I froze. "You're right." I pointed my wand at it. "Wingardium leviosa!"

A small silver circle rose from the earth. I recognized it immediately and snatched it out of the air.

"It's Lucy's," I said, jumping to my feet and sprinting back toward the house, Fred hot on my heels, Tuck following behind him.

Professor Lupin had returned with Professor Moody. (Er, the real one.)

I held the charm bracelet out as we skidded to a stop in front of the three men.

"This is Lucy's," I panted. "She never takes it off. It was in the forest in the middle of a clear footprint. She dropped this on purpose, in the hopes that someone would find it."

"There was no sign of a fight," Fred added, "but maybe she didn't have time to draw her wand, or maybe she knew she'd lose if she tried. She's brave, but she's not quite as reckless as we are."

Dad nodded. "You've done _beautifully_ , boys, you've done so very well. But now we need you to go back and tell your mother and Sirius and any other adults — and I mean _only_ any adults around, her friends should _not_ know yet — about what's happened, and you are not to come back." He held his hands up to stop our protest. "I didn't send you back initially because I know how much you care for her. And now you've done all you can for the time being. Go back and stay there. We need to figure out what to do next."

I slipped Lucy's bracelet into my pocket and swallowed past the lump in my throat. Everything was beginning to sink in.

Fred disapparated first. I followed half a second later.

We landed just outside the kitchen door. It seemed a meeting was about to begin. Tonks and Kingsley were there, as were Mum and Sirius. Mum's head snapped up.

"Where have you been? And where's your father? And wasn't Remus here too?"

I opened my mouth to explain, but the lump in my throat had grown. 

"We need to talk to you," Fred managed. He cleared his throat and stuck his hands in his pockets. "George and I need to speak to you. Alone."

Sirius immediately nodded. "Looks important, come on in."

"Why do _they_ get to sit in on meetings now?" came a call from Ginny. She was standing behind us, arms crossed over her chest.

"Give it a rest for now, Ginny," Fred said as gently as he could manage.

"Why?" she pressed.

"That's so unfair," Ron spat from the other room, rising to his feet as he heard the debate.

"Don't ask," Fred snapped back at him, his patience gone. "Now go. And don't you even _think_ about listening in. Dad said adults only."

With that, Fred pulled me into the kitchen after him and slammed the door. My brain was starting to work in circles, there was no clear black and white or up and down. I just kept seeing the footprint in the dirt, and the bracelet in my pocket felt far heavier than it should have been.

Mum could tell something was seriously wrong, because she conjured up two more chairs and pushed us down into them as Tonks cast a couple of charms on the door to stop the others from listening in.

"What is the matter?" Kingsley asked. "Where are the others?"

Fred glanced at me.

I shook my head. _I can't do it._

"At the Diggorys'," he replied. He straightened up. "Percy apparated here while we were talking to our dad and Professor Lupin saying he'd seen the Dark Mark over their house."

A collective gasp went around the table. 

Mum pressed a hand to her chest. "And you went with them?"

"It was alright, Mum, no one was there," Fred said as reassuringly as he could. He shifted in his seat and started bouncing his leg up and down in time with mine. I hadn't even realized I was doing it until he started, too. "Dad and Professor Lupin made sure it was safe before we charged in." He swallowed hard. "There were no living humans in the house. Lucy's parents are dead."

Another gasp.

"And Lucy?" Tonks asked, as if she were afraid of the answer.

"So far undetermined," I said, finding my voice for the first time. "We don't think she ran away, Fred and I searched her room for a note or anything like that. I found a bracelet of hers in the woods nearby, and I think she dropped it on purpose. Some sort of clue." My fingers tightened around it in my pocket, so tight one of the charms nearly punctured my skin before I released my grip. "Professor Lupin said he has an idea of where she's been taken. He's going there with Dad while Professor Moody inspects the house. I remember Lucy saying once that her mum worked with him as an Auror."

After a couple moments of silence, Mum suggested we head up to our room to clear our heads, even letting us apparate up there so we didn't have to face Ron and Hermione and Ginny, who would surely still be pissed at us for getting to participate in the meeting. We locked the door with magic so the younger kids couldn't enter before sitting on our own respective beds.

"She'll be fine," Fred said under his breath after a couple minutes. "I mean, think about all the spells we taught her. We know she has her wand, or else we would have seen it in the forest. I reckon she'll fight her way out as soon as she gets the chance."

I nodded. "She will."

 _If she ever gets that chance,_ I thought to myself half a second later.

I laid back and stared at the ceiling.

When it came to Quidditch, I was always there to try to beat the Bludger away when it went her direction, and sometimes I wasn't quite fast enough, but I always tried, there was always something I could _do_. Whenever she turned to us asking for help learning a new spell, I always made sure I practiced with her until it was perfect, there was always something I could _do_. When Harry was absolutely blind when it came to the Yule Ball, I had been there to do the best I could in his stead, and I liked to think I had done a decent job of it, there was always something I could _do_.

But in that moment, there was _nothing_ I could do.

The only thing tethering me to her was the little bracelet clenched in my fist, and it wasn't even me who had given it to her.

I didn't fancy her, not really, not the way she fancied Harry, but I'd always done everything I could to keep her safe. She mattered to me, to _us_. She was our Cub, after all.

I would have given anything in that moment to switch places with her. To have her be safe and me the one in danger.

She was our Cub, after all.

In my mind's eye that night, as I tried to fall asleep, I saw the bodies of Cedric, her dad, her mum. I buried my face in my pillow and released a shuddering sigh.

_Lucy can't be dead, too._


	84. Kill Me, Then

LUCY:

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest.

"Again. Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then," I replied.

"Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain.

I screamed.

Claire was holding out a teddy bear to me, blue eyes eager and bright.

The pain disappeared.

I closed my eyes.

I did not dream.

* * *

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest.

"Let's try this again. Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then." My voice was weaker still.

"Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain, pain that made me want to die just for the relief of it all.

I screamed.

A longer memory, one I'd already seen. The wave, the crushing wave, the wave that had traumatized me for years even before I remembered the wave had existed in the first place. And yet... my dad's hands around me lifting me to safety.

The pain disappeared.

I closed my eyes.

I did not dream.

* * *

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest.

A heavy sigh. "Again. Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then," I replied, my voice weaker.

"Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain.

I screamed, the sound hurting my ears.

A sunset over a vineyard, little girls' giggles heard over even my screams.

The pain disappeared.

I closed my eyes.

I did not dream.

* * *

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest.

A different voice. "Again. Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then." My voice was weaker still.

"Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain.

I screamed.

A longer memory, one I'd already seen. My first day of kindergarten, being so excited to follow Claire into the school's gates, feeling like my life was finally beginning, so blissfully unaware of how it would be ending in just a couple months' time.

The pain disappeared.

I closed my eyes.

I did not dream.

* * *

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest.

Another sigh, a different voice. "Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then." My voice was weaker still. 

"Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain.

I screamed.

My dad reached forward to tap the tip of my nose, making a funny expression.

The pain disappeared.

I closed my eyes.

I did not dream.

* * *

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest. The hand holding it was shaking.

"Again. Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then." My voice was little more than a whisper, my throat torn to shreds by my own screams.

"Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain, pain that made me want to die just so it would all be over.

I screamed.

A longer memory, one I'd already seen. With Claire, with my sister, on a trampoline, jumping higher and higher and higher until my magic suspended us in the air just a bit longer than gravity would have allowed otherwise.

The pain disappeared.

I closed my eyes.

I did not dream.

* * *

"Rennervate."

I opened my eyes.

A wand was pointed at my chest. Closer this time. This hand did not shake.

A very familiar voice. "Again. Join us, or die."

"Kill me, then." _Please._

This time, the voice sighed. Leaned closer. They'd been careful not to show their faces, too afraid of being recognized. "The Dark Lord comes tomorrow. I am sure he will be able to convince you, but we'll try this one more time." The man stepped back and shouted, "Crucio!"

Pain, horrible pain.

I screamed, but it no longer hurt my ears. I was going deaf to my own agony.

There was no memory this time. Only pain. White-hot, searing pain, pain so deep I could feel it in my very soul.

The pain disappeared, but there was no relief anymore. My entire body trembled, everything within me still burning.

I could barely breathe.

Footsteps faded out of the cave.

I rolled onto my back, a silent scream still contorting my face.

Finally, I closed my eyes.


	85. Dear Cedric,

_August 1, 1995_

_Dear Cedric,_

_It's Henry._

_I've written you several letters in the past six years or so, over summers or for Christmas._

_But I've only written one other letter than I knew you'd never read._

_That letter is in your pillowcase now, back at your house. I think Lucy had a guess as to what it said, but if she did, she didn't tell me._

_I hope she's alright. I wrote a letter a couple weeks ago, but I haven't heard back yet. My parents haven't heard from hers, either. Dad said your dad hasn't come to work the past couple of days, but he missed a week at the beginning of July, too, so he's not too worried. It's just odd that he didn't let anyone know he was taking a bit of a break. Everyone understands, of course — I wouldn't feel like going to work, either. I can barely get out of bed some days._

_Having Gretchen around helps. She's still excited about going to Hogwarts in September, so it's fun telling her about everything she'll get to experience, from Quidditch matches to common room parties to late-night study sessions with friends in the library to the legendary Weasley twins pranks on April Fool's Day._

_Call me crazy, but sometimes I genuinely forget you won't be there. It's as if it's so unfathomable that you won't be there next year that my brain just... refuses to accept it. Refuses to even acknowledge it. I'll be telling Gretchen about something and in my mind I see us together when it happens next year, and I don't even realize you won't be there until later. I literally can't imagine going back without you, Ced._

_It doesn't matter how many times I try to let you go. You always come back to me. In dreams, in reality. I was cleaning my room the other day and found a picture of us from first year. I tucked it into the back of a random book and put it on a bookshelf downstairs. It hurt too much. I miss you too much. Most days, I'm just trying to get through the day. I still miss you too much to try to remember you._

_I should probably go back to homework. I just started it yesterday, and I have a lot to do before school starts again. But a girl at your funeral, Luna, specifically sought me out and told me that writing letters to you would help me feel a little less alone. And I don't know yet if she was right, because the thought of you never reading this letter just kills me inside, but I do feel a little bit better._

_I miss you, Cedric. I hope you're happy, wherever you are. You deserve that._

_Love, Henry_


	86. The Bad Feeling

GEORGE:

The dementors' attack on Harry sent the Order into another state of emergency. As worried as everyone still was about Lucy — well, everyone who knew, Fred and I still hadn't told Ron or Hermione or Ginny — I think everyone was glad that Harry's problem had a far more tangible solution. A number of Order members went to get him from Privet Drive the very next day, but before they left, Professor Lupin pulled the two of us aside.

"I'm guessing you don't know if Lucy happened to send something to Harry a couple of days in advance that might have arrived on his birthday?"

We shook our heads.

"We tried to send a letter asking him yesterday," Fred explained.

"But Hedwig was a bit irritable and didn't let us attach the letter to her leg," I finished. "Then all of this happened, so we figured we'd just ask him when he showed up here."

Professor Lupin nodded. "I was just about to ask if you two would mind. Try not to alarm him unnecessarily, but..." He scratched behind his ear. "Merlin, who am I kidding? If he finds out, he finds out. Just ask him, please, and let me know what he says. I fear I already know the answer, but if she did somehow contact him or did send something before she was taken, I'd feel a bit better."

"Any leads, Professor?" Fred asked. "Any at all?"

Fred and I hadn't been allowed back into any other Order meetings. We had to try to keep the younger kids from finding out — there was really no point in telling them, there was nothing any of us could do, it was just a matter of worrying or not worrying, and they had enough to worry about once the Harry situation arose. We had been forced to hide all of our Extendable Ears too, after Mum found them. Mum told us there had been no sign of Lucy, nor any leads. We knew that two or three Order members were stationed at the Diggory house at all times, in case her captors returned to either send a message or try to arrange some sort of deal, and we knew that Professor Lupin had checked a number of places around the country, but that was the extent of what we knew. In other words... not much.

Professor Lupin hesitated for a second. 

I realized something with a jolt and dropped my voice even lower. "Do you think it has anything to do with the fact she's a werewolf?"

"We know about that," Fred said quickly, seeming to have just reached the same conclusion. "Is that why you've been heading up the efforts? Do you think you know something everyone else who doesn't know might be overlooking?"

After another second of hesitation, he nodded. "Mad-Eye already knows about her condition, of course, being her mother's partner for the duration of her career as an Auror. Your father knows now, too, because I brought him with me to investigate the first couple of places." Professor Lupin sighed. "Last time the world was — well, like _this —_ there was a bit of tug-of-war happening over the werewolves. I was the only one on Dumbledore's side in the beginning, and I was often given missions to attempt to convince one or two to come over to our side. It's possible that they're currently attempting to recruit her."

"But why?" Fred burst out. He lowered his voice. "Sorry. But, Professor, she's fifteen and Voldemort killed her brother. What are they _thinking_?"

"Think about the influence she could have now. Sister of Cedric Diggory, daughter of Susan Diggory, best friend of Harry Potter. Rita Skeeter already stirred interest in her when she was portrayed so mysteriously in that article about Harry last November. If she were to switch sides — which I know for a fact she never would, I'm merely trying to understand their thought process — it would be a devastating blow to our side."

I absorbed his words in stunned silence.

Suddenly, I felt even more helpless in the face of the storm.

It was even bigger than I imagined.

"But you know she's alive?" Fred asked.

He nodded. "The first place I checked, I heard a scream. I know it was her. They disapparated with her as soon as they realized they had company, but... she was there. I'm sorry, boys, but I really should leave to get Harry. Ask him about it when you get the chance, will you, please?"

"Of course," I replied with a nod.

As soon as Professor Lupin left, Fred and I exchanged a look.

"I think we need to use the Ears again," he said.

I nodded. "Agreed."

When Snape arrived and said he had to give a private report, we knew that we _had_ to listen in. Even if he hadn't learned anything about Lucy, well... maybe something he said would give us a better idea of what happened or where she was. Or how much danger she was in.

So, a couple hours later, we were about to grab the Ears when we heard the unmistakable muffled chaos of shouts happening behind a closed door.

"Sounds like Harry's here," Fred commented.

"Yeah," I replied, taking an Ear for myself and handing Fred the other one. "Reckon we should go see what's going on?"

"Yeah."

We disapparated with a crack, landing in the middle of the room. 

“Stop _doing_ that!” Hermione groaned.

We elected to ignore her. 

I offered Harry a smile, hoping he couldn't see my anxiety for Lucy lurking just below the surface. Fred and I had gotten good at acting like everything was fine and dandy during the day, then venting our fears to each other at night as we tinkered with our inventions to try to take our minds off it all.

“Hello, Harry! We thought we heard your dulcet tones.”

Fred smiled as well. “You don’t want to bottle up your anger like that, Harry, let it all out. There might be a couple of people fifty miles away who didn’t hear you.”

Harry, however, didn't smile. He still looked distinctly pissed about something, but we could see we'd cracked his hard exterior a bit. “You two passed your apparation tests, then?”

“With distinction!” Fred replied cheerfully.

“It would have taken you about thirty seconds longer to walk down the stairs,” Ron muttered.

“Time is Galleons, little brother. Anyway, Harry, you’re interfering with reception. Extendable Ears. We’re trying to hear what’s going on downstairs.”

Ron stared at the Ears in our hands apprehensively. “You want to be careful. If Mum sees one of them again-”

“It’s worth the risk, that’s a major meeting they’re having.”

The door opened then, revealing Ginny.

“Oh hello, Harry! I thought I heard your voice.” She sighed and turned to us. “It’s a no-go with the Extendable Ears, she’s gone and put an Imperturbable Charm on the kitchen door.”

“Damn. How d’you know?” I asked.

“Tonks told me how to find out! You just chuck stuff at the door and if it can’t make contact the door’s been Imperturbed. I’ve been flicking Dungbombs at it from the top of the stairs and they just soar away from it, so there’s no way the Extendable Ears will be able to get under the gap.”

Fred and I exchanged a brief look of panic. If our conversation with Lupin had taught us anything, it was that they still had no idea where Lucy was, only where she wasn't. 

Fred kept his cool. “Shame. I really fancied finding out what old Snape’s been up to.”

Harry blinked. “Snape? Is he here?”

I nodded as I shut the door. “Yeah. Giving a report. Top secret.”

“Git,” Fred muttered.

“He’s on our side now,” Hermione reminded everyone in the room.

“Doesn’t stop him being a git. The way he looks at us when he sees us...” Ron shook his head.

“Bill doesn’t like him either,” Ginny offered.

Harry furrowed his brow. “Is Bill here? I thought he was working in Egypt.”

Fred smirked. “He applied for a desk job so he could come home and work for the Order. He says he misses the tombs, but there _are_ compensations.”

“Fleur Delacour’s got a job at Gringotts to 'improve her English,'” I explained.

“And Bill’s been giving her a lot of private lessons,” Fred finished for me, chuckling to himself.

“Charlie’s in the Order too, but he’s still in Romania, Dumbledore wants as many foreign wizards brought in as possible, so Charlie’s trying to make contacts on his days off,” I added.

Harry glanced around the room. For half a second, it looked as if he'd ask about Lucy. 

“Couldn’t Percy do that?” he asked instead, looking back at us.

_Oh._

Fred and I tensed. Nobody else knew that Percy had come back since the argument. Nobody _could_ know _why_ he had come, after all.

“Whatever you do, don’t mention Percy in front of Mum and Dad,” Ron warned.

“Why not?”

“Because every time Percy’s name’s mentioned, Dad breaks whatever he’s holding and Mum starts crying. It's been awful.”

“What’s happened?”

“Percy and Dad had a row. I’ve never seen Dad row with anyone like that. It’s normally Mum who shouts. It was the first week back after term ended. We were about to come and join the Order. Percy came home and told us he’d been promoted.”

Harry looked confused. Rightly so, I realized.

Ron nodded. “Yeah, we were all surprised, because Percy got into a load of trouble about Crouch, there was an inquiry and everything. They said Percy ought to have realized Crouch was off his rocker and informed a superior. But you know Percy, Crouch left him in charge, he wasn’t going to complain.”

“So how come they promoted him?” Harry asked, looking even more confused.

“That’s exactly what we wondered. He came home really pleased with himself — even more pleased than usual if you can imagine that — and told Dad he’d been offered a position in Fudge’s own office. A really good one for someone only a year out of Hogwarts, Junior Assistant to the Minister. He expected Dad to be all impressed, I think.”

“Why wasn't he?”

“Well, apparently Fudge has been storming round the Ministry checking that nobody’s having any contact with Dumbledore. Dumbledore’s name’s mud with the Ministry these days, see, they all think he’s just making trouble saying You-Know-Who’s back. Dad says Fudge has made it clear that anyone who’s in league with Dumbledore can clear out their desks. Trouble is, Fudge suspects Dad, he knows he’s friendly with Dumbledore, and he’s always thought Dad’s a bit of a weirdo because of his Muggle obsession. Dad reckons Fudge only wants Percy in his office because he wants to use him to spy on the family — and Dumbledore.”

Harry whistled. “Bet Percy loved that.”

Ron laughed humorlessly. “He went completely berserk. He said — well, he said loads of terrible stuff. He said he’s been having to struggle against Dad’s lousy reputation ever since he joined the Ministry and that Dad’s got no ambition and that’s why we’ve always been — you know — not had a lot of money, I mean-”

“ _What_?” Harry burst out angrily.

“I know, and it got worse. He said Dad was an idiot to run around with Dumbledore, that Dumbledore was heading for big trouble and Dad was going to go down with him, and that he — Percy — knew where his loyalty lay and it was with the Ministry. And if Mum and Dad were going to become traitors to the Ministry he was going to make sure everyone knew he didn’t belong to our family anymore. And he packed his bags the same night and left. He’s living here in London now.”

Harry swore quietly, making Ginny nod in agreement.

Ron sighed. “Mum’s been in a right state. You know — crying and stuff. She came up to London to try and talk to Percy but he slammed the door in her face. I don't know what he does if he meets Dad at work — ignores him, I s’pose.”

“But... Percy _must_ know Voldemort’s back. He’s not stupid, he must know your mum and dad wouldn’t risk everything without proof-”

“Yeah, well, your name got dragged into the row. Percy said the only evidence was your word and... I don't know... he didn’t think it was good enough.”

“Percy takes the _Daily Prophet_ seriously,” Hermione said.

“Mum and Dad have been particularly touchy the past couple of days, because of the article, I reckon,” Ginny added. “We were all glad to see it, of course, but I can't imagine Percy was.”

“The article?” Harry asked.

We all froze.

“Haven’t... haven’t you been getting the _Daily Prophet_?” Hermione asked.

“Yeah, I have!” he snapped.

“Have you — er — been reading it thoroughly?”

“Not cover to cover. If they were going to report anything about Voldemort it would be headline news, wouldn’t it? What's this article you mentioned?”

His face suddenly went pale. He looked around the room again.

“What happened to Lucy?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Hermione said quickly. 

_That's what she thinks._

“She's mentioned in the article, you can read it if you want, but nothing happened,” she continued, jumping up and snatching the paper from a nearby bag. She opened to the right page, toward the back, and pressed it into his hands.

* * *

HARRY:

"In Memoriam: Cedric Diggory?" I read aloud. I glanced up with disbelief. "Nobody's written _anything_ about him? All summer?"

Hermione nodded. "Not until this. July 24, you'll notice. One month later. According to Professor Moody, Mrs. Diggory had enough and decided if no one was going to take it seriously, she would. She tried to make it front-page news, but this was the best they'd give her."

I gnawed on my lower lip as I read quickly. One line jumped out more so than any others, the one about Lucy journaling. 

_If I'm not mistaken, that sounds an awful lot like she tried writing to me. But... I still haven't received a single word in reply to anything._

"Hermione, has Lucy ever journaled before?" I asked, handing her the newspaper back.

She shook her head. "Never. But it makes sense, journaling is common in the Muggle world as a way of coping with-"

"Does that mean something to you, Harry?" George interrupted. I noticed suddenly that he and Fred were looking at me more seriously than they ever had before.

The bad feeling in the pit of my stomach that I'd had for several days at that point intensified.

"Have you heard from her at all?" Fred asked a couple seconds later. "On your birthday, maybe?"

I shook my head. I was starting to feel sick.

"Not a word. All summer. Have any of you heard from her?"

Five heads shook in unison.

My eyes flickered between Hermione's eyes and the ring on her finger.

She correctly read my mind. "She wasn't wearing it at Cedric's funeral. She said she didn't want me to have to see... well, whatever she happened to feel over the course of the summer. I said it was fine. Her half has been blank ever since, she hasn't worn it at all."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw George's hand moving to his pocket. I glanced over, and I saw through the fabric the distinct outline of a small bear charm.

"What happened to Lucy?" I asked again.

"Nothing," Fred replied. He replied too quickly to be telling the truth.

I pointed to George's pocket. "The fact that you have that and she doesn't? That's _not_ nothing."

George pulled the bracelet out of his pocket, handing it to me with a shaking hand. "Were you the one who gave this to her?"

"Yeah. Third year. Her birthday." I swallowed hard and sat down heavily on the bed behind me. I couldn't meet their eyes; I just stared at the bracelet. "What happened to Lucy?"

"Yeah, what happened?" Ron echoed, crossing his arms over his chest. "You two haven't said a _word_ about anything to any of us."

"We couldn't," George said in a quiet voice. "We weren't even really supposed to know, but we were talking to Dad and Professor Lupin when Percy showed up saying he saw the Dark Mark over their house-"

My heart stopped. _Lucy's not dead, she can't be-_

"She's alive," Fred said quickly, in response to the way my hands clenched around the bracelet. "As far as we know. Percy apparated into the kitchen on your birthday, Harry, saying he saw the Dark Mark over the Diggorys' house. We apparated there with him and Dad and Professor Lupin. She wasn't there, but George found the bracelet in the forest, thinking she probably dropped it on purpose."

"So you're saying Lucy's been _kidnapped_?" Ginny asked. "And you've _known_? And you _didn't tell us_?"

"There was nothing to _tell_ ," George replied miserably. "We were told not to, in the first place, but we don't have the slightest clue where she is, we don't know what happened, we don't know _why_. We just know she was probably not in the house when whoever sent up the Dark Mark killed her parents-"

Hermione's hands flew to her mouth. "Her parents are dead?"

"Guess I forgot to mention that," Fred muttered sheepishly. "Yeah. They are."

"And you know she's alive... how, exactly?" Ron asked after a moment.

George winced, rubbing the back of his neck. "Professor Lupin said he... well, he checked a couple of places right away, places he knew Death Eaters sometimes took people the first time Voldemort was rising to power. And he said he heard her in the first place, they just disapparated before he got the chance to fight or bargain or... or do something like that."

"Heard her how?" I pressed, looking up suddenly. "What do you mean, he heard her?"

"He heard her screaming," George replied after a long moment. 

"Oh Merlin," Ron said. Hermione turned and buried her face against his chest. Ginny was staring off into space, a closed-off expression on her face.

"That's why we wanted to listen in on the meeting," Fred mumbled. "Thought Snape might have heard something somehow."

My hands tightened even more around the bracelet. I was spiraling into darker and darker thoughts. None were very coherent or even logical, but I...

I couldn't imagine a world without Lucy.

I'd always counted on being able to walk over to her house whenever the Weasleys saved me from Privet Drive.

When I'd been taken to Grimmauld instead, I thought maybe she'd be there too somehow, since the Weasleys and Hermione were.

When she hadn't been there either but the twins had passed their apparation tests, I thought maybe I'd be able to have the twins apparate with me to the Burrow to walk from there.

Even still, I knew that I'd see her on September 1, at the very latest.

Never, never, _never_ did I dream I'd never see her again.

I jumped up and stalked to the window, slamming a fist down against the windowsill.

"It's not _fair_!" I burst out, not sure if I was shouting at the people behind me or the stars above me or the world around me. "Why Lucy, of all the people in the..." I slammed my fist down again and kicked the wall. 

My anger was quickly replaced by despair. I sank down against the wall, resting my head in my hands. I didn't cry. I couldn't cry. The bad feeling in the pit of my stomach had become a void, sucking every positive emotion out of me like a dementor, leaving in the grip of despair.

_Wherever you are, Lucy, please just don't give up._


	87. I'm Not Done Yet

LUCY:

Someone danced across my vision, bathed in golden light.

Cedric was there with me again, standing in front of me, just out of reach.

"You need to go, Lucy," he said softly.

I lunged forward with a hand extended, but no matter how far forward I strained, he was always just an inch away from my fingertips.

"I want you," I choked out. "Cedric, please, I just want you."

He shook his head. "Not yet, Lu. You're not done yet."

"You weren't done yet, either!" I cried. 

"That's life," he said with a sad smile. "It doesn't always go the way we think it will. But you're not done yet. There's still more for you to do."

"What am I supposed to do without you? Please don't leave me again, Cedric, I don't know what I'll do, I don't know what to do without you, I just want to be with you again, I don't care what it takes anymore, I just want to be with you again-" I paused to catch my breath. I pulled my hand back to my chest, looking at the boy in front of me with a more critical eye. "It's not really you, is it? Cedric would never have let me spiral so long, uninterrupted. He... he always stopped me. He always knew when to stop me."

The Cedric who wasn't really Cedric stepped closer. I didn't reach out again.

Just the same, his eyes were soft.

"You know you need to leave the cave. You know you're not done yet."

"I just needed to hear it from Cedric?"

"Exactly," he replied with an encouraging nod. "Here. Maybe you need to hear it from a couple other people, too."

Cedric vanished in a flash, and the scene around me shifted.

The Gryffindor common room.

"Well, _there_ you are!" George called from across the room. 

"Get over here, Cub!" Fred shouted, laughing. "It's your turn!"

I hesitated. I glanced behind me. The Cedric who wasn't really Cedric was standing behind me, gesturing for me to walk forward.

"This feels too much like moving on," I said in a voice little more than a whisper.

The Cedric who wasn't really Cedric nodded at someone over my shoulder. I turned back around to see Harry standing in front of me.

"That's okay," he said. _Merlin, the sound of his voice..._ "You don't have to move on by yourself. We can take the first step together."

He extended his hand. I found it hard to breathe.

_I'm not done yet._

I closed my eyes, and reached forward.

Harry's hand touched mine, and in that moment, the dream disappeared like a bursting bubble.

_I'm not done yet._

I was still lying on my back on the floor of the cave. A dim light was reaching me through the opening, so far off.

Cedric was right. I needed to go.

_I'm not done yet._

I couldn't wait here for Voldemort to come. He would kill me for refusing to join him.

I wanted to see Cedric again. Mum and Dad, too. But I had other people I wanted to see first.

_I'm not done yet._

My first family, from my first life. Claire who was my best friend and my mom who put my hair in buns on my birthday and my dad who called me Sky Eyes.

And the family I had found in my second life, everyone I had seen in my dream and everything they meant to me.

_I'm not done yet._

When my eyes had fully adjusted, I could see that the wizard who was supposed to be guarding me had fallen asleep.

I could also see that his wand lay in the dirt, six inches away from him.

_I'm not done yet._

I pushed myself to my elbows. I had broken the ropes while writhing around at one point while being tortured. They had deemed me too weak to be worth tying up again. I forced myself to concentrate.

_Stupefy and petrificus totalus are my best defensive spells. Impedimentia will be helpful, too, if someone's chasing me._

_But these spells are challenging. I can manage just fine at school, but now? With a stranger's wand?_

_And these are grown wizards. They'd be able to defend against such predictable attacks._

A sudden thought occurred to me. Flash-bang spells, from _Uggla Uzely's Guide to Utterly Useless Spells._

Cedric had always been around to rescue me. 

It was up to me to rescue myself now, using the tools he had given me.

Sure, it wasn't the intended use. Cedric meant for me to use the spells for fun, for entertainment, I was never supposed to be in this situation.

But I knew Cedric would have been so proud of me just the same.

_I'm not done yet._

I pushed myself to my knees. Then stealthily, silently, slowly, I reached for the wand.

My sleeping guard did not stir. 

I pushed myself to my feet. I waited for dizziness to overtake me, to ruin everything, but it didn't come.

I was alive. I was alive. And I was going to stay that way.

_I'm not done yet._

I gripped the wand and backed up to the furthest part of the cave. I was going to need a running start to jump over the guard, whose sleeping form was conveniently blocking the better part of the tunnel.

_Three._

I recalled every time I had slipped between the twins at a meal. I was going to do that again. I wasn't going to leave a hole at the Gryffindor table the way there had been a hole in the Hufflepuff table.

_Two._

I recalled the way it felt when Ron laughed at a joke I told, the way it felt when Hermione told me she thought I was brilliant, the way it felt to be next to Harry knowing I was safer there than anywhere else in the world.

_One._

I saw the faces of my family with the clarity of my _own_ memory because of the only way Hermione had said being obliviated could be overcome: torture.

_I will find you one day._

_I'm not done yet._

I sprinted forward, launching myself into the tunnel. I sent nonverbal spells in every direction as I ran. Glitter rained down from the ceiling. Fireworks exploded from the dirt behind me. The walls came alive with twinkling lights of every color. 

It was chaos.

I kept running.

_I'm not done yet._

More and more Death Eaters joined the chase, but I couldn't be stopped. I fired spells over my shoulder. One made a Death Eater grow a clown nose the size of a Quaffle. Another Death Eater's eyelashes grew down to his chin. I hit one with a spell that made him blind to every color except purple. When he tripped and fell, he took three others down with him.

That left four.

"Stupefy!" I hissed.

I hit one of them. The other three didn't even stop to help him, they just kept charging forward. 

I reached the mouth of the cave.

I knew this cave.

I knew these woods.

I was less than a mile from home.

I whirled around and pointed at the boulder I knew rested in the earth just above the entrance. Cedric and I had landed there many times in the middle of the day after we'd been flying for hours. We always joked that it would fall eventually, because it really did hang precariously over the entrance, but it had never fallen.

_I'm not done yet._

"Reducto!" I shouted.

The boulder exploded into a million pieces with a thunderous boom that nearly knocked me to the ground. I didn't stop to imagine what had happened to the Death Eaters on the other side of it.

I held the stolen wand flat in my hand. "Point me!"

It swiveled a couple of times before settling on a direction. Home was to the east.

I continued sprinting, just in case anybody managed to get past the rubble. From time to time, I sent a jinx over my shoulder to be safe.

But within five minutes, my house was in view again.

The Dark Mark was gone. And there were lights on inside.

I slowed to a stop.

The sun was low on the horizon, but I didn't know yet if it was sinking or rising.

Just the same, it reminded me of all of the times I had staggered home from the woods at sunrise, seeing the lights on. Cedric was always waiting outside the gate to sprint forward at the first sight of me.

I realized with a pang he would never do that again.

Just the same, I started running again.

I froze when I reached the gate and dropped to a knee, out of sight of any windows.

_What if they wanted me to think I'd escaped, only to trap me here?_

But one of the windows was open. The voices inside seemed familiar, but they were too quiet for me to identify.

Suddenly, a crack.

Percy's voice, louder than the others. "She used magic! She activated the Trace! She's alive!"

This was no trap. I pushed myself to my feet, my legs trembling worse than ever beneath me. I opened the gate, holding the stolen wand out in front of me just in case.

"Percy?" I called tentatively, once I was close enough to be heard. My throat was raw. The words were more of a weak croak than anything. "I-Is that you?"

His face appeared in the open kitchen window. Professor Lupin's appeared next to his.

"Lucy," he breathed. "I'm sorry, but we have to make sure it's you. What form does your patronus take?"

"A bear," I replied, the words requiring monumental effort.

The door opened, and Percy sprinted toward me.

"Are you hurt badly?" he asked, taking my hands and studying my face. "St. Mungo's? You want to go to St. Mungo's, right?"

I shook my head. Mr. Weasley jogged over to us then.

"Let's get you inside, Lucy," he said gently.

The stolen wand clattered to the ground as the adrenaline wore off and I slipped from consciousness.


	88. Tuck

LUCY:

"Rennervate."

I jerked awake, bracing for what would come next. But when I opened my eyes, there was no wand pointed to my chest. I wasn't in a cave.

Mrs. Weasley was kneeling in front of me, brown eyes soft with concern.

"You're safe now," she said softly, pushing my tangled hair back from my face with a delicate touch. "You're safe. I'm just going to heal this cut on your cheek, alright?"

I nodded, glancing around to try to make sense of where I was. I was propped up on the couch in my living room, and the candles were too bright. Professor Lupin was walking to Mr. Weasley in a voice too low for me to hear across the room, and Percy was hovering nearby. When Percy saw me looking at him, he crossed the room in an instant and knelt beside me. 

"You alright?" he asked. He immediately blinked and shook his head. "Don't answer that. I'm just glad you're alive."

"We all are," Mrs. Weasley added, placing a hand on my forehead. "Percy, get her another blanket, the one on that armchair will do."

He jumped up and grabbed it, draping it over my shoulders.

"Is there anything else I can do, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked, tucking it around me.

"I think I'm okay, but thank you," I managed to say. I closed my eyes and swallowed. "I'm just trying to... to wrap my head around it all."

She made a small sound of sympathy and brushed my hair back again. "Professor Lupin wants to talk to you now, so we can try to find the people responsible as soon as possible."

I opened my eyes, looking over her shoulder at Professor Lupin. "I didn't see their faces. They were careful about that."

He conjured up a chair as he walked over. He leaned forward on his elbows and sighed. "That's okay. I'm sorry to make you relive it all so soon, but the sooner you talk about it all, the sooner we can try to find them. Before something else happens." He checked his watch. "Professor Moody will be here any minute. He wanted to be here when you talked about it."

"He knew my mum," I said, my voice cracking on the last word.

Mr. Weasley conjured up a chair, sitting next to Professor Lupin.

"Percy, if you wouldn't mind, go back to the Ministry and try to intercept her letter about the improper use of magic," Professor Lupin said. "I won't ask you to destroy it, but hold onto it for now. I don't want any Ministry officials tracing it and coming here to see for themselves what happened. The target on Lucy's back is too big."

Percy seemed reluctant to leave, but he nodded. "I will." He glanced down at me, his eyes distressed. "I'll be writing soon, alright?"

I managed a nod before he muttered a spell under his breath and disapparated. Once he was gone, Mr. Weasley muttered the same spell, and I glanced back down at the carpet.

"Protective enchantments," Professor Lupin explained. "Professor Moody knows how to-"

Professor Moody appeared as if on cue.

"-get past the protective enchantments," he finished with a resigned smile. 

"But clearly someone else knew how to get past your mother's," Professor Moody said, sitting down heavily in a chair and fixing me with an intense gaze.

I nodded. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words would come. 

Professor Lupin turned to Mrs. Weasley, who was still stroking my hair. "We can take it from here, Molly. You can go back and tell the others she's alright. They'll want to hear from you, since you've seen her. I'll talk to you and Sirius together once we return to Grimmauld."

Mrs. Weasley seemed as reluctant as Percy to leave, but she tightened the blankets around my shoulders, muttered the spell, and disapparated with a crack. Mr. Weasley put the protections back up, and Professor Lupin shut the doors around us with a flick of his wand.

"You're safe now, Lucy," he said quietly, leaning forward. "And you can tell us everything. We'll condense what you say into a report that will be transmitted to members of the Order of the Phoenix, assembled by Dumbledore himself, and you can read an even more condensed version of the report before we pass it along to the Ministry so you can make sure it doesn't say anything you wouldn't want mentioned, like the lycanthropy."

I looked at Mr. Weasley, who nodded slowly. "I know now about that. But it's alright, Lucy, honest it is."

I looked back at Professor Lupin, who also nodded. "Whenever you're ready, we'd like to try to get to the bottom of who did this and why. I'd rather just let you talk about it as you're ready to, but because you used magic — and it's _brilliant_ that you did, truly, don't regret that for a _second_ , Lucy — the Ministry is going to have questions that will require something of an explanation."

I sighed shakily, pulling the blankets tighter around myself. I wanted Harry holding my hand the way I had been holding his, when he was in my position, being asked to tell a story we'd have done anything to be allowed to forget. But that would have meant confessing my condition, and I still wasn't ready.

I took a deep breath and began to tell the story.

I talked about the knock at the door, about my mom's explanation, about Rose, about dropping the bracelet, about the Dark Mark, about the darkness that followed.

I stopped. "I-I know my parents are... are..." I swallowed hard. "What about Tuck? My dog?"

"He's alright," Professor Lupin said. "He was in your room when... well, when we realized what had happened and came here. Tonks is playing with him in the other room now. We were afraid he might hurt you in his excitement."

I nodded. "He does get excited." 

I felt a tiny pinprick of hope. Tuck was one light I hadn't lost yet.

I swallowed hard before continuing. 

I talked about waking up in the cave, about my wand being broken, about the offer.

About "Kill me, then."

About what they did instead.

I said all of this emotionlessly. Everything I might have been feeling — _should_ have been feeling — was drained out of me, screamed out of me, bled out of me. 

Mr. Weasley scribbled occasional notes.

Professor Moody interrupted from time to time with clarifying questions. No, Rose never gave her last name, yeah, I think I was moved between a couple of different caves, no, I didn't see any faces, yeah, I had more memories of my family in America when they used the Cruciatus Curse on me, no, they didn't hurt me any other way, yeah, there were a fair few Death Eaters around when I escaped.

Professor Lupin absorbed everything in silence. I didn't understand at the time why he looked so heartbroken.

Finally, I explained my escape. The stolen wand, the joke spells. Professor Moody actually smiled when I named the book Cedric had given me.

"It's so... ridiculous," I said, shaking my head. "I just knew that I would be able to pull those spells off. I had more practice with those than with anything else, and I thought they'd be able to block predictable spells too easily, and... I guess the fact that Cedric was the reason I knew the spells in the first place seemed... symbolic."

I hadn't mentioned the dream. I didn't want anyone thinking I was crazy. They hadn't actually been there anyway. It was just a dream. And the last thing I wanted to confess to three grown wizards was that Dream Cedric and Dream Harry had been the ones to convince me to wake up and come back. It was just a dream.

Professor Moody nodded thoughtfully. "You did a good job, kid. You went through hell, but you made it. And now it's over. You still need to be careful, but nobody will be letting you out of their sight any time soon. Anything else, Remus, Arthur?"

Mr. Weasley shook his head, folding up his piece of paper. "None here. I'll head to the Ministry and see what I can do about the improper use of magic business. Her situation should be easier to explain away than the other one." He sighed. "I should probably talk to Percy too. I'm guessing he'll want to hear more details." Mr. Weasley turned to me with a sympathetic look. "Merlin, Lucy, I'm so sorry you've had to go through this all."

He disapparated with a pop. A witch with bright pink hair and an even brighter smile poked her head in the door.

"Sorry to interrupt, Lucy, but there's a very excitable animal in here who I don't think can last a moment longer. Are you ready?"

I shoved the blankets off to the side and nodded just as a black-and-white flash of fur hurtled toward me. I held him tightly, burying my face in his warmth as he whimpered and barked and tried to lick my face. I couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm, even if I wasn't quite ready for laughter yet.

"Something tells me he's only half as excited as the folks at Grimmauld will be," Professor Moody said with another rare smile. "I'm off to tell Dumbledore what you told us. See you around, kid."

He disapparated then, leaving me alone with Professor Lupin and Tonks. Tonks was laughing loudly at Tuck, who had now placed his paws on my shoulders and pushed me back against the couch, still trying to lick my face. I eventually stopped trying to hug him and let him have his way, running back and forth across the couch and licking my face every time he crossed me. Once he finally settled down and rested his head in my lap, I looked up at Professor Lupin.

"What do I do now, Professor?" I asked in a quiet voice, starting to realize the extent of the unknowns now stretching out before my feet.

_What do I do now, indeed?_

"Professor Moody mentioned Grimmauld Place," he replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. The Weasleys and Hermione and Harry are all there now, and he was right — they'll be absolutely beside themselves with relief." He paused for a moment to think. "Tonks can help you pack a bag while I apparate over there briefly. Then, whenever you're ready, I'll apparate with you, and that's where you'll stay until the first of September."

I nodded slowly. "Alright."

Tonks jumped to her feet and lifted Tuck off of my lap. She studied my face with pursed lips and swiped her thumb across my forehead. "As rugged and adventurous the streaks of dirt make you look, am I correct in guessing you'd like a shower?"

I nodded. "That would feel amazing, trust me."

I heard Professor Lupin disapparate as we headed up the stairs — me leaning more on the railing than I ever had before — and I slipped off to take a shower while Tonks tossed pajamas and a couple changes of clothes into a small backpack I quite frankly forgot I even had.

I managed to wrestle my muddied and torn robes over my head, throwing them into the corner of the bathroom, never wanting to see them again. I studied myself in the mirror as the water warmed — it had always taken a couple of minutes for the water to get as hot as I liked it. There was a fresh white scar where the cut Mrs. Weasley had healed once stretched. Tonks was right about the dirt, though, I looked as if I'd tried digging with a niffler.

Suddenly, I stumbled forward and found myself clutching the sink with both hands. 

Thinking of the niffler made me think of Dad which made me think of the Dark Mark which made me think of the last time I had seen him which made me think about how that was the last time I'd ever see him and I hadn't even realized it.

Thinking of Dad made me think of Mum which made me think of the way she'd told me to bring my wand just in case which made me think of how she never would have dreamed her best friend would betray her which made me think of just how shocking betrayal always was.

Betrayal. Harry's parents had been betrayed, too.

Harry. I needed Harry.

I tore myself away from the sink and stepped into the shower, ignoring the way the water felt like a million tiny needles in my skin.

At least the million tiny needles was better than the million jagged knives of the Cruciatus Curse.


	89. For a Moment

HARRY:

We were still in the kitchen when Professor Lupin appeared. The look on his face immediately spiked my heart rate, already significantly higher than normal.

He looked around the room, gnawing on his lower lip for a second before speaking.

"To say Lucy's been through hell would be a severe understatement. You cannot — and I mean can _not_ — ask her to talk about any of it until she is ready, which might not be for quite a while. Right now, she just needs as much normalcy as you can offer her. Oh, and be gentle with her. She'll likely be in a fair amount of pain for a while, though we all know she'd be loath to admit it." He sighed. "You should all find something to do for the time being. She's cleaning up and packing a bag now, so it may be a while before she's ready to come."

"Let's go play Exploding Snap," Fred suggested. "We got her to play with us on the train."

Every other kid nodded and stood, but I remained firmly in my chair. "I'll wait for her," I said quietly.

Ron looked for half a second as if he'd try to change my mind, but he seemed to think it wise not to press me. Professor Lupin asked to speak with Mrs. Weasley privately, leaving me alone in the kitchen since Sirius was upstairs taking care of Buckbeak.

I pulled Lucy's bracelet from my pocket and studied each charm.

I had gotten the bear first, more on impulse than anything. It made sense, being her patronus and all. Then came the Quaffle, for winning the Quidditch Cup together. Then the dragon, for obvious reasons. Then the Gemini constellation, for even more obvious reasons.

I couldn't imagine a world without her. 

Everyone was worried, of course. Ginny was jumpy, looking hopefully at every person who walked into the room for half a second before shaking her head. The twins were trying to keep our spirits up with their typical jokes and small pranks, but I could see from the way their efforts were less enthusiastic than usual and the way their smiles faded more quickly than usual that they were worried, too. Hermione seemed constantly on the verge of a breakdown, sometimes trying to lose herself in books but usually staring off into space with tears glistening in her eyes as she twisted the ring — half purple and half blank silver — around her finger. Where his brothers tried to make us laugh, Ron sat with us in silence, keeping his own anxiety carefully masked so as not to add to ours.

And as for me... I was doing my best. I was glad to be with friends again, and with Sirius, but the bad feeling in the pit of my stomach only intensified after every day without news. The bad feeling kept me up late at night and woke me up early in the morning. It was hard to eat, and it was harder still to breathe. 

Part of the bad feeling had gone away when Mrs. Weasley disapparated suddenly and came back a couple minutes later saying Lucy was safe. But I doubted it would disappear entirely until she was in my arms again, and even then...

I'd sworn to myself the day after Cedric died that I'd never let anything hurt her like that again. 

That thought punched a hole through my chest. 

I needed her in my arms again. It was the only way I felt I could protect her, insignificant though it was.

I was jerked from my thoughts by an uproar in the other room. I glanced at the clock, shook my head because it had only been ten minutes, and rose to my feet to go see what had happened.

* * *

LUCY: 

An explosion of laughter masked the loud crack of apparation, so everyone was too shocked to react for half a second when Professor Lupin and I arrived in the center of the room.

Ginny was the first to move, running toward me and wrapping her arms around me. I could tell she was trying to be careful, trying not to squeeze too hard, but she was shaking with the effort of holding back.

The twins were next, rushing forward in unison. They were holding a bit tighter than Ginny, but it didn't hurt. 

Hermione shoved them apart and held me for herself, as delicately as if I were made of glass. In her eyes, I supposed I was. She sniffled, and I could see as she pulled away that she had well-defined tear tracks on her cheeks.

Ron was next, burying his face in my neck and whispering how great it was to have me back.

As I pulled away from Ron, I glanced around for Harry.

* * *

HARRY:

As I walked from one end of the house to the other, I realized the group had gone silent. I walked faster, figuring they must have been concentrating really hard, meaning it was a really good round. I smiled as I entered the room.

"You know what, I changed my mind, deal me in. I can play for a round or t-"

I suddenly understood why everyone had gone silent.

Lucy was standing in the middle of the room.

And just like that, nothing else in the world mattered.

I crossed the room in two strides and wrapped my arms around her. She was taller than she had been in June. Her hair was still wet from her shower, but I didn't care. I rested my cheek against the top of her head and closed my eyes and held her just a bit tighter, still trying to be gentle. 

She was pale and trembling, so even when I released her from the hug, I hovered by her side. 

"I'll go tell Molly she's here," Professor Lupin said in a low voice to the twins, who stood protectively on either side of the door, as if they half-expected someone to charge through and try to hurt her again. 

"I'm here," she said breathlessly, hurrying into the room and sweeping Lucy up into a hug. She pulled away after a second and brushed Lucy's hair back, leaving one hand lingering on her forehead. Then she straightened up and began passing out instructions.

She turned to Hermione and Ginny first. "Oh, good, you've already got her bag. Run that upstairs, will you? There are extra blankets in the wardrobe in the corner, pile as many on her bed as you can."

She turned to Ron next, as the girls hurried out of the room. "Sirius is upstairs with Buckbeak. Tell him to come down to this room right away, Professor Lupin wants to talk to us."

I studied Lucy's face for the slightest flicker of excitement or happiness or _something_ at the mention of Buckbeak, but no such thing happened. Her eyes were blank, completely devoid of their usual light. It startled me, even more than it concerned me. And it concerned me plenty.

Mrs. Weasley turned to the twins next. "Both of you fetch your sweaters from last Christmas and bring them down for her."

When they disappeared with two loud cracks, she turned to me. She smiled when she saw the way my hand had already found Lucy's — I hadn't even realized we were holding hands, let alone how tightly she was clinging to me. "And you two can head to the kitchen. I'll be there in just a moment."

Lucy's gait was slightly uneven as she walked. I figured part of it was just her getting used to her longer legs; the other part, I could only imagine. I forced the thought away and focused on the fact that she was safe now, and right next to me. 

My arm shot out to catch her when she tripped, and she released a small whimper.

"Can we stop here for a second?" she asked in a voice little more than a croaky whisper.

It was the first time I'd heard her speak in over a month, and she sounded nothing like herself.

I didn't ask if she was alright. I knew she wasn't. 

A sting pricked the backs of my eyes, but I forced the tears away. Lucy needed me now more than ever.

* * *

LUCY:

I sank back against the wall and closed my eyes. I pulled my legs to my chest and rested my head against my knees.

Everything hurt. 

Harry knelt next to me, hand on my arm, rubbing his thumb back and forth slowly. 

After a couple of moments, I lifted my head and met his eyes. Those emerald eyes.

"Why didn't you write me, Harry?" I asked before I lost my nerve and stopped myself. "I wrote _you_ , every day, usually a couple times a day."

"I did write you," he said, his voice quiet and strained. "Every day."

"You did?"

"Of course I did."

I blinked, emotions surging in me for half a second before ebbing away. 

When I didn't say anything for a couple more seconds, Harry squeezed my arm gently. "It's okay, Lu. Now we know neither of us ignored the other, right?"

"You didn't forget me?" 

"How could I?" He shook his head. "Look, I don't know what happened to you, but if you think I'm ever going to let something like that happen to you ever again-" He shook his head a second time, glancing away. 

"So we're okay?" I asked after a long moment.

His eyes landed on mine again, and he nodded firmly. "We're okay. Something just went wrong with the diaries is all." He cocked his head. "Hey, want to trade tomorrow? You can read what I wrote you, and I can read what you wrote me? That's still on the pages, right?"

"I like that idea," I replied, my voice cracking with the effort of it all. I released a small sigh and held out a hand. "D-Do you mind?"

He jumped up, grabbed my hand, and pulled me to my feet. "Lucy, a couple hours ago, I thought you might have been dead. I don't mind at all."

* * *

HARRY:

She didn't speak again as we walked down the hallway, and she didn't trip again, either. I was left alone with my thoughts for just long enough to feel a sharp pang in my chest.

_She thought I had forgotten her?_

The twins were already in the kitchen by the time we got there, and they helped me wrestle the sweaters over her head. When I felt her forehead to see for myself, I understood what Mrs. Weasley meant. She was freezing. 

I took a seat next to her at the table, the twins sitting across from us. She rested her head on her arm, tracing patterns on the wooden table with her finger. I inched my chair closer to her and rubbed her back from shoulder blade to shoulder blade.

I couldn't shake the feeling that if I stopped touching her, she'd disappear.

Ron made his way into the room after a couple minutes, followed by the girls. Mrs. Weasley bustled in a little while later and started making soup, for everyone instead of just Lucy since none of us had eaten much at dinner.

The twins talked about the Exploding Snap game that had been abandoned to fill the silence, to try to get a reaction out of Lucy, to attempt to create the normalcy Professor Lupin thought might help. Lucy almost smiled a couple of times, but I could tell her mind was still far away. So, I kept rubbing her back slowly, to keep her there.

* * *

LUCY:

I didn't realize how hungry I was until the food was in front of me. I couldn't remember eating anything since before I was taken.

"Slower, Lu," Harry said quietly, in a voice only I would hear, resting his hand on top of mine. "You'll make yourself sick. Just... trust me."

I bit my lip and nodded. "Right."

* * *

HARRY:

She heeded my advice. She didn't need to ask how I knew.

I hated that she now knew that feeling, too.

Eventually, Mrs. Weasley recommended we all go to bed.

It had been a long day.

We all headed up the stairs together, everyone stealing furtive glances at Lucy. Whether or not she noticed, I had no idea, but to be quite honest, the feeling of her hand in mine was all that mattered.

Her grip tightened when we reached the girls' door.

* * *

LUCY:

Harry was my lifeline. 

I didn't want to let him go.

His eyes were soft when he turned to me, raising his eyebrows in silent question.

Could I ask him to stay with me?

* * *

HARRY:

"Lucy?" Hermione asked, her eyes flickering between Lucy and me.

"What's going on?" Ginny mouthed.

I looked back at Lucy, who hadn't loosened her hold on me.

"You alright?" I inquired gently.

She suddenly dropped her hand and her eyes and nodded. "Yeah. Sorry."

"Hey, it's okay," I said, pulling her to me in another hug. I didn't want to leave her either. "I'll see you in the morning."

Lucy nodded and, to my surprise, wiped a tear from her cheek. 

I hadn't realized until that moment that she had the faintest new scar, perpendicular to the others, stretching from just below her eye to the bottom of her cheekbone.

I wondered if that was the only scar, visible or otherwise, from the whole ordeal.

I realized that would be too good to be true.

"See you in the morning," she said. She took a reluctant step backward, still not turning away from me.

"Oh, wait!" I said. I extracted her bracelet from my pocket and undid the clasp. "I do believe this is yours?"

For the first time, a tiny flicker of light brought a tiny bit of life back to Lucy's eyes.

"You found it," she breathed. 

"Well, George did, actually," I said with a shrug. "But he gave it to me to give to you."

I gently took her by the wrist — trying not to dwell on how badly it was shaking — and froze. Faint red scratches seemed to suggest that ropes had once been there. I steeled my nerves and redid the clasp, but my hands shook, too.

* * *

LUCY:

For a moment, time stood still.

For a moment, everything was a little closer to okay.

For a moment, the pain didn't matter.

For a moment, I had hope again.

* * *

HARRY:

The moment passed too quickly. 

I still had the feeling that if I stopped touching her, she'd disappear.

The fact that the bracelet was back on Lucy's wrist didn't change the fact she had dark circles under her eyes contrasting the ghostly pale hue of her skin. It didn't change the fact that when she spoke again, her voice was still weak and tired and barely even audible.

"Promise you'll still be here in the morning?" she asked.

I nodded. "Where else would I be?"

Lucy hugged me one more time, burying her head against my chest, then turned to follow Hermione and Ginny into their room.

Once the door closed, I turned to follow Ron to the room we shared.

"Harry, what happened to her?" he asked in a low voice.

"Your guess is as good as mine," I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck. "She didn't tell me anything while we were alone, just that she wrote me every day and never heard from me, the same way I wrote her every day and never heard from her."

He shook his head. "Bloody hell."

"Yeah, bloody hell," I echoed.

Neither of us spoke as we started changing into pajamas.

"At least she's back," Ron said as we climbed into our beds.

"Back would mean she was smiling." Anger surged through me. "Back would mean she wasn't tripping over her own two feet, back would mean she was acting like herself, she's not _back_ , Ron."

"She's safe, mate." I heard his mattress creak as he lifted himself onto an elbow. "Maybe that's all we can hope, for now."


	90. Never Alone

HARRY: 

The next morning couldn't come quickly enough; my worries kept me up through the night. Ron was still asleep when I got out of bed and changed into my robes for the day. I hurried down the stairs, eager to see Lucy and confirm for myself that she was still there, that she had made it through the night. My diary was in my pocket; I hadn't forgotten our agreement, and I was honestly interested to see what she had written me.

The door to the kitchen was closed, but I could hear the voices inside with perfect clarity.

"She slept so fitfully I doubt she'll feel she's slept at all," Hermione was saying, sounding plenty tired herself. "Ginny wanted to stay so Lucy wouldn't wake up alone, so I figured I'd head down and tell you both how the night went."

"What do you mean by fitfully, Hermione?" Professor Lupin asked. "Was she in pain at all?"

"I'm sure she was, she had to have been," Hermione replied in almost a whisper. "Nightmares, too. I woke her up in the middle of one, but it took her so long to fall back asleep afterward Ginny and I agreed it would be better just to let her sleep and hope the sleep would benefit her more than the nightmares would hurt her."

"Poor dear," Mrs. Weasley murmured. "What did the healers at St. Mungo's say, Remus?"

"That she's remarkably resilient. That it's a miracle she's alive, and even more of a miracle that her memory seems to be unaffected." He sighed. "I just worry for... everything else. We all know she's resilient, of course, but some of what she told me..." His voice trailed off, and his voice was tighter than it had been when he spoke again. "I stand by what I said last night, Molly. It's best if she's never alone."

"I thought this was the safest place to be," Hermione said. "Surely no one will come for her while she's here, right, Professor?"

"She's completely safe here from any outside forces who would want to hurt her further," he replied immediately, "and the same will be true at Hogwarts, as well. It's whatever happens internally in the coming months that worries me."

"Meaning what exactly, Professor?" Hermione's voice shook.

He hesitated.

"Hermione will be around her more than anyone else at school, Remus," Mrs. Weasley said. "Sharing a dormitory and all."

"She'll be alright, won't she?" Hermione pressed. "She's not going to die of any long-term effects, will she? What is it that I can do by being there? What do you mean, she shouldn't be alone?"

Professor Lupin waited a long second before replying. "I just worry that in the coming weeks, as she begins to process what her life will look like now, with everything that's happened, she could... begin to lose sight of the fact that there _is_ still a life of her that still has hope."

I heard Hermione suck in a breath as she realized what he meant. "Oh."

I didn't stick around to hear whatever was said next. I turned on my heel and made my way up the stairs silently.

Ginny was sitting by Lucy's bedside, looking as if she'd been crying. Her head snapped in my direction when I entered the room, but she relaxed when she saw it was me.

"Don't tell anyone downstairs," I whispered as I tiptoed across the room, "but I, er, sort of overheard what happened last night. I can take over until she wakes up."

Ginny nodded enthusiastically, a tiny smile on her face all of a sudden. "Sounds good. She'd like that."

Just like that, she jumped up from the chair, gestured for me to fill her spot, and hurried quietly from the room, closing the door behind her.

I turned the chair slightly so I was next to Lucy rather than facing her head-on, thinking that might startle her whenever she woke up, but I studied her out of the corner of my eye anyway.

One hand was tucked under her head, and the other was loosely holding one of her many blankets. Her face was still pale, and even in sleep, her brow was furrowed as if she were in pain. The most obvious thing was the way she was still shaking, even sound asleep.

I grazed her forehead with my fingers to see if she was shaking because she was cold, but her forehead felt more normal than it had the night before. She was just... shaking. And hurting. And there was nothing I could do to make it better.

I leaned back into the chair and got my diary out of my pocket. After July 26, my diary entries had gotten longer and longer and more and more worried. That searing pain in my forehead, that disembodied laugh, everything about it worried me. And as it turned out, I was right to be worried. 

I turned back quite a few pages in the diary, to the previous summer. Everything had been so different then. I doubted it would ever be quite like that again.

I wasn't sure how much time had passed when Lucy started muttering in her sleep. Her voice was too quiet and too hoarse for me to try to make sense of what she was saying, but I could tell from the way her grip tightened on her blanket and the way her face contorted in pain that it was another one of the nightmares Hermione had described.

To wake her up would hurt her. To let her sleep would hurt her.

Merlin, how had everything gone so wrong?

I watched helplessly for a couple of minutes, wracked with indecision as she grew more and more agitated.

To wake her up would hurt her. To let her sleep would hurt her.

But which would hurt her less?

Merlin, how had everything gone _so_ wrong?

Suddenly, her voice was a bit clearer.

"Harry."

Her eyes were still closed, but her face relaxed ever so slightly.

I couldn't tell if she was awake or asleep.

"I'm here," I whispered. "Right here."

"I don't understand," she replied, choking back a sob. 

"Understand what?" I still didn't know if she was awake or asleep, but if she somehow heard me and somehow knew I was there, maybe I could chase the nightmare away.

"Why I have to keep making this decision. I-I thought..."

"Thought what, Lu? What's wrong?"

"Why do I have to keep making this decision? I've made it once already, so why does..."

She fell silent, pain flickering anew across her face

"I've made my decision. I made it when it would have been easiest to choose to... to... I can keep making it."

"I know you can," I whispered, holding a hand out. 

It was true. Even if it was just a dream, I knew Lucy could handle whatever came her way. She'd already survived so much in the last month and a half. Surely the rest of her life would be easier by comparison.

And even if it wasn't, I'd make sure she was never alone. Whatever came next.

Lucy's hand reached for mine, and the second our fingers touched, her eyes fluttered open.

She stared at me for a long moment, then blinked a couple of times.

"Oh. You really are here."

I squeezed her hand in response, offering a small, amused smile. "Where else would I be?"

She blinked again, then seemed to realize her fingers were intertwined with mine. She sheepishly removed her hand and adjusted her position a bit on the bed.

"How are you feeling?" I asked just as she winced.

"'M fine," she replied, not meeting my eyes.

I shifted on the chair so my legs dangled over the side and I was facing her head-on. "Try again, because I don't believe you."

A bit of red made its way to her pale cheeks as she glanced at me. "Bloody tired, I can tell you that much."

"You can go back to sleep if you want. Nobody's expecting you to go run a marathon anytime soon, they'd understand."

She shook her head. "I'd rather not deal with the nightmares again."

"That's alright," I replied with a nod. I understood all too well. I'd had my fair share of nightmares since June.

Lucy studied me for a second. Though her eyes were undeniably exhausted, and their typical light was missing, she still seemed to see right through me. "You've been dreaming about him, too, haven't you?"

"Cedric or Voldemort?"

She hesitated. "Both?"

I nodded. "Both."

"Me too." Her eyes wandered, landing on the diary in my lap. "Mine's in my bag, at the foot of my bed. If you want to trade."

"Good thinking." I passed my diary to her, then fished hers out of her bag. 

"I don't know how many pages there are," she said softly, flipping through the pages of my diary looking for where her handwriting stopped. "I reckon it would have been rather annoying if you _had_ been receiving the messages. I was worried about you."

"I was worried about you too." 

We exchanged a brief but meaningful glance before diving into our own reading.

Her first three entries seemed to punch three new holes in my chest. One from right after the funeral, and one from that night, and one from the next morning.

_Harry, it was horrible. I mean, it was good, a lot of people came, but it was horrible. I haven't been able to stop crying. I miss you. ~~I need you.~~ I don't know what to do, Harry. Everything feels so different. I mean, he was gone last summer, too, but this is just so different. It feels so much emptier. I wish you were here. I need you._

_I can't sleep. I'm sorry, I feel so pathetic, but if you see this, please write me back. Even if it's just to say you saw it. It's so lonely here, Harry, so empty. I miss you so much already and it's only been a day._

_I still haven't slept, Harry. I haven't slept since I fell asleep on your shoulder on the train. My head hurts. My chest hurts. I think Hermione was right, I feel really sick. But I still can't stop crying. I miss him. It hurts. I miss you too. You made it better. You make everything better. Please write me back, I just want to see your handwriting even if I can't hear your voice or feel your arms around me. Please._

I snuck a glance at her over the top of the diary. I could see she was still shaking, even as she rested her chin in her hand. 

I made everything better?

As I kept reading, I realized we'd had painfully similar experiences over summer. We told each other little details about our days, we both expressed time and time again just how much we missed the other, we were both terribly worried we'd done something to upset the other somehow.

_Two years ago today, I left for Tahoe. I made the memory I use for my patronus on that trip. I just thought you of all people might care about that._

_I wish you were here. Everything would be better if you were. I still wear the charm bracelet. I haven't taken it off once. I don't want to give up on you, Harry, please don't give up on me..._

_I don't know what I did to upset you and I'm sorry if I'm a bother at this point but I just miss you so much and I don't know what to do without you anymore._

But there were two key differences, too. 

The first was that she had not only not heard from _me_ , but she hadn't received letters from anyone else either. As annoying as it had been not hearing anything worthwhile from Ron and Hermione, at least I knew they were alive and well and didn't hate me.

_I thought I might have gotten a letter by now, any letter, from anyone. But... nothing. What did I do, Harry? Why is everyone mad at me? I just want someone to talk to, anyone._

The second difference was her parents. One entry, about midway through July struck me.

_My parents don't know what to do with me. They barely even talk to me. My mum tries sometimes, but my dad just locks himself in their room for hours at a time. When he's not locked in his room or at work, he and Mum are arguing. I can never hear what they're saying, but they argue every day now. They shout and cry and I know I should really ask what's wrong, but I don't. Should I?_

Her final two entries, though, were the most haunting of all.

_My parents finally stopped fighting. They seem to have reached an agreement about whatever it was._

_It was an article. They were arguing about an article. My mum wanted to publish it, but my dad thought it would be more danger than it was worth. Mum won out, I guess, because she brought the article up for me to read this morning. I hope you see it, somehow. I hope you know that I've been trying to write you. I hope you haven't forgotten me, because I can't forget you. Sometimes I feel like you're the only person in the world I can trust. Have I ever told you that? Well, if I haven't before, I have now. You understand, Harry, better than anyone, and what I would do to have you here right now..._

"I'm here now," I said quietly, finding it hard to breathe all of a sudden. 

Nobody had known just how disastrous that article would prove to be.

When I received no response, I glanced up from the diary. Lucy was sound asleep, the diary open to a page from the summer between third and fourth year next to her pillow. 

"Oh," I whispered, reaching forward to carefully retrieve my diary, curious as to what page she had been reading. 

_Sometime, we should go to America together. What d'you say, are you in?_

_Merlin, I'd love that. You always seem so excited when you talk about last summer, in Tahoe._

_What if we spent the whole summer there, after we graduate? Before our lives begin?_

_Sounds like a brilliant idea to me._

_Deal, then?_

_Deal._

I glanced back at Lucy. She seemed more at peace than she had been when I first replaced Ginny. Her breath seemed to be coming easier, and her brow wasn't furrowed as deeply. 

She ended up sleeping for five more hours. I didn't leave her side.

She didn't have another nightmare that whole time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey, everyone! Long time no talk!
> 
> First of all, I'm so sorry this chapter is so late! I took my last final exam this afternoon and I kept changing my mind about what I wanted to have happen in this chapter and today has just been one change of plans after another after another after another, but I'm actually happy with how this turned out! I hope you all feel the same way!
> 
> Second of all, thank you for sticking with me the past couple of weeks! I know I've probably put you all through hell, so thank you for trusting me to bring you out of hell, too. I can't promise it'll be a quick or easy journey for anyone in the coming chapters, but I can promise that I'll pour my heart and soul into this story and do every character justice in the end. As someone commented yesterday, yes, I do have tricks up my sleeve, but you are all more or less saved from plot twists like Chapter 81 for the time being.
> 
> Third of all, your comments literally make this story worth writing. I read every single comment and I very often re-read the comments when I'm feeling discouraged. It makes me so happy to see people feel (almost) as excited reading this story as I feel when I'm writing it, and seeing how much you all care about Lucy and Harry and, well, everyone just fills me with so much joy. So thank you for reading, and commenting, and caring, and loving this story, because I love it too. And I've found that sharing a love of something is an incredible way to make connections, and as 2020 draws to a close, this story will forever be a highlight in my year.
> 
> Fourth of all, quick life update! My Fred is back and I am so so so thankful. I missed her like crazy but she's back and happier than she's ever been and I'm so proud of her and I could literally talk about her all day, but I digress. 
> 
> Anyway, thank you for reading! Sorry for rambling in this author's note, I've just missed talking to you all! See you soon with Chapter 91! LOVE YOOOU!


	91. I'll Always Come Back

LUCY:

The worst part of life after being kidnapped and tortured was the shaking. 

I heard Professor Lupin mutter to Mrs. Weasley that he was in contact with St. Mungo's, and they said the shaking would stop eventually. Everyone grew increasingly worried as my shaking worsened with time instead of getting better. 

But I wasn't quite as worried, because I knew why.

The cycles of the moon never stopped for anything or anyone.

August was no different.

I wasn't allowed to help with any of the cleaning. I was getting a little stronger by the day, but I still shook uncontrollably no matter what I did, so I often landed on the couch of whatever room everyone else was working in. From time to time, the twins would slip me a stunned creature like a doxy that I was responsible for hiding until Mrs. Weasley left the room. They were experimenting more than ever for their products, and it was nice to feel included in at least a tiny part of the process

I was never alone. 

After that first morning in Grimmauld, Harry started making excuses to stay with me until I fell asleep every night. He kept the nightmares away. 

Harry helped keep the fears at bay during the day, too. Whenever the horrible screaming portrait of Walburga Black was triggered downstairs, his head always snapped in my direction to make sure that a) it wasn't me screaming, and b) I wasn't terribly upset by it. Whenever someone in the Order updated me on the search for Rose or how the Ministry was handling the report about me, Harry's hand found mine under the table. His hand often found me, for any reason, whether he was feeling my forehead or trying to help stop the shaking or even just confirming for himself that I was right there beside him.

Every little touch helped. It grounded me. It reminded me why I had made the decision to come back.

Harry was my lifeline. My safety net. My center of gravity.

But he didn't know what the full moon meant for me. And after everything I'd been through, I wasn't about to tell him. Voldemort had thought I'd want to join him because I was a werewolf after all. What was to stop Harry from thinking the same?

One day, the twins kept Harry occupied so I could have a moment alone with Professor Lupin to come up with a plan for the full moon. (They told me later it was a next-to-impossible task, and I believed it wholeheartedly.) Professor Lupin said the twins had already volunteered to go back to my house with me under the guise of helping me get my school supplies together, since Tonks had only packed the bare minimum for life at Grimmauld. I told him that I had transformed in the basement in July, since my parents were too afraid of the woods to let me go out for the night. He looked pained as he told me it would probably be safest for me to do that again. Harry returned before we had time to think on it further, shaking his head and muttering something about how he would never try any candy the Weasleys offered him again, but the plan was in place.

I tried to find a time to tell Harry the story about going home to pack for school. But before I knew it, the night before the full moon had arrived and he still didn't know.

It was going to be easy. I was going to walk upstairs with him after dinner, tell him the well-rehearsed lines, and say I'd be leaving the next day after lunch, just for overnight, I'd be back the next morning. But dinner ended up being quite the event.

It started with a shout from Mrs. Weasley of “Fred — George — NO, JUST CARRY THEM!”

A number of dishes flew through the air and crashed to the table in a variety of disastrous ways. Harry cracked up next to me, but Mrs. Weasley was livid.

“FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE! THERE WAS NO NEED — I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS — JUST BECAUSE YOU’RE ALLOWED TO USE MAGIC NOW — YOU DON’T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY TINY LITTLE THING!”

“We were just trying to save a bit of time!” Fred yelped, rushing forward with George to try to fix the mess. I yanked a knife out of the table and passed it to him as Mr. Weasley piped up.

“Boys, your mother’s right, you’re supposed to show a sense of responsibility now you’ve come of age—”

“None of your brothers caused this sort of trouble! Bill didn’t feel the need to apparate every few feet! Charlie didn’t charm everything he met! Percy-”

She fell silent. I had heard about the fallout between Percy and the rest of the Weasleys, making his actions the day I escaped all the more confusing. But that wasn't what really bothered me about what she said.

I had heard similar lines from my dad for the better part of ten years. I was never as good as Cedric.

The thought brought tears to my eyes, which I tried to force away, but Harry saw. 

"What is it?" he whispered.

I swallowed hard and shook my head, reaching for a glass of water to hide my face until I successfully pushed the tears back. 

The table slowly came to life, but I was lost in my own world. I was spiraling, thinking about Cedric, and Dad, and Mum, and how 24 hours from then I'd be in the basement of my haunted house...

I snapped back to reality when Sirius turned to Harry.

“You know, I’m surprised at you. I thought the first thing you’d do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort.”

Harry stiffened. “I did! I asked Ron and Hermione but they said we’re not allowed in the Order, so-”

“And they’re quite right, you’re too young,” Mrs. Weasley interrupted.

“Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions? Harry was trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He’s got the right to know what’s been happen-”

The twins interrupted indignantly. 

“Hang on!”

“How come Harry gets his questions answered?”

“ _We’ve_ been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you haven’t told us a single stinking thing!”

“‘You’re too young, you’re not in the Order.’ Harry’s not even of age!”

Sirius shrugged. “It’s not my fault you haven’t been told what the Order’s doing. That’s your parents’ decision. Harry, on the other hand-”

“It’s not down to you to decide what’s good for Harry! You haven’t forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?” Mrs. Weasley fired back at Sirius.

“Which bit?” he replied.

“The bit about not telling Harry more than he _needs to know_.”

“I don’t intend to tell him more than he needs to know, Molly, but as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back, he has more right than most to-”

“He’s not a member of the Order of the Phoenix! He’s only fifteen and-”

“-and he’s dealt with as much as most in the Order, and more than some-”

“No one’s denying what he’s done! But he’s still-”

“He’s not a child!”

“He’s not an adult either! He’s not _James_ , Sirius!”

“I’m perfectly clear who he is, thanks, Molly.”

“I’m not sure you are! Sometimes, the way you talk about him, it’s as though you think you’ve got your best friend back!”

“What’s wrong with that?” Harry cut in suddenly.

“What’s wrong, Harry, is that you are not your father, however much you might look like him! You are still at school and adults responsible for you should not forget it!”

“Meaning I’m an irresponsible godfather?” Sirius challenged.

“Meaning you’ve been known to act rashly, Sirius, which is why Dumbledore keeps reminding you to stay at home and-”

“We’ll leave my instructions from Dumbledore out of this, if you please!”

Mrs. Weasley turned to Mr. Weasley. “Arthur! Arthur, back me up!”

He hesitated before responding. “Dumbledore knows the position has changed, Molly. He accepts that Harry will have to be filled in to a certain extent now that he is staying at headquarters-”

“Yes, but there’s a difference between that and inviting him to ask whatever he likes!”

Professor Lupin cleared his throat softly. “Personally, I think it better that Harry gets the facts — not all the facts, Molly, but the general picture — from us, rather than a garbled version from... others.”

Mrs. Weasley crossed her arms. “Well, well... I can see I’m going to be overruled. I’ll just say this: Dumbledore must have had his reasons for not wanting Harry to know too much, and speaking as someone who has got Harry’s best interests at heart-”

“He’s not your son,” Sirius said almost inaudibly.

“He’s as good as. Who else has he got?”

“He’s got me!”

“Yes. The thing is, it’s been rather difficult for you to look after him while you’ve been locked up in Azkaban, hasn’t it?”

I sucked in a silent breath of shock. I couldn't believe what I'd just heard.

I wondered for half a second if something similar would ever happen when I found my first family. If one group would resent the other for the way they'd cared for me. I... I didn't have to worry about my second family anymore, my brother and parents were dead, but... but at the same time...

Professor Lupin's voice forced me to focus again. “Molly, you’re not the only person at this table who cares about Harry. Sirius, sit down. I think Harry ought to be allowed a say in this. He’s old enough to decide for himself.”

“I want to know what’s been going on,” Harry said without hesitation.

“Very well. Everyone not in the Order, I want you out of this kitchen, now.” 

None of the other five children were thrilled about that, all protesting loudly.

Mr. Weasley sighed. “Molly, you can’t stop Fred and George, they _are_ of age-”

“They’re still at school!”

“But they’re legally adults now.”

“I — oh, alright then, Fred and George can stay, but Ron-”

“Harry’ll tell us everything you say anyway!” Ron protested.

“Fine! Fine! Ginny, bed!”

She wasn't happy about leaving. 

I had half a mind to follow her.

I didn't want to be there.

But I had already been drafted.

I'd been kidnapped for a reason.

I'd been tortured for a reason.

I'd been wanted by Voldemort himself for a reason.

So I swallowed my fear as well as I could — that is to say, not well at all — and listened intently.

“Okay, Harry... what do you want to know?” Sirius asked.

“Where’s Voldemort? What’s he doing?”

Professor Lupin's eyes found mine briefly. I nodded in a gesture of _It's okay, go ahead._

“Well... with one notable exception, he has been largely working underground recruiting, not killing. And he only killed because... well... his plan was threatened when Susan Diggory-” Harry's hand found mine under the table. “-decided to speak out. He feared her influence, and he knew that she had ruffled Ministry feathers with that article and her boldness, so he correctly assumed the Ministry would be quick to blame the deaths on the same type of former Death Eaters that caused such chaos at the Quidditch World Cup.”

“He doesn’t want to draw attention to himself at the moment, as much as he possibly can,” Sirius said, changing the topic slightly to save me from everyone's pitying stares. I appreciated it. “It would be dangerous for him. His comeback didn’t come off quite the way he wanted it to, you see. He messed it up.”

“Or rather, you messed it up for him,” Professor Lupin corrected.

Harry cocked his head. “How?”

Sirius grinned. “You weren’t supposed to survive! Nobody apart from his Death Eaters was supposed to know he’d come back. But you survived to bear witness.”

I felt as if I'd been punched in the stomach. But I didn't have time to process anything, because Professor Lupin was talking again.

“And the very last person he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore, and you made _sure_ Dumbledore knew at once.”

“How has that helped?” Harry asked.

“Are you kidding? Dumbledore was the only one You-Know-Who was ever scared of!” Bill said.

“Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned,” Sirius added. “We've been working as hard as we can to make sure Voldemort can’t carry out his plans.”

“How d’you know what his plans are?” Harry asked.

“Dumbledore’s got a shrewd idea, and Dumbledore’s shrewd ideas normally turn out to be accurate.”

“So what does Dumbledore reckon he’s planning?”

“Well, firstly, he wants to build up his army again. In the old days he had huge numbers at his command; witches and wizards he’d bullied or bewitched into following him, his faithful Death Eaters, a great variety of dark creatures. You heard him planning to recruit the giants; well, they’ll be just one group he’s after. He’s certainly not going to try and take on the Ministry of Magic with only a dozen Death Eaters.”

I hazarded a glance at Professor Lupin, asking the silent question if _I_ was part of that effort. His single subtle nod made my heart drop to my toes.

I had already been drafted.

“So you’re trying to stop him getting more followers? How?” Harry pressed.

“Well, the main thing is to try and convince as many people as possible that You-Know-Who really has returned, to put them on their guard. It’s proving tricky, though, because of the Ministry’s attitude. You saw Cornelius Fudge after You-Know-Who came back, Harry. Well, he hasn’t shifted his position at all. He’s absolutely refusing to believe it’s happened.”

Harry shook his head disbelievingly. “But why? Why’s he being so stupid? If Dumbledore-”

Mr. Weasley tapped his nose and pointed at Harry. “Ah, well, you’ve put your finger on the problem. Dumbledore. You see, Fudge thinks Dumbledore’s plotting to overthrow him. He thinks Dumbledore wants to be Minister of Magic. He’s never wanted the Minister’s job, even though a lot of people wanted him to take it when Millicent Bagnold retired. Fudge came to power instead, but he’s never quite forgotten how much popular support Dumbledore had, even though Dumbledore never applied for the job.”

Professor Lupin sighed. “Deep down, Fudge knows Dumbledore’s much cleverer than he is, a much more powerful wizard, and in the early days of his Ministry he was forever asking Dumbledore for help and advice. But it seems that he’s become fond of power now, and much more confident. He loves being Minister of Magic, and he’s managed to convince himself that he’s the clever one and Dumbledore’s simply stirring up trouble for the sake of it.”

“How can he think that? How can he think Dumbledore would just make it all up — that _I’d_ make it all up?”

“Because accepting that Voldemort’s back would mean trouble like the Ministry hasn’t had to cope with for nearly fourteen years. Fudge just can’t bring himself to face it. It’s so much more comfortable to convince himself Dumbledore’s lying to destabilize him,” Sirius muttered,

“Comfortable?” I asked, finding my voice for the first time. “He's ignoring Ced— he's doing all of _this_ because acknowledging what has happened would make him _uncomfortable_?”

Everyone turned to look at me. To my surprise, I didn't blush under everyone's gaze. My anger, boiling just below the surface, kept me from shying away. I was tempted for half a second to go on, but I forced the anger away and braced myself for whatever response came next.

“It might interest you to know that your experience gave him a bit of pause,” Professor Lupin said. I could tell he was carefully crafting his response to protect me as much as possible, which I appreciated. “At least it did, at first. It was his Senior Undersecretary, not Fudge, who wanted you to come in for a hearing. The Minister himself was satisfied with the report we gave and was willing to accept the explanation that we weren't sure why you'd been spared but everyone was obviously glad you were and not press the matter further because you'd been through enough. It was the other official, the Senior Undersecretary, who wanted you charged for the damage done to your captors and punished for the fact that the Muggles of the village heard the explosion and released the Death Eaters trapped in the rubble and saw... well, all of your other handiwork.”

That was what made me blush. “I can only imagine the types of Memory Charms...” I shook my head to force myself to focus. “But... people other than... than my mum are trying to spread the word, right?”

Everyone around the table nodded emphatically.

“Why d’you think Dumbledore’s in such trouble?” Sirius asked.

It was my turn to cock my head. “Trouble? How so?”

“They’re trying to discredit him. Last week, for instance, the _Daily Prophet_ reported that he’d been voted out of the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards because he’s getting old and losing his grip, but it’s not true, he was voted out by Ministry wizards after he made a speech announcing Voldemort’s return. They’ve demoted him from Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot — that’s the Wizard High Court, Harry — and they’re talking about taking away his Order of Merlin, First Class, too.”

Bill chuckled. “But Dumbledore says he doesn’t care what they do as long as they don’t take him off the Chocolate Frog cards.”

Mr. Weasley shook his head. “It’s no laughing matter. If he carries on defying the Ministry like this, he could end up in Azkaban and the last thing we want is Dumbledore locked up. While You-Know-Who knows Dumbledore’s out there and wise to what he’s up to, he’s going to go cautiously for a while. If Dumbledore’s out of the way — well, You-Know-Who will have a clear field.”

“But if Voldemort’s trying to recruit more Death Eaters, it’s bound to get out that he’s come back, isn’t it?” Harry asked.

“Voldemort doesn’t march up to people’s houses and bang on their front doors, Harry. At least, not usually,” he amended with a sympathetic glance my direction. “He tricks, jinxes, and blackmails them. He’s well-practiced at operating in secrecy. In any case, gathering followers is only one thing he’s interested in, he’s got other plans too, plans he can put into operation very quietly indeed, and he’s concentrating on them at the moment.”

“But...” I glanced around the table to see who would be able to answer my question. “If that's true, then why...?”

“He didn't expect to fail with you, Lucy,” Professor Lupin said gently. “For all of his secrecy, he can be terribly arrogant and make costly mistakes as a result of that arrogance at times. Percy wasn't supposed to see the Dark Mark, at least not as soon as he did. You weren't supposed to escape.”

I shuddered involuntarily, and Harry's hand tightened around mine, and I found it harder to ignore everyone else's stares that time. I set my jaw, somewhat annoyed by the way everyone was looking at me like I was made of glass.

_If I were made of glass, I would have shattered a long damn time ago._

“Well, I for one would like to make a habit of thwarting his plans,” I said plainly, prompting a couple of amused grins around the table. “What’s he after apart from followers?” 

It was Sirius who answered me this time. “Stuff he can only get by stealth, like a weapon. Something he didn’t have last time.”

“When he was powerful before?” Harry asked.

“Yes.”

“Like what kind of weapon? Something worse than the Killing Cur-”

“That’s enough,” Mrs. Weasley interrupted suddenly. “I want you in bed, now. All of you. You’ve given Harry as well as Lucy plenty of information. Any more and you might just as well induct them into the Order straightaway.”

Harry straightened up. “Why not? I’ll join, I want to join, I want to fight-”

“No,” Professor Lupin said, shaking his head. “The Order is comprised only of overage wizards. Wizards who have left school. There are dangers involved of which you can have no idea, any of you. I think Molly’s right, Sirius. We’ve said enough.”

“Even me?” I asked hesitantly, staying in my chair even as the others started to walk toward Mrs. Weasley. I lowered my voice to almost a whisper. “What do I have left to lose at this point?”

A curiously sad expression flickered across Professor Lupin's face. “Lucy, what happened to you was... horrible. And significantly so. What happened to you was not typical, and I think you perhaps don't fully understand that yet, but you will one day. I know that you would be able to shoulder what the Order would require of you, I know anyone here would, but none of us want you to have to shoulder that yet. You are still children, and this is not your war to fight yet, even though you and Harry have been unfortunately caught up in it already.”

That left only one question.

“So this is war?”

The silence around the table told us all we needed to know.

Before I left, Professor Lupin called after me, “Oh, and Lucy? Tomorrow is all sorted, right?”

I nodded. “I'm leaving after lunch. It should give me enough time to make sure I have everything ready,” I added meaningfully.

He nodded to show he understood, and I followed after Harry, who was looking at me with a confused expression.

“Tomorrow?”

I looked down at my shoes as we climbed the stairs. “I'm going home for the night with the twins to pack things for school. I didn't bring much here with me, just the backpack. I'm going to need more for Hogwarts.”

“Oh, okay. When were you planning on asking me?”

I blinked. “What do you mean?”

“To go with you?”

I hesitated. “Harry, I — I don't think you're going. It'll just be me and Fred and George. It wouldn't be safe for you.”

“Not safe for me?”

“Er, yeah.” I was beginning to panic. He could _not_ come. “It wouldn't be safe for you.”

“Would it be safe for _you_?”

I stopped on the landing, looking at him. “It's my house. It'll be alright just for one night.”

“So why can't I come, Lu?” His voice was still gentle, but I could tell it was weighing on him.

I hadn't anticipated that he'd want to go.

But I really should have seen it coming.

“Because it wouldn't be safe for you,” I said a third time, aware of how pathetic that excuse sounded for a third time.

“But it's safe for you?”

“You just don't understand,” I stammered. “You can't come.”

“Then help me understand,” he said desperately. “Please, Lu, what is it you're hiding? What don't I understand? If you don't want to talk about whatever happened with Voldemort and the Death Eaters yet, fine, but-” He dragged his hand down his face. “Can't you see how much I _want_ to help? Whatever you're willing to tell me, Lu, I...”

I hesitated. I was afraid, but not of Harry. I was afraid of the truth.

But he needed to know I trusted him in spite of the truth I was still hiding.

I took a step closer and sighed shakily. “I think Professor Lupin's right. I don't know if I completely understand everything that's happened yet, and I don't know if I'm ready to _try_ to _start_ to understand. I mean-” I swallowed hard. “Harry, I lost... I...”

Unwilling tears came to my eyes, and Harry quickly wrapped his arms around me.

“It's okay, you're okay,” he said quickly, sincerely. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you.”

I accepted the hug, hiding my face in the folds of his robes. “It's okay, Harry, it's not your fault, I'm just... weak, I guess.”

He pulled away in surprise. “Lucy, what...? Where did _that_ come from?”

“Should I not have said that?” I asked, blushing.

He shook his head. “That was a lie is what that was,” he replied.

“I just...” I sighed again, and tears suddenly sprang to my eyes again. I hurriedly dragged my sleeve across my face and shrugged in a See? sort of gesture. “Sometimes I feel so _angry_ when I see everyone looking at me like I'm about to break, and then I _do_ break like I am right now, and it just makes everyone worry even more, and it's just this vicious cycle back and forth between being angry and being sad and... and..."

Harry swiped away one of the tears that I missed, his expression gentle but somewhat unreadable. “It's okay, Lu, really. You don't have to tell me anything, you don't have to explain yourself to me. I just wish there was more I could do to help.”

“Just stay with me, please,” I whispered. “I can't lose you too.” I swallowed hard, finding a truth within the next day's cover story and running with it. “I would just... I would just feel better if I knew you were safe here. Is that alright?”

Harry nodded. “That's alright if that's what would make you feel better, of course it is. I just... please promise me you'll be safe, too. I almost lost you once, Lu, and I don't know what I'd do if...”

This time, I was the one who stepped forward and hugged him. He hugged back tighter this time, tighter than he had in a while. 

“I'll always come back." I closed my eyes and held him tighter, too. "I promise."

* * *

The next day, the twins and I landed in the middle of my living room. 

I swore under my breath as I started to fall forward, but they caught me by the shoulders.

"Easy does it, Cub," Fred commented cheerfully, though I could tell I had freaked him out. 

I straightened up and shook their hands off. "'M fine, 'm fine." I looked around, and a chill settled in my bones. 

My house was haunted now more so than it had ever been.

"Okay, maybe I'm not," I said in a voice little more than a whisper. "Merlin, this is horrible."

"Maybe you should start in your room, Cub," George suggested.

"Yeah, that's your space and no one else's," Fred added. "George and I will go set up the protective enchantments and make sure no one's lurking in the bushes."

I managed a nod as they disappeared from the room. As soon as the front door closed, I turned on my heel and sprinted up to my bedroom, not looking at the pictures on the wall or the scorch marks on the floor and the ceiling. As soon as I reached my bedroom, I closed the door behind me and sank to the ground, burying my head in my hands.

_This is torture._

_I should have swallowed my pride and told Harry._

_No no no, Harry can't know. He's been too- too- no, I can't tell him and risk losing him._

Eventually, I lifted my head from my hands. Eventually, I pushed myself to my feet. Eventually, I opened my trunk. And eventually, I started sifting through everything.

Three piles. Bring with me, leave here, unsure.

The bring pile was on my bed. School books. Quills. Gryffindor robes. 

The leave pile was shoved into the corner of my room. On top of it, the stuffed osprey I'd never gotten to give Cedric.

I stared at the unsure pile, the largest of the three, in the middle of the room. My fifteenth birthday gift from Cedric, the book and the vials full of memories. The tiny dragons he and Harry had given me after the first task, who paced around the pile as if they were guarding it. My Quidditch robes, and my broom.

It was overwhelming. I didn't want to be alone anymore.

I turned away and hurried down the stairs. 

"What's wrong?" George asked immediately.

I shook my head. "Nothing. Just..." I shook my head again, noticing for the first time the overflowing box of letters he and Fred had placed on the kitchen table. "Are those...?"

"Well, we think your mum's enchantments kept _everything_ in and _everything_ out." Fred passed me a letter with my name on it in Hermione's handwriting. "Because we wrote you constantly, but never heard back."

"And I wrote you constantly, too," I murmured, opening the letter but not reading it yet. 

George held up a letter in my handwriting. "We reckoned that, too."

I stared at the box. It must have contained hundreds of letters.

"They're mostly addressed to you," Fred commented. "We've just been sorting through to make sure none of them are carrying curses. We don't need another Hermione fan mail situation."

I almost laughed. "Bubotuber pus and head cold blasts." I shook my head, blinking away the tears that came when I remembered Cedric had been the one to catch me when I passed out and I realized he'd never do that again. "Merlin, what am I going to do with all of those?"

"Well, obviously you don't have to worry about replying to ours, though you might be interested in reading them," George said. "I'm sure Hermione at the very least will want to read the ones you tried to send her. Fred and I can read the ones you wrote us tonight. Speaking of, how long do we have?"

I glanced at the clock. "A couple hours."

Fred nodded. "Great, that's what we were thinking. Are you done getting everything together?"

I shook my head.

"Do you want help?"

I shook my head again.

"Would you rather watch us work on a couple of things for the joke shop?"

When I nodded, they set up camp in the living room. I curled up in Cedric's favorite armchair and listened to their running commentary as they worked. The magic was fascinating, truly, and the distraction was a nice change of pace. The twins just tinkered, occasionally asking my opinion on one thing or another.

I made my way back up to my room after a while to finish up. Once my trunk was packed with everything I'd need for the school year — except for my new books and a new wand, which I would go with Professor Lupin to get after the full moon — I made my way back downstairs and resumed my seat in the chair.

Eventually, the sun began to sink. It was time for me to go. They realized this and glanced up at me at the same time.

I nodded and rose from the chair, heading to the door that led down to the basement.

I crossed my arms over my chest and glanced back and forth between the twins.

"Once I close the door behind me, neither of you can open it for any reason until I come back in the morning. Cast all of the silencing charms you want, and you should put something heavy in front of the door until morning just in case."

"But shouldn't we be able to get to you if something goes wrong?" George asked, cocking his head.

"No. That's why I recommended the silencing charms. I don't care how loud I am, you _cannot_ go down. If I see a human, I will bite. So just cast the silencing charms, block the door so I can't get out, and once I hear you move whatever it is away in the morning, I'll come up. Don't look at me like that," I added softly, glancing down at my shoes so I didn't have to see the fear and pity in their eyes. "I'm just telling you what my parents did in July. I'll take care of the rest. There's nothing anyone can do to stop what's about to happen to _me_ , so please just make sure _you're_ both safe."

I could tell that they didn't want to let me go. It was so rare the twins were silent, rarer still they looked sad. 

I couldn't make the promise that I'd be fine. I knew that after everything I'd been through, this transformation would possibly be the worst I'd ever experienced.

But I forced my own terror away and tucked my hair behind my ears. 

"See you in the morning," I said with as much confidence as I could muster. I didn't wait for a reply before turning on my heel, throwing the door open, and slamming it behind me. "It locks from your side."

I waited for a click, but it didn't come.

"Please, I-" I sighed. "I-I can't hurt you. Why are you hesitating?"

"Why are we hesitating?" Fred repeated. "Cub, we can't just lock you away and shut you up and try to pretend that any of this is okay."

"'Okay' or not, it's going to happen," I snapped. "I can't let myself hurt you. I'm a monster, don't you remember? I thought you understood that."

"And _I_ thought _you_ remembered us telling you that you weren't," George added.

"Don't you remember what Sirius was saying last night about dark creatures?" I shouted louder and louder as I backed down the stairs, away from the closed door. "Don't you realize who he was talking about? Why do you think I was allowed to live but my parents weren't? _I'm_ the werewolf, _I'm_ the monster, they wanted _me_!"

"We know he wanted you!" Fred called back. "But you came back to us, didn't you? Don't you think that means anything?"

"I don't know anymore! But it doesn't change the fact that-" All of the air in my lungs was startled out of me when I unexpectedly reached the bottom step.

The darkness of the room pressed in on all sides. The world around me pitched as a wave of dizziness swept over me. 

"Please just lock the door, if nothing else," I called weakly, hoping they could hear me. "It's not like I'll know too much different, anyway. Soon enough, I won't remember anything about the last month and a half," I added, bitterness lacing my tone. I breathed a small sigh, feeling the first of the pain begin. "I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

GEORGE: 

Before we could reply, a bloodcurdling scream — so loud it was as if the door were wide open — met our ears. 

"Lucy, are you okay?" I shouted, panic surging through me at the sound of her distress.

When her only answer was a second scream, somehow even worse than the first, I glanced out the window.

It was the transformation.

"Merlin," Fred breathed, locking the door with a shaking hand. We backed one step away, freezing in our tracks when she screamed a third time. This scream ended in something like a yelp. The fourth scream ended in a howl. Then another howl. And another howl. And another howl. Fred and I remained rooted to the ground with horror.

The first crash made us both jump a foot into the air. 

"I just wish there was something we could do," I said as I tried to force away the worry.

"We'll patch her up in the morning and get her back to Harry as soon as possible. I'm sure he can take care of the rest."

"I can't believe she hasn't told him yet," I commented, shaking my head. 

"Yeah, if I weren't so worried about hurting her or breaking her trust in doing so, I'd have told him myself at this point," Fred agreed. 

"It seemed like she might have been considering it before... well, all of this." I swallowed hard remembering what she'd said from the other side of the door. "I mean, we've already assured her we don't think she's a monster. But if she can doubt us on that now because of what they did to her, I can only imagine how terrified she is to tell anyone else ever again." I shook my head, bitterness making my chest tighten. "It's not — not bloody fair, none of it."

Fred nodded silently. 

Another crash made us jump and shocked us out of our angry, bitter stupor. 

We sorted through the Diggorys' letters, making a Susan pile, an Amos pile, and a Lucy pile. We'd bring her parents' piles to Lupin and Moody to investigate. Lucy would probably enjoy reading hers over the course of the next couple of days, since she was always so tired after the full moon.

After that, we read the letters Lucy had written to us that hadn't been able to get through her mum's protective enchantments. The letters were short, nothing of interest, really. But it hurt to read how badly she was hurting all by herself.

Neither of us felt like sleeping, so we brewed a large batch of wideye potion while we worked in the living room. 

The night was punctuated with various noises from below. Crashes, whimpers, the occasional sharp cracking noise, the occasional howl. And there was nothing we could do.

We both understood what she had meant about the silencing charms. But neither of us considered actually casting one for a second. It was good to have at least a faint idea of what was going on down below, even if it was nothing good.

The wideye potion wore off about 3 in the morning. We were both jolted awake by a crash, immediately followed by howls that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. When the screams started, we jumped to our feet and rushed to the door, waiting for the screams to stop and for her to come up.

But when the screams ended, we were met with silence. Complete silence.

"Everything alright, Cub?" Fred called.

Silence.

"Lucy?"

Silence.

"I know you wanted to come up yourself, but please just let us know you're okay."

Silence.

"Lucy, we're coming down," I called. Fred and I drew our wands in unison, unlocking the door.

"Lumos maxima," Fred muttered.

The light of his wand revealed Lucy at the base of the stairs, deathly pale and clearly unconscious.

I'd never gone down a flight of stairs so quickly in my life, and I'd once tried roller skating down a bannister. 

I dropped to my knees and reached for her wrist to find a pulse, and I realized with horror that both wrists had massive bite marks wrapping all the way around. I pressed my fingers lightly to her neck instead, where her pulse was thready and rapid.

"She's alive, but barely," I whispered.

Fred pointed his wand at her. "Rennervate."

She jerked to back to consciousness, and her eyes immediately widened in fear.

"Lucy, it's okay, it's just me, I won't hurt you," Fred said quickly, tucking his wand away and holding his hands up. "George and I are both here. You're safe. Nobody's going to hurt you anymore, I promise."

"Fred, we need to get Mum," I muttered. I could see how hard Lucy was working to breathe.

Lucy shook her head. "No. Please. She doesn't know. I don't want her to know."

"Cub, you... you're..."

"Cedric."

I blinked. "No, no, I'm George-"

"No. Cedric."

Fred and I exchanged a look before turning back to her.

"What are you trying to tell us, Cub?" Fred asked, his voice shaking.

She took a deep breath and tried again. "Cedric had books. Healing spells. For me."

"Would they be upstairs?"

"Yeah."

"Stay with her, I'll be right back." Fred jumped to his feet and sprinted up the stairs, shouting summoning spells as he went in an attempt to find the books faster.

Lucy's eyes fluttered shut, but I shook her shoulder. "Hey, stay with me, Cub. I don't want to have to revive you again, that startled you."

"It's how they brought me around after torturing me," she mumbled, her eyes still closed. "I thought I was back there."

She shuddered, and I felt her forehead.

"Merlin, Cub, you're freezing," I said, glancing around for anything that could help warm her up. "What _happened_?"

Lucy opened her eyes and gestured weakly with her chin across the room. "That fell. On me."

I illuminated my wand as I turned around. "Lucy, that's a massive shelf! What was it doing down here in the first place?"

"Dad said it'd be fine," she said. "I managed to get out from under it at some point, then I think I passed out from the pain."

"Did you break your ribs?" I asked, checking to make sure there were no blood stains other than those on her sleeves from her wrists.

"Feels like I did," she replied in a voice so casual we might have been talking about something as silly a paper cut if not for the barely-masked pain that lay within her words. "Bloody hell, it hurts."

"I know, Cub, I know, I'm sorry." I brushed her hair away from her face, letting my fingers graze her forehead again. She was fading, and fast. 

Fred appeared suddenly in the doorway, three books in his arms.

"These all have little bookmarks with 'L' written on them. This has to be it, right?"

Lucy nodded. "Those."

"Broken ribs, find one for broken ribs," I muttered, snatching a book from his hands and flipping through as quickly as I possibly could. "Got it!"

I studied the incantation for a moment before murmuring it and hoping for the best. 

Lucy sighed in relief. "That helps. Thank you."

"An episkey should do for these, yeah?" Fred asked, gesturing to her wrists.

Lucy nodded. "Should be fine. I usually heal those by myself, but seeing as I don't really want to trigger the Trace again-"

"Say no more."

Fred and I each healed a wrist, and Lucy pushed herself to a sitting position.

"Thanks, boys, that feels loads better." She blinked, then glanced up the stairs. "Is that wideye potion I smell?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "Lucy, give us a moment to catch our breath!"

She blushed. "Right. Sorry. This is... well, somewhat normal for me. I forget." 

She shifted so she could lean back against the wall. Fred and I automatically moved to either side of her, and I realized she had the right idea. It was nice leaning on something so solid after feeling as if I'd been in a free fall of fear. 

Lucy pulled her knees to her chest and closed her eyes. "First year, it was a wardrobe in the Shrieking Shack. I knocked it over, and it broke my ribs, too. Ribs are tricky, though, and the spell you used hadn't been discovered yet. It took more than a month to feel fully healed."

"Will it take that long this time, too?" I asked, horrified.

"No, it shouldn't. I didn't have the same spell last time. Cedric..." She paused and took a deep breath before continuing. Saying her brother's name was still hard for her, which was partly why Fred and I were so taken off guard by her saying it in the first place while half-conscious. "Cedric constantly sought out new healing books. He read each and every one cover-to-cover, taking tons of notes, but as you can see, he flagged everything that would help me in particular so he'd be able to take care of me whenever I... well..."

"Had a night like last?" Fred finished for her.

Lucy nodded. "Exactly." Her head drooped onto my shoulder, and she yawned. "Alright, boys, are you giving me the wideye upstairs, or am I sleeping here for the next three days?"

"I think Harry would hex us into oblivion if we kept you two separated much longer," Fred quipped, rising to his feet and hauling Lucy to hers. "Your potion awaits."

"So does a shower," she mumbled as she climbed the stairs. I followed closely behind, just in case she stumbled. But she didn't, somehow.

I was still shaking from the whole ordeal. I couldn't believe how, well, _casual_ Lucy was being about it all.

Surely enough, Lucy chugged what was left of our wideye potion without hesitation, then headed upstairs to take a shower while Fred and I cleaned up our night of inventing.

* * *

LUCY:

I didn't feel quite as great as I was trying to pretend I felt. When I slipped into the shower, I did the best I could to clean the scrapes and scratches on my arms and legs, taking special care of the bite marks around my ankles the twins hadn't seen.

I had frightened them enough with breaking my ribs, like an idiot. I didn't need to worry them any further.

Still, I showered as quickly as I could.

I missed Harry. And I was ready to leave this haunted house, for a long time. Until I was ready to truly unpack everything that had happened under that roof, the good and the bad alike.

I didn't know when exactly that would be, but I wasn't ready yet.

Soon enough, I was ready to return to Grimmauld. I held the twins' bag while they each took a handle of my school trunk. George's free hand grabbed mine, and the three of us returned to the 12 Grimmauld Place living room with a loud crack.

I had only just passed George their bag of inventions when the door to the living room flew open.

Harry darted across the room and scooped me up into a tight hug.

"Promise kept," I whispered.

Harry managed a grin as he set me down. "Let's keep it that way, yeah?"

I almost smiled back at him as I nodded. "I'll always come back."

He didn't understand just how significant that promise was.

He didn't understand just how many times I'd found myself trapped between Cedric and Harry in my dreams.

The Cedric who wasn't really Cedric would tell me it was alright if I gave up and joined him.

But Harry was always right there, reminding me why I kept making the decision to come back, time and time again.

I slipped my hand into his as Hermione, Ron, and Ginny all hurried in to greet me.

_I'll always come back. I promise._


	92. A Delinquent

HARRY:

My eyes snapped open the morning of my hearing, and for a moment, I let myself linger in my dread. Then the moment passed, and fear propelled me out of bed with the speed of a Golden Snitch. I hurriedly changed into jeans and a T-shirt and slipped out of the room, careful not to wake Ron. I knew it was practically impossible to wake him anyway; he was almost as deep a sleeper as Lucy, who I fervently hoped was still sound asleep down the hall. 

She wasn't. She was at the kitchen table, twirling a quill around her fingers as she stared blankly at the stacks of envelopes and parchment in front of her, Tuck snoring at her feet.

Tonks was there too, next to Professor Lupin, who was next to Sirius. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were across the table, and it appeared that the empty seat between Mr. Weasley and Lucy was intended for me.

Sirius grinned when he saw me observing the scene from the doorway. "She claimed she wanted to get an early start on replying to her fan mail, but when she started glancing over her shoulder every thirty seconds, we reckoned she just wanted to see you off."

Lucy snapped from her daze and turned to face me, pale cheeks flushing a bit. "It's not fan mail, but... I thought today would be a good day to try to get through all of these," she said, gesturing to the envelopes. 

I tried to eat as conversation swirled around the table. I found it hard to pay attention until I was addressed directly.

“How are you feeling?” Mr. Weasley asked.

I shrugged in response, knowing I wouldn't be able to talk around the anxious lump in my throat.

“It’ll all be over soon. In a few hours’ time you’ll be cleared. The hearing’s on my floor, in Amelia Bones’s office. She’s Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and she’s the one who’ll be questioning you.”

Tonks nodded. “Amelia Bones is okay, Harry. She’s fair, she’ll hear you out.”

“She's the one who ultimately got everyone to just read the report and drop my charges,” Lucy added quietly. I blinked at her, surprised. _Lucy? Charges? What did she do?_ But she offered no further explanation, so I glanced away.

“Don’t lose your temper. Be polite and stick to the facts,” Sirius advised. 

“The law’s on your side. Even underage wizards are allowed to use magic in life-threatening situations,” Professor Lupin said with a sigh.

Mrs. Weasley started running a wet comb through my hair, but it was no use. “Doesn’t it _ever_ lie flat?”

I shook my head.

"Hey, Harry," Lucy said suddenly, passing me a letter. "Want to read Fleur's letter? There's something in here she intended for me to share with you."

"Sure," I said. I unfolded the piece of parchment and did my best to decipher the flowery handwriting.

_Dearest Lucy,_

_How are you? This summer has not been terribly kind to you, but I hope you are doing well nonetheless._

_I have good news! I will be moving to England! I got a job at Gringotts, and I am hoping to improve my English. I will have to tell you all about my new job when I see you again, which is hopefully sooner than later because I will be so close._

_I thought you might like to know that Maxence made the ultimate fool out of himself upon our return to Beauxbatons. Those Galleons Draco Malfoy gave him in February? He had a bit too much firewhisky and decided it would be a good idea to play Exploding Écarté on our last night at school. He lost it all in a bet. Karma is funny, is it not?_

_(You may want to tell Harry this also. I am sure he will appreciate it. I will never forget the impressive way Harry yanked him away from the tent while you were in there. He might hate Maxence even more than I do.)_

_In all seriousness, I am always just a letter away if you ever need anything at all. Your brother was a great friend to me, and I know how terribly you must miss him. I cannot imagine life without my Gabrielle. She sends her regards as well._

_Love always, Fleur Delacour_

Despite the fact that three minutes prior I had been sick to my stomach with anxiety, I had to stifle a laugh reading the section of the letter about Maxence. The bloody fool deserved it.

Lucy almost smiled. "Thought you'd appreciate that. But what did she mean about the tent? You never told me anything about that."

I shook my head. "Git. He tried to head into the tent after the second task. I, er, made sure he didn't. You were a bit distracted, so you didn't notice."

"A bit distracted," she echoed with a slight nod. She took the letter back and looked at me with that gaze that saw straight through me for a moment. "You don't have to be nervous, Harry. Everything will work out one way or another. I don't think they'll expel you, but if they do, I'll go get myself expelled too, and we can be delinquents together, running secret missions for the Order and causing all sorts of trouble for the Ministry."

I couldn't help but laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of her suggestion. "I don't think that's how it works-"

"No, of course that's not how it works," she said with another almost-smile. She poked my chest. "That's why you have to get off. Alright?"

"I'll do my best," I replied.

Mr. Weasley glanced at his watch. “I think we’ll go now. We’re a bit early, but I think you’ll be better off there than hanging around here.”

I nodded and rose to my feet, heading toward the door. 

“You’ll be alright, Harry!” Tonks called encouragingly.

Professor Lupin nodded. “Good luck, but I’m sure it will be fine.”

“And if it’s not, I’ll see to Amelia Bones for you, and I'll let Lucy help so she gets expelled too,” Sirius added with a wink. Lucy nodded

My stomach fluttered with nerves again, but I offered a smile just before Mrs. Weasley hugged me in the doorway.

I glanced at Lucy one last time. I knew that the way she had wrapped her arms around her waist meant she was worried, but she tried to offer me as much hope as she could — I also knew that hope was something in short supply for her those days. "See you later, alright?"

"See you later, Lu."

When she reached for her quill, I could see her hand trembling even from where I stood on the other side of the room.

I was reminded once again of my last promise to Cedric. 

_I have to get off. For Lucy, if nothing and no one else._

I followed Mr. Weasley down the hallway out to the street, and with that, my day began. 

Mr. Weasley said he typically apparated to work, so he gazed around with wonder at the streets and the trains and the automatic ticket machines and the Muggles everywhere.

Eventually, we reached an old red telephone booth, and the two of us crammed ourselves into it.

Mr. Weasley reached forward and studied the dial. “Let’s see... six, two, four... and another four... and another two...”

“Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business,” a female voice said.

“Arthur Weasley, Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, here to escort Harry Potter, who has been asked to attend a disciplinary hearing.”

“Thank you. Visitor, please take the badge and attach it to the front of your robes.”

A couple of seconds later, a badge reading _Harry Potter, Disciplinary Hearing_ appeared in the coin catcher. My hands trembled as I tried to attach it, and I found myself understanding a little better why Lucy got so frustrated with her shaking hands.

“Visitor to the Ministry, you are required to submit to a search and present your wand for registration at the security desk, which is located at the far end of the Atrium.”

Then we began to descend, like in a lift.

“The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant day,” the voice said when we reached the bottom and the door popped open.

My nerves took a backseat to my wonder for a second as I glanced around at the Ministry of Magic, all shades of blue and gold with people milling in every direction. I followed Mr. Weasley through the crowd until we reached the security desk.

“I’m escorting a visitor,” Mr. Weasley said to the wizard sitting behind it.

He glanced up from his copy of the _Daily Prophet_ and rose to his feet.

“Step over here.” When I complied, he waved a golden rod up and down my front and back, then held out a hand. “Wand.”

I drew it, hand still shaking, and he set my wand onto something that looked rather like a scale. A piece of parchment popped out after a moment.

“Eleven inches, phoenix-feather core, been in use four years. That correct?”

I nodded. "Yes." _Holly wood, as well,_ I added to myself. My wand meant a lot to me.

“I keep the parchment, you get the wand back,” he said, passing it back to me. He froze, glancing between my badge and my forehead. "Hang on..."

Mr. Weasley pulled me away before he could say another word. Eventually we reached a series of lifts, and Mr. Weasley headed over to a man who was holding a cardboard box that seemed to be making more noise than a typical cardboard box.

“Alright, Arthur?” the wizard asked.

“What’ve you got there, Bob?” Mr. Weasley inquired in response.

The wizard lifted the box with a sigh. “We’re not sure. We thought it was a bog-standard chicken until it started breathing fire. Looks like a serious breach of the Ban on Experimental Breeding to me.”

I suddenly had to suppress a smile as we stepped onto the lift. _I have to tell Lucy about that when I get back._

Eventually, a voice announced, “Level two, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Improper Use of Magic Office, Auror Headquarters, and Wizengamot Administration Services.”

“This is us, Harry, my office is on the other side of the floor.”

As I followed Mr. Weasley into the hallway, I couldn't help but notice that the sun was shining through the windows. “Mr. Weasley, aren’t we underground?”

“Yes, we are, those are enchanted windows; Magical Maintenance decide what weather we’re getting every day. We had two months of hurricanes last time they were angling for a pay raise. Just round here, Harry.”

We made our way to the Auror Headquarters, where we were stopped by Kingsley Shacklebolt. 

“Morning, Weasley. I’ve been wanting a word with you, have you got a second?”

“Yes, if it really is a second, I’m in rather a hurry.” 

I opened my mouth to say hello, but Mr. Weasley stepped on my toes. _Right. They're not supposed to know each other as well as they do._

When we reached his cubicle, I blinked in shock. Sirius's face was everywhere. _Right. He's still a wanted criminal._

Kingsley passed Mr. Weasley a stack of parchment. “Here. I need as much information as possible on flying Muggle vehicles sighted in the last twelve months. We’ve received information that Black might still be using his old motorcycle.” He winked at me before whispering, “Give him the magazine, he might find it interesting.” He straightened up and spoke normally again. “And don’t take too long, Weasley, the delay on that firelegs report held our investigation up for a month.”

“If you had read my report you would know that the term is ‘firearms.’ And I’m afraid you’ll have to wait for information on motorcycles, we’re extremely busy at the moment.” Then he whispered, “If you can get away before seven, Molly’s making meatballs.”

From there, we headed to Mr. Weasley's office, which contained two desks and a number of posters and diagrams revealing Mr. Weasley's love of all things Muggle.

“We haven’t got a window. We’ve asked, but they don’t seem to think we need one. Have a seat, Harry, doesn’t look as if Perkins is in yet.”

I slid into the chair belonging to Perkins and watched as Mr. Weasley shuffled through the parchment in search of whatever magazine was there for Sirius. He smiled as he pulled out of a copy of _The Quibbler_ , the magazine Lucy had been reading the night I figured out the golden egg clue. Merlin, that felt like a lifetime ago. I wondered if I'd ever have another midnight adventure around the castle, and I felt a pang in my chest when I realized I might not.

“Ah, yes. Yes, he’s right, I’m sure Sirius will find that very amusing — oh dear, what’s this now?” 

A memo flew into the room, and Mr. Weasley snatched it from the air.

“‘Third regurgitating public toilet reported in Bethnal Green, kindly investigate immediately.’ This is getting ridiculous!”

I blinked. “A regurgitating toilet?”

Mr. Weasley sighed. “Anti-Muggle pranksters. We had two last week, one in Wimbledon, one in Elephant and Castle. Muggles are pulling the flush and instead of everything disappearing — well, you can imagine. The poor things keep calling in those — those pumbles, I think they’re called — you know, the ones who mend pipes and things?”

“Plumbers?” 

“Exactly! Yes, but of course they’re flummoxed. I only hope we can catch whoever’s doing it.” 

“Will it be Aurors who catch them?”

“Oh no, this is too trivial for Aurors, it’ll be the ordinary Magical Law Enforcement Patrol — ah, Harry, this is Perkins.” 

Perkins burst into the office, looking thoroughly distressed. “Oh Arthur! Thank goodness, I didn’t know what to do for the best, whether to wait here for you or not, I’ve just sent an owl to your home but you’ve obviously missed it — an urgent message came ten minutes ago-”

“I know about the regurgitating toilet-”

“No, no, it’s not the toilet, it’s the Potter boy’s hearing, they’ve changed the time and venue, it starts at eight o’clock now and it’s down in old Courtroom Ten-” 

“Down in old — but they told me — Merlin’s beard!” 

I jumped to my feet, molten panic coursing through me.

Mr. Weasley glanced at his watch. “Quick, Harry, we should have been there five minutes ago!”

He sprinted from the office, and I followed as best I could. “Why have they changed the time?”

“I’ve no idea, but thank goodness we got here so early, if you’d missed it it would have been catastrophic!” he panted as we skidded into a lift. “Those courtrooms haven’t been used in years! I can’t think why they’re doing it down there — unless — but no...” 

The lift stopped at the Department of Mysteries, and Mr. Weasley took off at a run again, throwing open a door that revealed a flight of stairs.

“Down here, down here, the lift doesn’t even come down this far, _why_ they’re doing it there is _beyond_ me...”

We raced along a dark and cold corridor until Mr. Weasley skidded to a stop and pointed at a door. “Go on, get in there.”

I froze. “Aren’t you coming with-”

“No, no, I’m not allowed. Good luck!” 

I opened the door with a violently trembling hand, feeling quite sick to my stomach.

“You’re late,” a cold voice announced.

“Sorry, I-I didn’t know the time had changed-”

“That is not the Wizengamot’s fault. An owl was sent to you this morning. Take your seat.”

As I walked to my seat, I studied the room. I had been there once before, sort of, in Dumbledore's Pensieve. Once I had lowered myself into the seat, I let myself look up at the fifty or so people in the benches above me. 

Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, was scowling at me from the front row. I had never seen such an expression on his face. In my past experiences, he had often smiled at me like I was a prize he wanted to win. But in that moment, he looked at me like I was a bug he hoped to squash under his heavy boot.

Two witches sat on either side of him, one with a monocle and one whose face was hidden. 

Fudge sighed. “Very well. The accused being present — finally — let us begin. Are you ready?”

“Yes, sir!” said none other than Percy Weasley, who wasn't looking at me. His quill was held over his parchment, ready to write down every word that was said.

Fudge's booming voice filled the room. “Disciplinary hearing of the twelfth of August into offenses committed under the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery and the International Statute of Secrecy by Harry James Potter, resident at number four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey. Interrogators: Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister of Magic; Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister. Court Scribe, Percy Ignatius Weasley-” 

“Witness for the defense, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,” a voice behind me said. 

I whipped my head around to see Dumbledore approaching, eyes fixed on Fudge. I felt some of the knots of anxiety within me loosen at the sight of him.

Fudge, however, seemed to be feeling exactly the opposite way. “Ah. Dumbledore. Yes. You — er — got our — er — message that the time and — er — place of the hearing had been changed, then?”

“I must have missed it. However, due to a lucky mistake I arrived at the Ministry three hours early, so no harm done.”

“Yes — well — I suppose we’ll need another chair — I — Weasley, could you-”

“Not to worry, not to worry,” Dumbledore said. With a flick of his wand, another chair appeared.

Fudge was still incredibly flustered as he read the charges. “The charges against the accused are as follows: That he did knowingly, deliberately, and in full awareness of the illegality of his actions, having received a previous written warning from the Ministry of Magic on a similar charge, produce a Patronus Charm in a Muggle-inhabited area, in the presence of a Muggle, on August the second at twenty-three minutes past nine, which constitutes an offense under paragraph C of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, 1875, and also under section thirteen of the International Confederation of Wizards’ Statute of Secrecy. You are Harry James Potter, of number four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey?”

“Yes.”

“You received an official warning from the Ministry for using illegal magic three years ago, did you not?” 

“Yes, but-”

“And yet you conjured a patronus on the night of the second of August?”

“Yes, but-”

“Knowing that you are not permitted to use magic outside school while you are under the age of seventeen?” 

“Yes, but-”

“Knowing that you were in an area full of Muggles?”

“Yes, but-”

“Fully aware that you were in close proximity to a Muggle at the time?”

“ _Yes_ , but I only used it because we were-”

The witch with the monocle interrupted me that time. “You produced a fully fledged patronus?”

“Yes, because-”

“A corporeal patronus? It had a clearly defined form? I mean to say, it was more than vapor or smoke?” 

I nodded fervently. “Yes, it’s a stag, it’s always a stag.”

“Always? You have produced a Patronus before now?”

“Yes, I’ve been doing it for over a year-”

“And you are fifteen years old?” 

“Yes, and-”

“You learned this at school?”

“Yes, Professor Lupin taught me in my third year, and my friend Lucy Diggory too, because of the-”

“Impressive. A true patronus at that age... very impressive indeed.”

There was a brief pause. I tried to take a deep breath, but frustration and exasperation and desperation had wrapped hot coils around my chest. 

Fudge shook his head. “It’s not a question of how impressive the magic was. In fact, the more impressive the worse it is, I would have thought, given that the boy did it in plain view of a Muggle!”

“I did it because of the dementors!” I burst out, so no one would dare to interrupt me again.

The monocled witch, who I guessed must have been Amelia Bones, raised her eyebrows. “Dementors? What do you mean, boy?” 

“I mean there were two dementors down that alleyway and they went for me and my cousin!”

Fudge smirked. “Ah. Yes. Yes, I thought we’d be hearing something like this.”

Madam Bones sounded rather surprised. “Dementors in Little Whinging? I don’t understand-”

“Don’t you, Amelia? Let me explain. He’s been thinking it through and decided dementors would make a very nice little cover story, very nice indeed. Muggles can’t see dementors, can they, boy? Highly convenient, highly convenient, so it’s just your word and no witnesses.”

I shook my head. “I’m not lying! There were two of them, coming from opposite ends of the alley, everything went dark and cold and my cousin felt them and ran for it-”

“Enough, enough!” Fudge shouted with a wave of his hand. “I’m sorry to interrupt what I’m sure would have been a very well-rehearsed story-”

Just then, Dumbledore cleared his throat, and silence fell. “We do, in fact, have a witness to the presence of dementors in that alleyway. Other than Dudley Dursley, I mean.”

“We haven’t got time to listen to more taradiddles, I’m afraid, Dumbledore. I want this dealt with quickly-” 

“I may be wrong but I am sure that under the Wizengamot Charter of Rights, the accused has the right to present witnesses for his or her case? Isn’t that the policy of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Madam Bones?”

“True, perfectly true,” she said.

“Oh, very well, very well. Where is this person?” Fudge growled.

“I brought her with me. She’s just outside the door. Should I-”

“No. Weasley, you go.”

Percy jumped up from his seat and hurried to the door. Mrs. Figg entered the room then. Dumbledore gave her his chair and conjured up another one for himself.

“Full name?” Fudge asked.

“Arabella Doreen Figg.”

“And who exactly are you?”

“I’m a resident of Little Whinging, close to where Harry Potter lives.” 

Madam Bones furrowed her brow. “We have no record of any witch or wizard living in Little Whinging other than Harry Potter. That situation has always been closely monitored, given... given past events.”

“I’m a Squib, so you wouldn’t have me registered, would you?” 

Fudge narrowed his eyes. “A Squib, eh? We’ll be checking that. You’ll leave details of your parentage with my assistant, Weasley. Incidentally, can Squibs see dementors?”

“Yes, we can!”

“Very well. What is your story?”

“I had gone out to buy cat food from the corner shop at the end of Wisteria Walk, shortly after nine on the evening of the second of August when I heard a disturbance down the alleyway between Magnolia Crescent and Wisteria Walk. On approaching the mouth of the alleyway I saw dementors running-”

“Running? Dementors don’t run, they glide,” Madam Bones interrupted.

“That’s what I meant to say, gliding along the alley toward what looked like two boys.”

“What did they look like?”

“Well, one was very large and the other one rather skinny-”

“No, no, the dementors. Describe them.”

“Oh. They were big. Big and wearing cloaks.” 

“Big and wearing cloaks. I see. Anything else?”

“Yes. I felt them. Everything went cold, and this was a very warm summer’s night, mark you. And I felt as though all happiness had gone from the world, and I remembered... dreadful things.”

For the first time, Madam Bones paused, a look of surprise on her face. “What did the dementors do?”

“They went for the boys. One of them had fallen. The other was backing away, trying to repel the dementor. That was Harry. He tried twice and produced silver vapor. On the third attempt, he produced a patronus, which charged down the first dementor and then, with his encouragement, chased away the second from his cousin. And that... that was what happened.”

Fudge spoke next. “That’s what you saw, is it?”

“That was what happened.”

“Very well. You may go.” 

She hurried from the room, looking rather frightened.

Once the door closed behind her, Fudge declared, “Not a very convincing witness.”

“Oh, I don’t know. She certainly described the effects of a dementor attack very accurately. And I can’t imagine why she would say they were there if they weren’t,” Madam Bones replied.

“But dementors wandering into a Muggle suburb and just _happening_ to come across a wizard? The odds on that must be very, very long, even Bagman wouldn’t have bet-”

“Oh, I don’t think any of us believe the dementors were there by coincidence,” Dumbledore interrupted in a deceptively pleasant voice.

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that I think they were ordered there.”

“I think we might have a record of it if someone had ordered a pair of dementors to go strolling through Little Whinging!”

“Not if the dementors are taking orders from someone other than the Ministry of Magic these days. I have already given you my views on this matter, Cornelius.” 

“Yes, you have, and I have no reason to believe that your views are anything other than bilge, Dumbledore. The dementors remain in place in Azkaban and are doing everything we ask them to.” 

“Then we must ask ourselves why somebody within the Ministry ordered a pair of dementors into that alleyway on the second of August.”

The woman on Fudge's right leaned forward so I could see her face for the first time. She looked rather like a toad.

“The Chair recognizes Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister,” Fudge said.

Her voice was sickeningly sweet. “I’m sure I must have misunderstood you, Professor Dumbledore. So silly of me. But it sounded for a teensy moment as though you were suggesting that the Ministry of Magic had ordered an attack on this boy!”

She laughed, and a number of other witches and wizards joined her. 

Dumbledore was unfazed. “If it is true that the dementors are taking orders only from the Ministry of Magic, and it is also true that two dementors attacked Harry and his cousin a week ago, then it follows logically that somebody at the Ministry might have ordered the attacks. Of course, these particular dementors may have been outside Ministry control-”

“There are no dementors outside Ministry control!” Fudge insisted.

“-then undoubtedly the Ministry will be making a full inquiry into why two dementors were so very far from Azkaban and why they attacked without authorization.”

“It is not for you to decide what the Ministry of Magic does or does not do, Dumbledore!”

“Of course it isn’t. I was merely expressing my confidence that this matter will not go uninvestigated.”

“I would remind everybody that the behavior of these dementors, if indeed they are not figments of this boy’s imagination, is not the subject of this hearing! We are here to examine Harry Potter’s offenses under the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery!” 

“Of course we are, but the presence of dementors in that alleyway is highly relevant. Clause seven of the Decree states that magic may be used before Muggles in exceptional circumstances, and as those exceptional circumstances include situations that threaten the life of the wizard or witch himself, or witches, wizards, or Muggles present at the time of the-”

“We are familiar with clause seven, thank you very much!”

“Of course you are. Then we are in agreement that Harry’s use of the Patronus Charm in these circumstances falls precisely into the category of exceptional circumstances it describes?” 

“If there were dementors, which I doubt-”

“You have heard from an eyewitness. If you still doubt her truthfulness, call her back, question her again. I am sure she would not object.”

“I — that — not — it’s — I want this over with today, Dumbledore!”

“But naturally, you would not care how many times you heard from a witness, if the alternative was a serious miscarriage of justice.” 

“Serious miscarriage, my hat! Have you ever bothered to tot up the number of cock-and-bull stories this boy has come out with, Dumbledore, while trying to cover up his flagrant misuse of magic out of school? I suppose you’ve forgotten the Hover Charm he used three years ago-”

I shook my head. “That wasn’t me, it was a house-elf!”

“YOU SEE? A house-elf! In a Muggle house! I ask you-”

“The house-elf in question is currently in the employ of Hogwarts School. I can summon him here in an instant to give evidence if you wish,” Dumbledore interrupted.

“I — not — I haven’t got time to listen to house-elves! Anyway, that’s not the only — he blew up his aunt, for God’s sake!”

“And you very kindly did not press charges on that occasion, accepting, I presume, that even the best wizards cannot always control their emotions.”

“And I haven’t even started on what he gets up to at school-” 

“But as the Ministry has no authority to punish Hogwarts students for misdemeanors at school, Harry’s behavior there is not relevant to this inquiry.” 

“Oho! Not our business what he does at school, eh? You think so?” 

“The Ministry does not have the power to expel Hogwarts students, Cornelius, as I reminded you on the night of the second of August. Nor does it have the right to confiscate wands until charges have been successfully proven, again, as I reminded you on the night of the second of August. In your admirable haste to ensure that the law is upheld, you appear, inadvertently I am sure, to have overlooked a few laws yourself.”

“Laws can be changed.”

“Of course they can, and you certainly seem to be making many changes, Cornelius. Why, in the few short weeks since I was asked to leave the Wizengamot, it has already become the practice to hold a full criminal trial to deal with a simple matter of underage magic!” 

A heavy silence fell.

“As far as I am aware, however, there is no law yet in place that says this court’s job is to punish Harry for every bit of magic he has ever performed. He has been charged with a specific offense and he has presented his defense. All he and I can do now is to await your verdict.”

I glanced at Dumbledore, hoping he would meet my gaze, but he stared straight ahead. I felt a bit anxious at the urgency with which he wanted a verdict. I wasn't sure if I had given a good impression. I wasn't sure if they believed me yet. I couldn't be expelled. I couldn't risk being expelled.

The whispers swirled around the room. I studied my shoelaces. I knew I ought to be brave, to lift my head, to await their decision with confidence, but I couldn't.

The whispers stopped.

“Those in favor of clearing the accused of all charges?” came the voice of Madam Bones.

I glanced up, my anxiety reaching its peak. More than half of the hands were in the air.

“And those in favor of conviction?” 

Fudge was the first to raise his hand. The toad-like woman on his right did as well. But there were very few others.

Fudge lowered his hand slowly. “Very well, very well... cleared of all charges.”

Dumbledore jumped to his feet and vanished the chairs. “Excellent. Well, I must be getting along. Good day to you all.”

And with that, he left the dungeon. 

I remained in my chair for half a second longer. Stunned. Relieved.

I couldn't wait to tell Lucy.

I jumped to my feet and hurried from the room, nearly running into Mr. Weasley in my rush.

“Dumbledore didn’t say-” 

“Cleared of all charges!” I announced, smiling.

He grinned. “Harry, that’s wonderful! Well, of course, they couldn’t have found you guilty, not on the evidence, but even so, I can’t pretend I wasn’t-” The door behind me opened, and everyone who had tried me started leaving. “Merlin’s beard, you were tried by the full court?”

“I think so,” I admitted. 

Everyone glanced at us as they passed, some looking friendlier than others. Last of everyone was Percy. I thought that he'd just walk past and ignore us, the way he'd ignored me in the trial, but he paused briefly, looking over his shoulder to make sure nobody else was around to see or hear him.

"How is Lucy?" he asked in a low voice.

"She'll be glad to hear I got off," I replied with a passive-aggressive shrug.

Percy winced as if I'd struck him across the face.

"She's alright, Percy," Mr. Weasley said, his voice strained. "She's safe, and that's what matters." 

Percy glanced around again before lowering his voice further. "Listen... her name is controversial in my circles. You only ever hear it whispered, never spoken aloud. There's a bit of a fight going on, see, with three sides. A number of people would like to pretend nothing happened and blame it all on the same Death Eaters from the Quidditch World Cup, since their tent was attacked then. A number of people believe it really was You-Know-Who, and a number of people who think it was all a stunt by Dumbledore to try to push his agenda. And that third group of people is growing by the day, since the report you gave was so vague-"

"What are you trying to say, Percy?" Mr. Weasley pressed. "That report was intentionally vague, she is still a child and her privacy deserves to be protected-"

"I know, I know. I'm trying to say she needs to keep her head down. The Minister himself is of the opinion that we should pretend nothing happened and not investigate further, so as long as she stays out of trouble, this should all blow over soon."

"What if she _doesn't_ want to pretend that nothing happened?" I burst out. "What if she wants answers about why her entire family is dead now?"

Percy looked pained. "I just want what's best for her. And I think the less trouble she attracts, the better off she'll be."

With that, he turned on his heel and hurried away. Mr. Weasley and I watched him go in silence, lost in our own thoughts. After a long moment, Mr. Weasley turned to me with a smile, gesturing for me to follow him up the stairs.

“I’m going to take you straight back so you can tell the others the good news. I’ll drop you off on the way to that toilet in Bethnal Green. Come on.”

I smiled too, the whole toilet situation suddenly striking me as funny. _I'm going back to Hogwarts, with Ron and Hermione and Lucy. Lucy never gets in trouble there. She's the quietest and least problematic of all of us, she'll be fine._ “So what will you have to do about the toilet?”

“Oh, it’s a simple enough anti-jinx, but it’s not so much having to repair the damage, it’s more the attitude behind the vandalism, Harry. Muggle-baiting might strike some wizards as funny, but it’s an expression of something much deeper and nastier, and I for one-”

We froze when we saw Cornelius Fudge talking to none other than Lucius Malfoy.

“Well, well, well... Patronus Potter,” Malfoy said. 

I suddenly found it hard to breathe. He had been there that night in the graveyard. My hands curled into fists as anger surged through me.

“The Minister was just telling me about your lucky escape, Potter. Quite astonishing, the way you continue to wriggle out of very tight holes. Snakelike, in fact.”

Mr. Weasley's hand found my shoulder, giving it a warning squeeze.

“Yeah, I’m good at escaping,” I replied. I tried to force away the images from the graveyard. The flash of green that took Cedric away from his sister. Malfoy's cold eyes behind a Death Eater mask, watching as I was tortured. My escape via Portkey. 

“And Arthur Weasley too! What are you doing here, Arthur?”

“I work here,” Mr. Weasley replied simply.

“Not _here_ , surely? I thought you were up on the second floor. Don’t you do something that involves sneaking Muggle artifacts home and bewitching them?”

“No.”

“What are _you_ doing here anyway?” I asked.

“I don’t think private matters between myself and the Minister are any concern of yours, Potter. Really, just because you are Dumbledore’s favorite boy, you must not expect the same indulgence from the rest of us. Shall we go up to your office, then, Minister?”

Fudge blinked and turned on his heel. “Certainly. This way, Lucius.”

As soon as the door to the lift closed, I couldn't keep my mouth shut any longer. “Why wasn’t he waiting outside Fudge’s office if they’ve got business to do together? What was he doing down here?”

“Trying to sneak down to the courtroom, if you ask me. Trying to find out whether you’d been expelled or not. I’ll leave a note for Dumbledore when I drop you off, he ought to know Malfoy’s been talking to Fudge again.”

“What private business have they got together anyway?”

“Gold, I expect. Malfoy’s been giving generously to all sorts of things for years. Gets him in with the right people, then he can ask favors, delay laws he doesn’t want passed. He’s very well connected, Lucius Malfoy.”

“Mr. Weasley... if Fudge is meeting Death Eaters like Malfoy, if he’s seeing them alone, how do we know they haven’t put the Imperius Curse on him?” 

He sighed. “Don’t think it hadn’t occurred to us, Harry. But Dumbledore thinks Fudge is acting of his own accord at the moment — which, as Dumbledore says, is not a lot of comfort. Best not talk about it anymore just now, Harry.”

Soon enough, I was in the kitchen again, feeling far lighter than I had been feeling a few hours prior.

“Cleared of all charges,” I announced with a smile.

Ron whooped. “I knew it! You always get away with stuff!”

“They were bound to clear you, there was no case against you, none at all,” Hermione said, throwing her arms around me. 

“Yeah, well, everyone seems quite relieved, though, considering they all knew I’d get off,” I replied with a grin. I had to raise my voice over the twins and Ginny dancing around the kitchen chanting, “He got off, he got off, he got off!”

Mr. Weasley smiled as he waved his arms to try to shut them up. “That’s enough, settle down! Listen, Sirius, Lucius Malfoy was at the Ministry-”

“What?”

“Be quiet, you three! Yes, we saw him talking to Fudge on level nine, then they went up to Fudge’s office together. Dumbledore ought to know.”

“Absolutely. We’ll tell him, don’t worry.”

“Well, I’d better get going, there’s a vomiting toilet in Bethnal Green waiting for me. Molly, I’ll be late, I’m covering for Tonks, but Kingsley might be dropping in for dinner.”

Mr. Weasley hurried out of the kitchen, and Mrs. Weasley hugged me quickly before pulling away and fixing her motherly eyes on me. “Harry dear, come and sit down, have some lunch, you hardly ate breakfast.”

I slid into the seat next to Lucy and sighed dramatically. "No delinquency for us in the near future, I'm afraid."

"Well, that's a relief," she replied. She set aside the letter she had been holding and smiled as she wrapped her arms around my neck. "I'm glad you got off, Harry."

Electricity shot through me at the sight of her smile. It was the first I'd seen since she had arrived at Grimmauld. I smiled back, unable to help myself. It didn't matter that her eyes were still tired or that her ink-stained hands still shook as she reached for the letter again. Another little piece of Lucy was back, and I was going to be at Hogwarts to continue watching her come back bit by bit.

I suddenly remembered Bob, and I laughed. "Lucy, you should have seen this one wizard. He had a massive cardboard box, and Mr. Weasley asked what was in it, and it turns out it was a fire-breathing chicken."

She blinked and looked up from the letter. "Oh _Merlin_. So he took a dragon and a chicken and...?"

"It wasn't his, apparently," I replied with a shrug, "but I thought you might find that funny, creature lover that you are."

"I hope they add fire-breathing chickens to the Care of Magical Creatures cirriculum." Her tone was light, but as she glanced away, I spied a glimmer of tears. But just as soon as they appeared, she blinked them away and reached for the letter again. "Neville sends his best to everyone," she announced after a moment.

"Neville wrote you?" Ron asked, reaching for a chicken leg.

Lucy nodded, gesturing with her chin at one of the stacks of envelopes. "Three of those are from him. He thought maybe he'd spelled my name wrong and the letters had gone to someone else. Very important Herbology question for Mum," she added in a soft voice. She swallowed hard. "Fortunately, I know that _Mimbulus mimbletonia_ isn't poisonous _."_

"Poisonous or venemous?" I inquired with a small smile, hoping to get a similar smile from her.

She didn't smile, but she did look a bit amused. "It's neither."

"Inside joke," I mouthed to Ron, who looked confused. He smiled and nodded before returning to his food.

Nobody cleaned the rest of the day. The celebration continued into dinner, and Kingsley did swing by. Lucy managed to reply to all of the letters, though she complained quietly to me about her hand hurting and her handwriting being nearly illegible as we climbed the stairs to go to bed, retiring sooner than anyone else since we'd both been up at the crack of dawn.

"Well, you won't have to worry about that tomorrow," I replied. "You'll probably have to wait a couple of days for any replies."

She shook her head. "Hermione reminded me about summer homework. I have to start that tomorrow, now that I have my books from home. I really should have done it in July, but I didn't know how..." She shook her head. "I thought it'd get better, not worse, let's just put it that way." She huffed. "But it did and now I have a mountain of homework to try to do, and I doubt anybody will be able to read my handwriting because my bloody hands won't stop shaking and the professors will just refuse to accept it and- Merlin, sorry, Harry, I shouldn't be complaining to you of all people, you've got more than enough worries without me-"

"Lucy-" I sat on the top step and gestured for her to sit next to me. She complied, and I rested my hand on her knee. I opened my mouth to tell her not to complain, that I didn't mind at all, that I'd rather hear her complaints than just be left to wonder what was bothering her, but she spoke first.

"It's just... remember that cycle I mentioned to you? Going back and forth between angry and sad?"

I nodded. "Of course. I've seen it plenty of times the past week, I understand."

Lucy flushed a bit in embarrassment. "Yeah, you have." She rested her chin on her hands and stared down the staircase. "I've just been angry all day today. I'm glad you got off, it's not that," she added quickly, "it's just not fair you had to go in to begin with. And it's not fair we both had to use magic to save our lives this summer, and it's not fair that Cedric didn't even get the chance to..." She made a small noise of frustration, her anger faltering. "And there goes my anger," she said in a voice little more than a whisper. "Gone. Just like that."

Her half of the ring glowed a brilliant blue. I studied her face carefully, watching for any sign of tears, but none came.

She hadn't cried, really cried, since arriving at Grimmauld. From time to time, her eyes would well up, but she'd never let go the way she had in June after Cedric had died. I hadn't mentioned it to anyone else, but her dry eyes worried me more than her tears. I could hold her while she cried. I could wipe her tears away. But if the grief ran deeper than that... I hadn't figured out yet how I could help with that.

Lucy kept staring straight ahead. "When our Hogwarts letters come, Professor Lupin is going with me to Diagon Alley. I need to change my parents' accounts to my name so I can... well... there's no one left of..." She sighed shakily and looked over at me. "I asked if you could come, since you couldn't go home with me. He didn't think it was a good idea, but I... I wanted you to know I tried."

"Don't worry about it, Lu, I can manage," I said with a half-hearted smile. "Thanks for trying. The way everyone was looking at me today..." I shook my head. "Let's just say I wouldn't mind staying here for a couple hours, where everyone likes me and doesn't look at me like I'm a lunatic or a criminal or a... whatever I am."

"A delinquent?" she asked, the tiniest shadow of a smile on her face.

I nodded, smile widening. "Yeah, a delinquent."


	93. You Can Ebb

LUCY:

Some people feel anger in the head. A rush of fire that ricochets around the skull and eventually spills out in a torrent of scorching words that can burn the paper world of headlines and publicity. 

Some people feel anger in the soul. A force so strong that everything within the body demands _something_ be done to show the world just how unfair it is.

Some people feel anger in the heart. A sting in their chest, a sharp exhale, a deep sort of furious animal that would prove to be dangerous if ever poked and prodded into breaking free of its cage.

Mum's anger had been in her head. The article still on Hermione's desk in our shared bedroom was proof enough of that.

Dad's anger had been in his soul. I didn't like to remember the times he had proven that.

I had the feeling Harry's anger was in his heart. I saw it in the way his eyes flashed when he talked about the trial, the way his fists clenched whenever we were sent away from where we knew an Order meeting was occurring, the way his shoulders stiffened every time someone stepped a little too close to a sensitive topic.

Like me, for instance.

Harry's shoulders stiffened every time George noted with concern the way my hands still trembled or Hermione tried to coax me into eating one more sandwich at lunch or Fred attempted to make a joke that I couldn't laugh at or Ginny tossed me something that I was too slow to catch or Ron commented on how tired I still looked. He only ever seemed to relax when I had drifted off to sleep, really, based on the conversations I sometimes overheard between Ginny and Hermione on the mornings they didn't realize I was awake but still too exhausted to open my eyes.

I spent nearly every waking moment where my eyes _were_ open doing summer homework. It was exhausting, it was so much harder than it really should have been, but I did my best. I always worked in the same room as Harry, because neither of us liked being without the other. I heard Hermione whisper something to Ginny about separation anxiety one time when they thought I was asleep. Whether the way we seemed tethered by an invisible string at all times had a name or not, I always felt safest with Harry, and he understood that even if no one else did.

Sirius was another sensitive topic. It was only brought up one time, while Harry and Ron and Hermione were cleaning the mold out of a third-floor cupboard and I was trying to finish my essay for Potions.

“I think Sirius wishes I had been expelled,” Harry said. “I mean, have you noticed how much time he spends up with Buckbeak? He doesn't talk to anyone as much as he did before the hearing, not even me.” He sighed. “I just wish-”

“Don’t you go feeling guilty!” Hermione interrupted. She shook her head and scrubbed with renewed vigor. “You belong at Hogwarts and Sirius knows it. Personally, I think he’s being selfish.”

Ron cleared his throat diplomatically. “That’s a bit harsh, Hermione. I mean, you wouldn’t want to be stuck inside this house without company either.”

“He’ll have company! It’s headquarters to the Order of the Phoenix, isn’t it? He just got his hopes up that Harry would be coming to live here with him.”

I tuned their voices out. I was trying to finish my sentence about the final side effect of a properly-brewed pepperup potion, but my fingers shook so violently it looked more like I was saying that "peypervp pOXon" caused steam to leak from the drinker's ears. I grabbed the top of the quill with my right hand in an attempt to still the shaking, but that just resulted in another stray streak of ink across the page that made an entire line illegible.

Anger flared in me, but I pushed it down and scribbled the whole line out. I had just finished rewriting the ruined line when Mrs. Weasley poked her head into the room.

“Still not finished?” she asked the three kids at the cupboard.

“I thought you might be here to tell us to have a break! D’you know how much mold we’ve got rid of since we arrived here?” Ron replied indignantly.

“You were so keen to help the Order... you can do your bit by making headquarters fit to live in.” Mrs. Weasley turned to me with a far softer expression. “How is the homework coming, dear?”

“I'm doing my best, but it's not much,” I admitted in a soft voice. I attempted to offer a weak smile. “Potions isn't my favorite, but don't tell Professor Snape, if he happens to be downstairs right now.”

“I think he knows by now,” Ron said with a playful grin. 

I blushed a bit and returned to the essay as Mrs. Weasley left the room.

They worked in silence then, and I tried to finish out the last paragraph. But my left hand trembled more than ever, and when I tried to steady the quill with my right hand, the tip of the quill snapped.

Anger surged in me.

I couldn't push it down fast enough.

Then I snapped, too.

I sent the quill flying across the room with the force of a dart. If my hand hadn't been shaking so badly, it might have even embedded itself in the wall. For a second, all I could see was my scarlet fury.

And then that second passed, and a cold wave of sorrow flowed over me and extinguished every last flicker of anger, and I suddenly found myself fighting tears. Cedric had given me that quill.

Harry whirled around first. "Lu? You alright?"

I stared at the quill across the room for a moment before biting my lip and nodding.

Ron and Hermione turned around as Harry followed my gaze.

I buried my head in my hands, a strangled sound of exasperation escaping me. Harry was by my side in an instant.

"What happened?" he asked gently as he rubbed a small circle on my back with his thumb.

"Just got frustrated," I replied in a voice little more than a whisper. I lifted my head from my hands and stared across the room again. "I got mad because the quill broke and I threw it across the room and now I'm just..."

Hermione picked up the quill and studying it. "It's okay, Lucy, it looks like an old quill anyway."

"Cedric gave it to me," I choked out. "I should have been more careful with it."

"The twins can fix it in an instant," Ron said, picking the tip of the quill up off the desk and taking the rest of the quill from Hermione. "C'mon, let's go find them."

Hermione followed him from the room, and just like that, I was alone with Harry. 

I continued to stare at the spot on the floor where the quill had been, not wanting to meet his worried gaze. But I heard the worry in his voice clear as day when he spoke.

"Same cycle of angry and sad?"

I managed a nod. 

"Maybe a little more angry this time?"

I nodded again.

"A little more sad, too?"

I nodded a third time, lower lip trembling. But I inhaled slowly through my nose and released all of my sadness into a sigh so heavy the parchment fluttered. 

"Looks like you're nearly done, though. Are you?"

I nodded. "Last paragraph. Then I only have reading left. No more essays."

"That's great!" he said, squeezing my shoulder. "You won't need to worry about the shaking while you're reading."

I nodded yet again.

Harry paused for a moment before saying, "I feel like I already know the answer to this, but if I offered to finish writing the paragraph for you, would you let me? Not _write_ it, really," he added quickly, "but if you told me what to write and I only did the physical part of writing, would you let me?"

I looked at him for the first time and managed a small smile. "I think you're right, you _do_ already know the answer."

He sighed, sending a resigned grin back my way. "It was worth a shot. You really are stubborn, you know."

"I've always preferred the term 'fiercely independent,'" I replied lightly. Ron and Hermione returned then with the repaired quill, and I blushed bright red. "Even if I need a little help sometimes since I can't use magic outside of Hogwarts yet."

* * *

On the last day of summer holiday, I was sitting on Harry's bed working through the last chapter of required reading while he cleaned Hedwig's cage when Ron entered the room with three envelopes.

“Booklists have arrived. About time, I thought they’d forgotten, they usually come much earlier than this.”

I nodded as he passed me my envelope. “Thanks. I was wondered about that, too.”

Harry settled on the bed next to me as we opened the envelopes. I took longer than he did — shaking hands hate breaking seals.

The twins apparated into the room with a crack, and Harry's hand instantly shot out for mine. He knew I always got startled by apparating, even if it was only the twins.

“We were just wondering who assigned the Slinkhard book,” Fred said without missing a beat.

“Because it means Dumbledore’s found a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher,” George finished for him.

“We overheard Mum and Dad talking on the Extendable Ears a few weeks back, and from what they were saying, Dumbledore was having real trouble finding anyone to do the job this year.”

“Not surprising, is it, when you look at what’s happened to the last four?”

Harry slipped his hand from mine to count dramatically on his fingers. “One sacked, one dead, one’s memory removed, and one locked in a trunk for nine months. Yeah, I see what you mean.”

“What’s up with you, Ron?” Fred asked suddenly.

I glanced up to see him staring at the letter in his hands with shock written all over his face.

“What’s the matter?” Fred jumped up and read the letter for himself. “Prefect? _Prefect_?”

George jumped up too and dumped the contents of the envelope into his hand. Surely enough, a prefect badge fell into his hand.

The twins seemed just as shocked as Ron.

“No way.”

“There’s been a mistake. No one in their right mind would make Ron a prefect.”

Anger. Ron deserved more credit, he would be a great prefect.

Sadness. Harry would have been a great prefect, too.

“We thought you were a cert, Harry!”

“We thought Dumbledore was _bound_ to pick you!”

“Winning the Triwizard and everything!”

“I suppose all the mad stuff must’ve counted against him...”

“Yeah... yeah, you’ve caused too much trouble, mate. Well, at least one of you’s got their priorities right.” 

_Cedric was a prefect,_ I wanted to say.

I could tell without looking there was no badge in my envelope.

It seemed I could hear my dad's voice in the back of my mind, reminding me from beyond the grave that I would still never be as good as Cedric.

Anger pushed at my ribcage, flared on the back of my neck, but I hurriedly tampered it down.

I glanced at Ron. His face was still frozen in shock.

He stepped forward and handed Harry the badge as if wanting confirmation it was real.

At that exact moment, Hermione barreled into the room.

“Did you get-?” Her eyes landed on Harry, who was still holding Ron's badge. “I knew it! Me too, Harry, me too!”

Harry shoved the badge back to Ron and shook his head. “No, it’s Ron, not me.”

“It — what?”

“Ron’s prefect, not me.”

“ _Ron_? But... are you sure? I mean-”

“It’s my name on the letter,” Ron said, his face bright red.

Hermione blinked. “I... I... well... wow! Well done, Ron! That’s really- really-”

“Unexpected,” George finished.

Hermione shook her head, turning even brighter red than Ron. “No, no, it’s not... Ron’s done loads of... he’s really...”

Mrs. Weasley entered the room before Hermione could finish. “Ginny said the booklists had come at last. If you give them to me I’ll take them over to Diagon Alley this afternoon and get your books while you’re packing. Ron, I’ll have to get you more pajamas, these are at least six inches too short, I can’t believe how fast you’re growing... what color would you like?”

“Get him red and gold to match his badge,” George replied with a smirk.

“Match his what?”

Fred soon sported an identical smirk. “His _badge_. His lovely shiny new _prefect’s badge_.”

“His... but... Ron, you’re not...?”

Ron held up his badge, and Mrs. Weasley screamed.

“I don’t believe it! I don’t believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That’s everyone in the family!”

George looked hurt. “What are Fred and I, next-door neighbors?”

But Mrs. Weasley didn't hear him. “Wait until your father hears! Ron, I’m so proud of you, what wonderful news, you could end up Head Boy just like Bill and Percy, it’s the first step! Oh, what a thing to happen in the middle of all this worry, I’m just thrilled, oh _Ronnie_ -”

I slid off the back of the bed in one fluid motion and slipped silently from the room, my emotions trying to claw their way up my throat.

Anger. The twins deserved more credit, too. 

Sadness. Maybe Mrs. Weasley would have rather had Cedric as a son.

Sadness. I would never be as good as Cedric.

Anger. I didn't need my dad to be around to remind me of that. 

I forced all of my emotions away as I continued walking. I forced the hurricane into a jar and threw it up to the stars, never to be dealt with again.

Now that the booklist had finally arrived, it was time to go get my new wand.

* * *

When I made my way to the bottom floor, Professor Lupin was ready, so we apparated to Diagon Alley. Professor Moody apparated with us, for extra security. I did my best to pay attention to all of the paperwork transferring my parents' funds to me, but a lot of it was in technical terms I couldn't fully understand. I understood enough to fill the pouch on my pockets with money to last me the school year.

By the time we left Gringotts, Mrs. Weasley had arrived as well. I went with her to fetch everyone's books from Flourish and Blotts, though she refused to let me help carry any. Then, while she went to Quality Quidditch Supplies, I headed to Ollivander's.

Mr. Ollivander seemed surprised to see me.

"Lucy Diggory! Cypress, unicorn hair, eight and a half inches?"

I nodded. "Y-Yes sir. But it..." Anger. Then sadness. I swallowed hard. "It broke. I need a new one."

He pursed his lips. "What a shame. It was a fine wand, and it chose you immediately."

"The right wand on the first try," I replied with a crooked smile. "I recall you being surprised."

He nodded. "Very! It was incredible! Let us hope for the same again."

He turned around and plucked a wand from his shelves. "It's not often I have customers your age. But let's try this one. Hazel, with a unicorn hair core. Hazel is fascinatingly sensitive to emotion."

I accepted it nervously. With the way my emotions had been unpredictably ebbing and flowing and rising and falling over the course of the past months, I feared I would cause an explosion the second my fingertips met the wood. But nothing happened, so he clucked his tongue disapprovingly and snatched it from my hands.

"Perhaps ash with a unicorn hair core, like your brother."

I swallowed hard as he passed it to me. A white-hot flash of anger at Voldemort. Then a frozen blue wave of sadness. Nothing happened this time, either, and it was also quickly taken away.

"Alder with a unicorn hair core, maybe. Very well-suited to nonverbal magic."

Again, nothing happened.

"Hmm, tricky, tricky. Let's try chestnut. It likes those who get along well with magical creatures, like your father, and who excel in Herbology, like your mother. Natural fliers, too. Chestnut paired with unicorn indicates a strong sense of justice, as well, very common among Wizengamot members."

I was optimistic as I accepted the wand. _Creatures, Herbology, flying, a sense of justice? Sounds like me._ But again, nothing happened.

Mr. Ollivander tapped his chin as he scanned the shelves. He froze suddenly.

"Curious..."

He used his wand to summon a box from the very top shelf. He laid the box on the counter and studied it for a moment before speaking.

"Rowan wood, phoenix feather core, eleven inches long."

A voice from the caves echoed in my mind.

_"You're going to need a proper wand before you're able to do his bidding. Unicorn hair is the hardest to persuade. Am I correct in assuming that is your core?"_

"Phoenix feather?" I asked, my voice very high-pitched and uncertain. "Isn't — isn't unicorn hair hardest to persuade to do evil?"

"That is true. But Lucy Diggory, I cannot recall a single instance where one of my own rowan wands has gone on to do evil in the world." He held it out to me. "Go on. Try it."

I accepted the wand reluctantly.

Magic surged through me like liquid sunlight, racing through my veins and warming me from the inside out. I experimentally swished it, and red and gold sparks shot from the tip, arcing over my head in a large circle before dissipating.

_I'm not done yet._

* * *

When I made my way back upstairs, I was surprised to see Harry sitting alone in the boys' bedroom with the door open. I made my way over to the doorway and wrapped my arms around my waist.

"Hey Harry, I'm back," I said quietly. 

He jumped a bit as he turned to face me. "Hey." He blinked and ran his fingers through his hair. "Lu, why'd you run off like that? Are you okay? By the time I made it downstairs, you were gone."

I sighed as I entered the room and sat next to him on the bed. "Sorry, I just... it was too much. I figured I would let you all sort it out and go get my books and my wand."

"Your wand?" he echoed. "What happened to your wand?"

"They broke it," I replied in a tone I hoped indicated I didn't want any questions about who "they" were or why my wand had been deliberately broken. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my new one. "Rowan. Phoenix feather. Eleven inches."

"Hey, mine's holly, phoenix feather, eleven inches."

I felt a bit better knowing Harry's wasn't unicorn, either. I knew Harry would never switch sides, of everyone else in the world I knew.

"Are you alright with the whole prefect business?" he asked after a moment. "I mean, now that you've had time to... I don't know, think about it?"

I nodded. "Oh, yeah, I wasn't upset about _that_. Hermione deserves it. I knew she'd get it. I'm not Cedric." I swallowed hard and glanced at Harry. "I did expect _you_ to get it, though. Are _you_ alright?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm happy for Ron. A bit confused, but... happy for Ron."

"I reckon he feels good about it. I hope the twins weren't too mean to him."

"They were brutal, but he's getting a Cleansweep out of it, so I'm sure that'll help."

I nodded. "I can't imagine it would hurt." I tucked my wand away. 

"At least we're in the same boat, yeah?"

"Yeah," I agreed.

We sat in silence for a sweet moment that ended too soon. Ginny appeared and said everyone was waiting for us downstairs, at Ron and Hermione's "Perfect Prefect Party." The three of us headed down together, and I congratulated Ron and Hermione properly, explaining that I had left to get my new wand and showing it to anyone who asked. But about half an hour into the party, I suddenly remembered that I had never finished the last reading for my summer homework, so I slipped from the kitchen, retrieved the book from where it still rested on Harry's bed, and retreated to the peace and quiet of the living room.

On the last page was a description of beautification potions. I started to read the ingredients list, but I stopped at "Rose petals."

Rose. The one who had killed my parents even if she never actually cast the curse herself.

Rose. The one who had led to the breaking of my wand even if she had never actually been in the caves. Or maybe she had been. I spent so little of my time in the caves actually conscious.

Rose. The one who wanted me to hate the Ministry and Dumbledore and my dad for the way the tournament ended.

Rose. The one who thought I might actually be glad she arranged for my kidnapping, who thought I might actually agree to work for the monster who killed my brother, the monster who killed Mum and Dad, too.

Rose.

Rose.

Rose.

The anger I had been trying to suppress for the better part of a month peaked.

Nobody was around.

I was free to let my anger overcome me.

I snapped the book shut and launched it across the room.


	94. And I Can Flow

HARRY:

The second I realized Lucy wasn't in the kitchen anymore, I ducked out of the room to find her.

_"It's best if she's never alone."_

I checked her room first. Not there.

Then mine. Not there, either. But her textbook was gone.

I raced down the stairs, anxiety pressing in on me from all sides. Where _was_ she?

I made a beeline for the living room. As I hurried toward the closed door, there was a loud crack on the other side of it that sent me into a dead sprint. 

Someone had apparated.

I nearly pulled the door off its hinges with how violently I opened it, terrified that I would find another empty room, terrified someone had just taken Lucy away again.

But Lucy was sitting there on the couch, breathing hard, staring across the room with a somewhat shocked expression on her pale face.

"Are you okay?" I asked, frozen with one hand on the doorknob still and my other hand supporting my weight on the doorframe.

She blinked, her wild eyes finding mine for a second before looking back at where she had just been staring. "I just... I just threw that book across the room."

I followed her gaze. Surely enough, her textbook was lying on the ground up against the opposite wall.

I'll admit my first thought was _Damn. Lucy has a hell of an arm._

The living room was one of the largest in the house. She must have thrown the book — the incredibly heavy Potions textbook — thirty feet, maybe more. 

I looked back at Lucy in wonder.

I'd always wondered what it would look like to see her actually let her anger go. I had seen it flash in her eyes for years. Lockhart. Snape. Malfoy, both Draco and Lucius. I had seen it flash in her eyes, I had seen the ring glow scarlet and guessed reasonably enough that it meant she was angry, but I had never really seen her lose control.

My second thought was _Damn. I can't believe I missed that._

But as soon as I had the thought, tears filled Lucy's eyes.

"Harry, I'm losing control," she said. 

And just like that, everything crashed down. 

I had the presence of mind to close the door behind me as I rushed over to where she was.

She buried her face in her hands and cried for the first time. 

I didn't try to get her to stop crying. I didn't try to say anything to make it better.

I knew the release was good for her. I knew there was nothing I could have said.

So I just held her through the storm.

* * *

LUCY:

The hurricane I had thrown up into the stars, the emotions I had shoved away time and time again, had hunted me down at last. 

I cried chronologically.

First I cried for Cedric. For the halls he would never get to walk. For the friends he would never get to meet. For the life he would never get to see. 

Second I cried for Mum. She had only wanted to help. She had only wanted to stop others from feeling the same pain our family suffered. She had only wanted to try to stop the war before it even started.

Third I cried for Dad. He lost everything when Cedric didn't come back from the graveyard alive. He lost everything when Cedric didn't get to make him proud ever again. He lost everything when Cedric didn't have a future anymore.

Then I cried for myself. For the way I had been cast out at sea with nothing to hold me above the water. I had only wanted to help Cedric make his own decision, not Dad's. I lost everything when Cedric was left with no choice but to ask Harry to take care of me since he no longer could.

I was drowning. I was drowning in my own tears, I was drowning in my own darkness, I was drowning in myself.

Just when I thought it would be easiest to just succumb and let the current of sorrow wash over my head and take me completely, Harry shifted a bit and adjusted his arms around my shoulders.

"I'm here," he said quietly. "I'm right here. And I'm not going anywhere without you, Lu."

A small tingle of the magic I had felt earlier, when I held my new wand for the first time, pulsed through me. Like a red-and-gold patronus, I could feel sparks, subtle but present, coming to life in the middle of the hole in my chest.

Suddenly, I was aware of the warmth of Harry, the steady beat of his heart beneath my ear and the gentle weight of his arms around me. 

Suddenly, I was aware of the distant sound of Tuck's happy barking, of my friends' laughter in the kitchen.

After a moment, the sparks fizzled out. 

But they had been there. For a moment.

* * *

HARRY:

Slowly, slowly, Lucy's tears stopped. Slowly, slowly, her heartbroken cries turned into choked whimpers. Slowly, slowly, the storm passed.

She didn't move. She didn't speak. She just remained with her head against my chest and her hands over her face. I deliberately took deep breaths for her to mirror, which she did.

I knew there would be other storms. But for the night, the storm had passed.

After a minute or so of silence, I rubbed my thumb against her shoulder.

"Alright, Lu. Good thing, bad thing."

Lucy sat up and pulled away to give me a confused look. "What?"

I offered her a small smile. "We have a whole summer to catch up on. You probably don't remember every day, because I certainly don't, but let's see what we can do."

"Harry, I..."

"I can start," I volunteered, shifting on the couch so we were facing each other. I pushed my glasses up on my nose. "Good thing, we go back to Hogwarts tomorrow. Bad thing, I have no idea why Dumbledore didn't make us prefects."

She sighed shakily, staring at her hands. "Right. Um... well, good thing, I didn't punch a hole in the wall when I threw the book. Bad thing, I threw the book then cried all over you for... for however long that was."

"Well, _I_ consider that a _good_ thing, because I would rather be here and able to do this-" I reached forward and wiped a rogue tear with my thumb. "-than realize later that you needed me and I wasn't there. But it's a bad thing that you needed to cry in the first place, because I miss seeing you happy."

"Good thing, having Tuck around makes me happy, and I get to bring him with me to Hogwarts," she said with a small smile. The smile faded slightly. "Bad thing, I can't keep him in my dormitory, but at least he'll be with Fang in Hagrid's hut."

"Do they make invisibility cloaks for dogs? Because if they do-"

"Don't tempt me like that," Lucy muttered. "Prefect Hermione wouldn't stand for it, and Crookshanks would definitely tattle to her if I somehow managed to keep it a secret at first."

I laughed. "Bad thing, that cat can be a menace. Good thing, at least Hermione acknowledges it from time to time now instead of defending Crookshanks every single time we offered, er, constructive criticism."

"Good thing, Hermione reminded me about summer homework, because I honestly would have forgotten about it otherwise." She cast a sidelong glance across the room. "Bad thing, I threw the book without finishing the last page."

I started to get up to grab the book for her, but she reached out to stop me. "No no, it's okay." She swallowed hard. A number of emotions flickered across her eyes in rapid succession, but she forced them all away and her expression softened. "I don't want to... to... it's fine."

I felt a pang in my chest when I realized how badly her outstretched hand still shook. She blushed and pulled it away, realizing too, but I had already seen. I glanced up at her. "Lucy, are you going to be alright at school?" I reached forward and took her hand gently. Even secure in mine, it trembled.

"Doesn't make much difference, does it?" she asked with a humorless laugh, glancing away. "The Hogwarts Express will pull out of the station tomorrow at 11 whether I'm ready or not. It doesn't matter if I'm going to be alright or not."

I twisted my hand so our fingers intertwined. "It matters to me."

Lucy's blue eyes met mine, but instead of her seeing into my soul, it seemed like she was trying to give me a chance to see into hers. I could see that something broken lay just beneath the surface. For a moment, I was terrified that the brokenness in her eyes would never leave.

But I knew Lucy. 

I knew Lucy, the girl who had helped Hagrid raise a dragon our first year.

I knew Lucy, the girl who had jumped first into the Chamber of Secrets our second year.

I knew Lucy, the girl who had produced her first corporeal patronus during a Quidditch match our third year.

I knew Lucy, the girl who had somehow managed to support Cedric and me equally and fiercely during the tournament our fourth year.

For a moment, I had been terrified that Lucy would never be okay again.

But I knew Lucy.

And I knew that she would never be the same after everything that had happened.

But I knew Lucy. And I knew that she would be okay anyway.

* * *

LUCY:

I dropped my guard the moment I let myself meet Harry's eyes, our fingers intertwined, Harry's steady ones so warm around my trembling ones. 

I had always known I was safest with Harry.

But in that moment, I knew that now matter how much I was shaking, I was steadiest when I was with Harry, too.

I didn't have any intelligent response I could offer in exchange for "It matters to me." So instead, I inched closer to him and guided his arm around my shoulders, hoping he would know what to do next.

* * *

HARRY:

I pulled Lucy back into my chest automatically, and she curled up against me. 

"Merlin, I'm so tired," she whispered.

"I know," I replied, wishing I had a more intelligent response I could offer. But... well, it was true. She was exhausted, and rightly so.

"Did you finish packing?" she asked after a moment.

"Yeah, I did. Why?"

"Just curious." She stifled a yawn, and I stifled a laugh.

"Did _you_ finish packing?"

"Everything except the book on the floor over there."

I couldn't stifle my laugh this time. "Right. That makes sense."

"I need to remember to pack my dog, too," Lucy said sleepily. "Never had to bring him to Hogwarts before."

"Pack your dog?" I repeated, laughing again.

"You know what I mean," she mumbled. "D'you think he'd like a basket, or does he seem like more of a suitcase boy?"

"I think we should figure this out in the morning," I said in a soft voice. 

She didn't say anything else. She was sound asleep within thirty seconds.

A couple minutes later, I heard voices in the hallway, calling my name and Lucy's.

I hurriedly covered her ears and whisper-shouted, "Shut up, she's asleep!"

The door to the living room creaked open slowly, and Ron and Hermione's faces appeared. 

"We were wondering where you two had run off to," Hermione whispered accusingly.

"The twins thought you were off snogging," Ron added with an amused grin.

I scoffed. "For Merlin's sake, no!"

"What _were_ you doing then?" Ron asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I realized she wasn't in the kitchen, so I went to find her." I gestured with my chin over at the book on the floor. "I was in the hallway when I heard _that_ hit the wall."

Their eyes widened.

"Did she throw it?" Hermione wondered. "Like the quill?"

I nodded. 

"That's a good deal more impressive than the quill, though," Ron whispered. "Bloody hell."

I nodded. "Anyway, then she cried it out, we talked a bit, and then she just..." I gestured at the girl sleeping in my arms.

Ron pursed his lips and nodded. "I see. Well, we'll leave you to it and tell everyone not to wander over here." He grabbed the book, and he glanced over at Lucy incredulously. "Bloody hell, she threw it from _there_?"

"She's not a Chaser for nothing," I whispered with a small smile, remembering all of the miraculous goals I had seen her land over the years.

 _Well,_ I thought to myself as Ron and Hermione slipped from the room, _the delinquency plan was a good backup, but the Order doesn't have a Quidditch team yet. So it's good we're going back to Hogwarts for that reason, if nothing else._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hello! I changed my plans! 
> 
> I was going to publish 93 at midnight, then 94 on Wednesday, but then I had an idea yesterday afternoon that threw that plan out the window. So I wrote 93 between the hours of 9 PM and 1 AM, then wrote this one as soon as I woke up this morning. So... surprise! I hope you all enjoyed!
> 
> See you all Wednesday with Chapter 95! Thank you for reading! Love yoooou!


	95. Dear Cedric,

_September 1, 1995_

_Dear Cedric,_

_Henry told me that he's started writing letters to you, and he recommended that I do the same. I gave him your Quidditch plans from last summer; he's Captain this year. He says he's going to tuck his letters into the trunk of the tree under which you two always did your homework, as soon as we get to school. I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet. I don't even really know what to say in this letter. I know you'll never read it. But Henry said he's been writing them for a month, and that it was hard at first but it got easier the more he wrote, so I said I'd give it a shot._

_There's so much that's happened, Cedric. I'm sure Mum and Dad were happy to see you. If I'm being honest... I'm jealous. And if I'm being really, truly honest... I think about joining you, wherever you are, every day. But I can't. I know I'm not done yet. I just... think about it._

_A lot happened all at once when they died. I don't have enough parchment to try to explain it all in a letter, not that I would be able to anyway. Professor Moody — the real one, not... the other one — said to be incredibly careful about what we write in letters, and if we had any doubt, not to write at all. I doubt he expected I would be writing to you of all people, but I still would rather play it safe. Mum didn't play it safe enough, and, well, I'm sure you know by now what happened next._

_I'm writing this from the Hogwarts Express. We all went to King's Cross in small groups this morning, just to be safe. I was with Harry, Mrs. Weasley, and Sirius. Harry's with me now, as I write this; we're in a compartment with Ginny and Neville and Luna. Ron and Hermione are the Gryffindor prefects, so they had to go to a meeting and patrol the halls. Oh, and that reminds me, Henry said these letters were Luna's idea._

_It already feels so wrong without you, Ced. It was horrible running through the barrier without you. It was horrible carrying Malachi's cage in one hand and Tuck's basket in the other. It's weird not seeing you pass by the window occasionally while you're patrolling. It's weird seeing Henry with the prefect badge instead. He's filling both spots you left open. I haven't asked who Head Boy is yet. I don't want to know._

_I wish you were here, Ced. If you were, none of this would be happening. Everything would be alright. But... you're not here. Nothing is alright._

_I miss you. So much it hurts. But I hope you're happy, wherever you are. You deserve that._

_I should probably stop writing now; I think the food cart is coming soon, and Harry keeps glancing over at me as if he's worried I'll start crying the way I did last night. It's not completely unjustified — I have to keep stopping to fight away the tears. But I think Henry and Luna may be onto something... I feel a bit better now._

_I love you so much. I'll write you again soon._

_Love always, Lucy_


	96. Runs in the Family

HARRY:

Lucy folded up her piece of parchment into a tiny square and slipped it into her backpack, blinking quickly to clear the moisture in her eyes. When I glanced away, I realized I wasn't the only one watching her. Neville was staring, too, an odd expression on his face.

Suddenly, the compartment door banged open, and blond curls streaked past me, followed quickly by a sleek black ponytail.

"Lav," Lucy gasped, pushing herself to her feet and hugging Lavender Brown, then Parvati Patil. 

"You're so tall!" Lavender gushed, now having to look up slightly to meet Lucy's eyes.

Lucy's pale cheeks flushed a bit. "Tall _er_ , at least."

"Do you really have your dog?" Parvati asked in a stage whisper, eyeing the basket.

Lucy blushed harder and nodded. "I reckoned you two might want to meet him."

She knelt and lifted the top off, and a black and white flash of fur appeared. He immediately bolted for the open door, but Ginny jumped up just in time and slid it shut.

"Thanks, Gin," Lucy said, sighing with relief. "He's... a tad energetic. Being cooped up in that basket..." She shook her head just as he indignantly shoved his nose against her chest. "Hey, it's not _my_ fault. Now go be social, you have new people to meet."

She shoved him away and toward Lavender and Parvati, who were already giggling uncontrollably as they tried to get him to sit still long enough to be pet. Neville got down on the floor of the compartment, too, and Tuck darted toward him, nearly knocking him over. 

Lucy's expression faltered, and tears sparkled in her eyes again. 

"What is it?" I asked in a voice only she could hear, gently taking her by the arm and pulling her back up onto the seat next to me.

"It's just..." She swallowed hard, then answered in a whisper, "The morning Cedric and I left for school, last summer, Tuck was... something like this. He barreled into Cedric's room and just kept licking Cedric's face over and over and over and over. He'd never been quite so affectionate before, and he hasn't been since. It was like..." She shook her head. "It was as if he knew, somehow. Which is ridiculous, but..." Tears glistened in her eyes once again, and she hurriedly swiped them away. "Some nights, Tuck would just whine at Cedric's door. I would try to get him to come to bed with me, but he would lie down in front of Cedric's door and refuse to move."

Tuck barked happily, then ran a couple of laps around the compartment before running back to the middle and letting Lavender and Parvati and Neville to pet him. Ginny made her way over to Luna and read _The Quibbler_ over her shoulder. Lucy turned to look out the window, and I could tell her mind was distant even though she was right next to me.

Lavender and Parvati left with the food trolley came, and Neville asked if he could keep Tuck entertained rather than returning him to the confines of the basket. Lucy glanced away from the window only long enough to smile a bit and say Tuck would like that. She said she wasn't hungry when I offered her a Chocolate Frog, which I doubted was true since she hadn't eaten very much at breakfast. I wanted to protest, but she returned her attention to the hills rolling by outside the window.

Ron, on the other hand, announced “I’m starving!” upon his arrival, Hermione just behind him. Lucy slid over to the window, away from me, and rested her head against the glass, and Ron quickly took the space that had been created between the two of us. Hermione settled on my other side.

She huffed. “Well, there are two fifth-year prefects from each House. Boy and girl from each.”

“And guess who’s a Slytherin prefect?” Ron asked, biting the head off a Chocolate Frog.

“Malfoy?”

“’Course.”

“And that complete _cow_ Pansy Parkinson. How she got to be a prefect when she’s thicker than a concussed troll is beyond me,” Hermione muttered. I held out a Chocolate Frog to her, too, which she accepted.

“Who’s Hufflepuff?” 

“Ernie Macmillan and Hannah Abbott,” Ron replied. He turned to Lucy, who had turned away from the window and was now listening with some interest. “The Hufflepuff prefects all have Cedric's initials on their badges. Thought you might want to know.”

“That's neat,” Lucy's voice cracked on the last word, and I was afraid for a second she'd start crying again, but she cleared her throat and managed a small smile I could tell was forced. “Henry's idea, I bet. Thanks for telling me.”

“Anthony Goldstein and Padma Patil are the fifth-year prefects for Ravenclaw,” Hermione said.

“You went to the Yule Ball with Padma Patil,” Luna commented, looking up from _The Quibbler_ for the first time. 

“Er, yeah, I know I did,” Ron replied.

“She didn’t enjoy it very much. She doesn’t think you treated her very well, because you wouldn’t dance with her. I don’t think I’d have minded. I don’t like dancing very much.”

With that, she returned her attention to the magazine. Ron looked at Ginny, hoping she'd offer an explanation, but she merely grinned at him, looking thoroughly amused by his reaction, and laid her head on the blonde's shoulder.

Ron shook his head and blinked as if to reset himself. “We’re supposed to patrol the corridors every so often, and we can give out punishments if people are misbehaving. I can’t wait to get Crabbe and Goyle for something.”

“You’re not supposed to abuse your position, Ron!” Hermione scolded.

“Yeah, right, because Malfoy won’t abuse it at _all_.”

“So you’re going to descend to his level?”

“No, I’m just going to make sure I get his mates before he gets mine.”

“For heaven’s sake, Ron!”

“I’ll make Goyle do lines, it’ll kill him, he hates writing!” He furrowed his brow and grunted, “I... must... not... look... like... a... baboon’s... backside...”

The compartment erupted into laughter; even Lucy managed a smile that looked more genuine than her earlier one. But of everyone, Luna was laughing the hardest. Her magazine flopped onto the floor, and her shrieks echoed throughout the compartment. 

“That was funny!” she exclaimed, rubbing her sleeve against her cheeks to mop up the tears of laughter.

Everyone laughed even harder, both at her unusual laugh and the look on Ron's face. I glanced at Lucy, whose smile had widened a bit. 

“Are you taking the mickey?” Ron asked after a moment, looking a bit suspicious.

“Baboon’s backside!” Luna repeated, laughing anew. 

I glanced down at the magazine on the floor and reached forward to pick it up for her, but one headline in particular caught my eye.

**SIRIUS BLACK: Villain or Victim?**

I snatched it up and asked, “Can I have a look at this?”

Luna nodded, still gasping for breath and laughing occasionally. Neville, Ginny, and Ron launched into a spirited discussion about possible punishments for Crabbe and Goyle as I flipped through the pages.

The actual title of the article was even funnier: **SIRIUS - Black As He’s Painted? Notorious Mass Murderer OR Innocent Singing Sensation?**

I was so lost in trying to make sure I'd read the sentence correctly I didn't realize Ron had switched places with Lucy until she said, "Yeah, you're reading that correctly. I love _The Quibbler_."

I grinned. "This should be good."

Lucy inched closer to read the article over my shoulder.

**For fourteen years Sirius Black has been believed guilty of the mass murder of twelve innocent Muggles and one wizard. Black’s audacious escape from Azkaban two years ago has led to the widest manhunt ever conducted by the Ministry of Magic. None of us has ever questioned that he deserves to be recaptured and handed back to the dementors.**

**BUT DOES HE?**

**Startling new evidence has recently come to light that Sirius Black may not have committed the crimes for which he was sent to Azkaban. In fact, says Doris Purkiss, of 18 Acanthia Way, Little Norton, Black may not even have been present at the killings. “What people don’t realize is that Sirius Black is a false name,” says Mrs. Purkiss. “The man people believe to be Sirius Black is actually Stubby Boardman, lead singer of the popular singing group The Hobgoblins, who retired from public life after being struck in the ear by a turnip at a concert in Little Norton Church Hall nearly fifteen years ago. I recognized him the moment I saw his picture in the paper. Now, Stubby couldn’t possibly have committed those crimes, because on the day in question he happened to be enjoying a romantic candlelit dinner with me. I have written to the Minister of Magic and am expecting him to give Stubby, alias Sirius, a full pardon any day now.”**

I turned to Lucy. "They can't be serious," I said incredulously.

She shook her head. "They are. I'm curious to see what they have to say about Fudge, though."

I flipped to that page and found an equally-entertaining article.

**Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, denied that he had any plans to take over the running of the Wizarding Bank, Gringotts, when he was elected Minister of Magic five years ago. Fudge has always insisted that he wants nothing more than to “cooperate peacefully” with the guardians of our gold.**

**BUT DOES HE?**

**Sources close to the Minister have recently disclosed that Fudge’s dearest ambition is to seize control of the goblin gold supplies and that he will not hesitate to use force if need be.**

**“It wouldn’t be the first time, either,” said a Ministry insider. “Cornelius ‘Goblin-Crusher’ Fudge, that’s what his friends call him, if you could hear him when he thinks no one’s listening, oh, he’s always talking about the goblins he’s had done in; he’s had them drowned, he’s had them dropped off buildings, he’s had them poisoned, he’s had them cooked in pies.”**

"I may not be Fudge's biggest fan, but..." I said as I closed the magazine, unable to bring myself to finish the article.

Lucy nodded understandingly. "Luna's dad is the editor. She gave me old copies last year to distract me from worrying about..." Her eyes clouded over, and she glanced away. 

Across the compartment, Neville had seen the shift in Lucy's demeanor, so he nudged Tuck off of his lap. Tuck understood his job and jumped into my lap so he could rest his head in Lucy's. She stroked the top of his head silently, while I rubbed my hand up and down his back. I had been his favorite human at Grimmauld Place — aside from Lucy, of course. He didn't trust me much at first, standing guard in front of Lucy's bed and eyeing me warily whenever I lingered in the girls' room until Lucy fell asleep, but in time, he grew to like me, to the point where he often fell asleep as soon as Lucy did. 

It was a nice moment. So of course, it was interrupted by the compartment door opening again.

Draco Malfoy stood in the doorway with Crabbe and Goyle behind him. 

“What?” I snapped, not liking the smirk on his face one bit. 

“Manners, Potter, or I’ll have to give you a detention. You see, I, unlike you, have been made a prefect, which means that I, unlike you, have the power to hand out punishments.”

Lucy was staring at Malfoy with her mouth open, her face paler than it had been in several weeks. A protective sort of anger flared in me.

“Yeah, but you, unlike me, are a git, so get out and leave us alone.”

“Oh, but I see a punishment I have to give out,” he said, sauntering into the cabin and walking over to Lucy. “Is this your crup?”

I opened my mouth to defend Lucy, but to my surprise, she jerked her chin upward and met his gaze defiantly. “Yeah, he is.” At her tone, Tuck lifted his head and turned to face Malfoy, wanting to see for himself who had upset his favorite human so much. “I'll have you know, Draco, that I have a signed note of permission from Professor Dumbledore himself allowing me to transport him on the train. I could get it out for you, if you'd like, I think I know a place I could shove it after you read it.”

Malfoy's pale face colored. “I could give you detention for that, you know.”

“Do it.” Lucy stared at him for a second, waiting. She smirked when he was silent. “It would seem not following through runs in the family.”

“What on earth do you mean by that?” he spluttered.

“I think you know,” she replied coolly. “You know, Draco, you and your father sound exactly the same when you make an empty threat. Now would you like to see the note from the Headmaster or not? This compartment was plenty full before you came in, and I've been itching for a chance to try out my new wand for the first time, if that's what it takes to make you leave.”

He took a step backward, the tips of his ears going red. “You're going to regret that, Diggory.”

“Yeah, I'm sure I will,” she replied sarcastically, shrugging. She scratched behind Tuck's ears, turning her attention to the animal. “It's okay, boy, he's just a bully. But don't worry, I can protect myself.”

Malfoy took another step backward, still glaring at Lucy. He blinked hard and turned to me. The smirk he gave me was less confident than usual. 

“Tell me, how does it feel being second-best to Weasley, Potter?”

“Shut up, Malfoy,” Lucy snapped before I had the chance to speak for myself.

“I seem to have touched a nerve. Well, just watch yourself, Potter, because I’ll be _dogging_ your footsteps in case you step out of line.”

My heart dropped. _Sirius._

Before I could react, Lucy jumped up, hand flying to her wand without actually drawing it. “Take a hint! Get out!”

His smirk was even less confident that time, but he left. Lucy stood there staring at the open doorway for a second longer, jaw clenched. 

I realized half a second later my mouth was hanging open with shock. I wanted to say something, I wanted to acknowledge just how bloody _brilliant_ Lucy had been, but before I could speak, Lucy snatched up her backpack.

“I'm going to go change into my robes,” she said bluntly, stalking from the compartment with her head bowed low.


	97. Buttons

LUCY:

I pulled the door shut behind me half a second before bitter tears clawed their way up my throat. Hidden from everyone, I let the tears fall as I sank to the ground.

As I cast the silencing charm that would allow me to cry as loudly as I wanted without being interrupted by any concerned people, I realized with a sting how anticlimactic that was. A minute ago, I had been thrilled at the prospect of making the first spell I performed one against Draco. I didn't want to hurt him. I wasn't cruel, at least not _that_ cruel. No, I wanted to do something that would force him to think twice before bullying anyone ever again. I wanted to... I wanted to... I wanted to stand up for myself for once in my life. I had done it once, escaping the cave...

It was when I saw his awful, smirking face, when I heard his awful, drawling voice that I suddenly remembered why one of the voices in the caves sounded so familiar.

Lucius Malfoy.

A white-hot flash of anger.

A furious scream escaped me before I could stop it. I jumped to my feet and slammed my fists against the wall.

A sudden rush of sorrow.

I choked on my own sobs and crumpled to the ground again.

It was a vicious cycle, and I had no control. 

No control at all.

My eyes landed on my backpack on the other end of the small changing room, and I pushed myself to my feet.

I yanked my Muggle sweater over my head and slipped out of my Muggle slacks. I pulled the skirt on easily enough, the socks too, and tied my shoes with a charm. 

But the buttons...

My fingers trembled too badly. I didn't know a charm that would do it for me. 

A white-hot flash of anger. 

"I CAN'T DO ANYTHING!" I shouted into the empty room. "I'M- ARGH!"

A sudden rush of sorrow.

"I'm hopeless," I whispered, the tears starting yet again.

I staggered against the wall, hitting the back of my head a little too hard.

A white hot flash of anger.

"OW!"

A sudden rush of sorrow.

"Ow..."

My knees gave way, and I slid down the wall to the ground. Shirt still unbuttoned. Head still pounding.

But the storm was silent. The eye of the hurricane. I stared at the ground, tracing the pattern on the carpet with my eyes, thinking of nothing and no one whatsoever.

After a while, a knock at the door.

"Lucy? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah," I lied in a voice that sounded nothing like mine. 

"Lucy?" the voice asked more urgently.

"I'm fine, Ginny," I lied.

"Lucy, I'm coming in."

"I said I'm f-"

The door burst open, and Ginny looked around, red ponytail whipping back and forth before her eyes landed on me. She closed the door behind her and dropped to a knee. 

"What happened? Are you okay? Why didn't you answer me?"

I slapped my hand to my forehead. "Sorry. Forgot about the silencing charm I put up."

"It's alright, I know how to unlock locked doors," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I was just worried something had happened when you didn't come back for half an hour."

"Half an hour?" I echoed disbelievingly.

She nodded. "So what's up? Why haven't you come back?"

I realized with a surge of panic that my midriff was fully exposed, though Ginny hadn't noticed yet. I pulled my unbuttoned shirt around myself, and she suddenly understood.

"Oh, were your fingers shaking too much to button the shirt? Is that it?"

I nodded, not wanting to explain further. She could probably see the tear tracks on my cheeks and figure out the rest.

"Alright, that's okay." She tucked her wand into her pocket and held up her hands, wiggling her fingers. "Mine don't shake. Let me do it."

I made sure the buttons fully overlapped so she wouldn't see my bite scar. I doubted she would recognize it for what it was, but I wasn't taking any chances whatsoever. Insecurity made my cheeks burn, but she didn't seem to notice. Or care. Or perhaps a combination of the two. Soon, my shirt was buttoned and my Gryffindor tie was secured around my neck with the robes to match.

"Thanks, Ginny," I said, cheeks still burning.

"Of course," she replied. She reached up with both of her hands — I was finally taller than her again — and tapped my cheeks. "Stop being embarrassed. You know that everyone in that compartment would do anything for you, right? Not to mention Fred and George, or Mum and Dad, or anyone else in the Order, for that matter?"

When I hesitated, she narrowed her eyes at me.

"Well, they would. _We_ would. Look, Lucy, I'm not stupid. I know whatever just happened was about a lot more than Draco Malfoy being an arse as always, or not being able to button your shirt. And I know Professor Lupin wants you to talk in your own time, not ours, but just... think about it, okay? Think about letting us in?"

"Ginny, I..." I swallowed hard. "There's just so much people don't understand about what happened-"

"And we won't ever be able to understand until you start to tell us," she said simply. "Just think about it, okay?"

"Okay."

She smiled, satisfied, and ducked out the door, gesturing for me to follow her.

I lingered in the room for a second.

_I think that was a lie._

_I'd rather not tell anyone, ever._

I slung my backpack over my shoulder and followed her back to the compartment.


	98. The First Step

HARRY:

The second Lucy returned, I could tell she had been crying. But Ginny was acting like nothing had happened whatsoever, so I figured I should follow her lead and do the same.

Lucy didn't speak again the rest of the ride. She was completely and utterly lost in her own thoughts. She stroked Tuck's ears, but didn't engage at all in the conversation that flowed around the cart. When Hermione suggested the rest of us change, she suddenly snapped from her daze, eyes going wide with panic as she glanced out the window. 

"What is it?" I asked quietly, not wanting to attract anyone else's attention in case that made her panic more.

She didn't look away from the window, only shaking her head in response. I didn't press her, and her gaze remained fixed on the window as the rest of us changed in the compartment. 

Once the train stopped, Ron and Hermione ducked out of the carriage to help organize everything. Neville and Ginny and Luna gathered their belongings and slipped from the compartment into the crowd, but Lucy remained frozen in place. Her hands no longer stroked Tuck's ears. She stared out the window, even though there was nothing to see except endless darkness.

I got Hedwig's cage down, then lowered myself onto the seat next to Lucy, this time the one between her and the window.

"What is it?" I asked again.

Her eyes didn't meet mine, didn't leave the window, but she offered an answer the second time.

"Harry, this feels too much like moving on." Tears sprang to her eyes. "Everything this summer was just like something out of someone else's life. It just felt like a separate story. None of it felt real, none of it _feels_ real." She was talking faster and faster, though she still hadn't moved save the tears racing down her cheeks. "But now, if I get off this train, I have to acknowledge that he won't be at the Hufflepuff table at dinner and he won't fall asleep in the bed next to Henry tonight and he won't be at the Hufflepuff table at breakfast and he won't be going to class and he won't be announcing the Quidditch training schedule and helping the first years find their classes and..." She squeezed her eyes shut, clenching her fists. "This feels too much like moving on, but I'm not ready, I don't want to."

I reached forward and wiped away a tear with my thumb.

"I'm sorry," I said, then shook my head. "Merlin, sorry, I hate that, I hate when people say that. That was the worst possible-" I tried again. "I don't really want to get off, either. I'm worried about Siri- Snuffles. I'm worried that everyone will still be staring at me the way they did last June. I'm worried that Neville will douse us all in stinksap again by accident."

She opened her eyes, the slightest hint of a smile on her face. "Stinksap's not poisonous, though."

"Yeah, but it didn't smell fantastic either, did it?"

"No, it didn't."

I released a small sigh, running my fingers through my hair. "Look, Lu, you're not the only one who would rather... I don't know. Go back in time? Stay here forever?"

"I just don't want to move on," she whispered. "This feels too much like moving on, moving forward."

I rose to my feet and held out a hand. "That's okay. You don't have to move on by yourself. We can take the first step together."

Lucy glanced up at me, an odd expression on her face. She inhaled slowly, blinked, then accepted my hand and let me pull her up.

The two of us made our way off the train in silence. I eagerly listened for Hagrid's familiar call of “Firs’ years over here, firs’ years!”

But instead, I was met with a female voice, shouting, “First years line up over here, please! All first years to me!”

“Where’s Hagrid?” I wondered aloud, unable to stop myself.

Lucy's face went slack. “I don't... I don't know...”

We were shuffled along in the crowd, lost in our own anxious thoughts. 

_He can’t have left. He’s just got a cold or something._

I glanced around for Ron and Hermione as we made our way to the horseless carriages, but they were nowhere to be found. 

Or at least, the carriages that were once horseless.

Now in front of each carriage was a massive skeletal horse. With wings. And a reptilian head.

“Thanks for carrying Pig,” Ron said, appearing suddenly behind me.

“Yeah, of course. Where d’you reckon-”

“-Hagrid is? I dunno. He’d better be okay...”

Hermione appeared suddenly behind us, red in the face. “Malfoy was being absolutely foul to a first year back there, I swear I’m going to report him, he’s only had his badge three minutes and he’s using it to bully people worse than ever. Where’s Crookshanks?”

“Ginny’s got him. There she is.”

Hermione hurried forward and took Crookshanks from Ginny, grabbing Lucy by the arm in the process. “Thanks! Come on, let’s get a carriage together before they all fill up.”

Luna emerged from the crowd, smiling at Pig. “He’s a sweet little owl, isn’t he?”

“Er, yeah, he’s alright,” Ron replied.

The group of us headed toward a carriage, and I finally spoke up.

“What are those horse things?” I asked.

“What horse things?” Ron asked right back.

“The horse things pulling the carriages!”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about — look!” I took Ron by the arm and turned him so he was inches from the horse's face, staring into its white eyes.

Ron shook his head and turned back around. “What am I supposed to be looking at?”

“At the — there, between the shafts! Harnessed to the coach! It’s right there in front.” I froze. “Can’t you see them?”

“See _what_?”

“Can’t you see what’s pulling the carriages?”

Ron shook his head again, more slowly this time. “Are you feeling alright, Harry?”

“I... yeah...?”

_What in Merlin's name is going on? If this is some sick joke Ron's trying to pull..._

“Shall we get in, then?” he asked, staring at me with something between concern and confusion.

“Yeah... yeah, go on...”

Ron climbed in, and Luna spoke suddenly from behind me.

“It’s alright. You’re not going mad or anything. I can see them too.”

“Can you?” I asked, feeling somewhat relieved.

“Oh yes. I’ve been able to see them ever since my first day here. They’ve always pulled the carriages. Don’t worry. You’re just as sane as I am.”

She smiled then, and climbed up into the carriage. I looked at the horses one last time before following suit. 

Lucy looked at Ron, then Luna, then me. She bit her lip, glancing at the front of the carriage.

“Thestrals,” she said. 

“What?” I asked.

“Have you always thought the carriages pulled themselves?”

I nodded slowly. “You can see them too?”

“Yeah.” Lucy kicked Ron lightly. “Hey, stop looking so worried. Harry's not crazy. You can only see thestrals if you've seen death, which is why we can and you can't.”

Ron blinked, looking between me and Lucy. “You mean, you...?”

“Yeah.” Lucy glanced away, offering no further explanation.

The carriage started rolling, and I strained forward for a view of the castle. As soon as it appeared, I felt a rush of warmth.

I was home.

But beside me, Lucy sniffled. I glanced over at her, startled by the sight of tears flowing freely down her cheeks. She hadn't cried in front of anyone other than me before. 

_She must be too distraught to care._

I glanced around the carriage. Everyone's eyes were on her, but Lucy stared at the castle, completely oblivious. I was tempted for a second to touch her hand, to put my arm around her shoulders, to do something to try to help. But I didn't want to risk alerting her to the fact that everyone in the carriage was watching her, or to the fact that I had noticed anything in the first place. 

She had told me she didn't want to move on. But with every step the thestrals took, she was moving one step further away from Cedric, from her parents. One step closer to the unknown, one step closer to the descending war. One step closer to whatever came next.

So I let her sit in the moment without interruption. I knew it would end soon enough.

The carriages came to a stop at the stone steps, and Lucy dragged her sleeves across her cheeks and jumped down without glancing at anyone. I was right on her heels, and hurried until I was by her side.

I grazed her hand with my pinky. "Together, yeah?"

"Yeah," she replied, her voice a crackling whisper. She glanced over at Hagrid's hut, and somehow, her eyes grew even sadder. Her eyes grew sadder still when Hagrid wasn't at the staff table, either.

“He can’t have left,” Ron said.

“Of course he hasn’t,” I replied. “Not a chance.”

“You don’t think he’s... hurt, or anything, do you?” Hermione asked tentatively.

I shook my head. “No.”

“So where is he?” Lucy asked, settling across the table from the rest of us and glancing around for the twins.

Hermione dropped her voice so low only I could hear her. “Maybe he’s not back yet. You know — from his mission — the thing he was doing over the summer for Dumbledore.”

“What thing?” Lucy inquired immediately.

I cocked my head. “How did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” Ron asked, looking between Lucy and me with confusion written all over his face.

Lucy turned bright red. “I have good ears. What thing?”

The twins arrived just then, and I mouthed to her, “Later.”

She nodded in understanding and turned to Fred, who was repeatedly tapping her shoulder. “What?”

“You. Malfoy. Story. Now.”

Lucy turned an even brighter shade of red. “Oh, that was noth-”

“It was bloody brilliant,” I said pointedly, raising my eyebrows at her. “Don't be shy, tell them about it.”

She reluctantly told a very watered-down version of the story. Before I could give a fuller account of the incident, the first years wandered in, looking remarkably small and scared. I hoped I hadn't looked just like that four years ago.

The rip in the Hat opened, and it began to sing.

"In times of old when I was new  
And Hogwarts barely started  
The founders of our noble school  
Thought never to be parted:  
United by a common goal,  
They had the selfsame yearning,  
To make the world’s best magic school  
And pass along their learning.  
'Together we will build and teach!'  
The four good friends decided  
And never did they dream that they  
Might someday be divided,  
For were there such friends anywhere  
As Slytherin and Gryffndor?  
Unless it was the second pair  
Of Huffepuff and Ravenclaw?  
So how could it have gone so wrong?  
How could such friendships fail?  
Why, I was there and so can tell  
The whole sad, sorry tale.  
Said Slytherin, 'We’ll teach just those  
Whose ancestry is purest.'  
Said Ravenclaw, 'We’ll teach those whose  
Intelligence is surest.'  
Said Gryffindor, 'We’ll teach all those  
With brave deeds to their name,”  
Said Hufflepuff, 'I’ll teach the lot,  
And treat them just the same.'  
These differences caused little strife  
When first they came to light,  
For each of the four founders had  
A House in which they might  
Take only those they wanted, so,  
For instance, Slytherin  
Took only pure-blood wizards  
Of great cunning, just like him,  
And only those of sharpest mind  
Were taught by Ravenclaw  
While the bravest and the boldest  
Went to daring Gryffindor.  
Good Hufflepuff she took the rest,  
And taught them all she knew,  
Thus the Houses and their founders  
Retained friendships firm and true.  
So Hogwarts worked in harmony  
For several happy years,  
But then discord crept among us  
Feeding on our faults and fears.  
The Houses that, like pillars four,  
Had once held up our school,  
Now turned upon each other and,  
Divided, sought to rule.  
And for a while it seemed the school  
Must meet an early end,  
What with dueling and with fighting  
And the clash of friend on friend  
And at last there came a morning  
When old Slytherin departed  
And though the fighting then died out  
He left us quite downhearted.  
And never since the founders four  
Were whittled down to three  
Have the Houses been united  
As they once were meant to be.  
And now the Sorting Hat is here  
And you all know the score:  
I sort you into Houses  
Because that is what I’m for,  
But this year I’ll go further,  
Listen closely to my song:  
Though condemned I am to split you  
Still I worry that it’s wrong,  
Though I must fulfill my duty  
And must quarter every year  
Still I wonder whether sorting  
May not bring the end I fear.  
Oh, know the perils, read the signs,  
The warning history shows,  
For our Hogwarts is in danger  
From external, deadly foes  
And we must unite inside her  
Or we’ll crumble from within.  
I have told you, I have warned you...  
Let the Sorting now begin."

“Branched out a bit this year, hasn’t it?” Ron quipped. 

“Too right it has,” I replied. I glanced over at Lucy to see how she was taking it, then followed her gaze; her eyes were locked on the Hufflepuff table, at the spot still empty beside Henry. Henry was clearly trying to steel himself against what was inevitably coming. Someone would take that spot. A first year who didn't know. I spotted the prefect badge on his chest and felt a surge of sympathy for him. To have to live with the hole of Cedric's absence was one thing; attempting to fill it was another. I understood that, a little bit, anyway. 

_"Harry... take my body back, will you? Take my body back to my parents, and Lucy? And... and take care of Lucy for me? Please?”_

_"I will. I promise."_

I blinked and returned my attention to the front of the room. To my horror, I recognized one of the new witches at the staff table, bedecked thoroughly in pink.

“It’s that Umbridge woman!” I hissed.

“Who?” Hermione asked.

“She was at my hearing, she works for Fudge!”

“Nice cardigan,” Ron muttered with an amused smile.

Hermione shook her head. “If she works for Fudge, what on earth’s she doing here?”

As if she could hear us, Umbridge's head swiveled in our direction. Hermione and Ron looked away, but I didn't. But she wasn't looking at me. Her eyes landed on Lucy, who was now absently tracing the wood pattern on the table, her finger trembling more violently than usual.

Hermione jabbed her elbow into my side and held her hand with the ring out below the table.

I did a double take. Lucy's half was blank.

We glanced up in unison at Lucy in a panic, but she was lost in her own head. Her eyes were completely devoid of emotion. 

George kicked me under the table. “What is it?” he mouthed.

Hermione and I exchanged a brief look before shaking our heads and turning toward the Sorting Hat. But Hermione left her hand where I could see it, half bright purple and half blank silver.

Lucy's half of the ring flickered back to life — a deep blue — when the first Hufflepuff was sorted and immediately filled the seat next to Henry. But her grief was beyond tears; she looked for a second before dropping her eyes and twisting the ring around her finger.

When the Sorting was over, Dumbledore rose to his feet, and I felt oddly comforted by the sight. Sure, maybe Hagrid wasn't there, sure, the thestrals were creepy, but Dumbledore was still at Hogwarts.

I knew it would be okay with him around, even if it was different.

He offered a dazzling smile. “To our newcomers, welcome! To our old hands — welcome back! There is a time for speech making, but this is not it. Tuck in!”

The food magically appeared on the plates, and we struck up a conversation with Nearly Headless Nick as we dove in. Hermione looked worriedly at Lucy's plate, but she seemed hungrier than usual after not eating anything since breakfast, so neither of us said anything about it or suggested she eat more.

Eventually, Dumbledore rose to his feet and addressed the Hall again.

“Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices. First years ought to know that the forest in the grounds is out of bounds to students — and a few of our older students ought to know by now too.

“Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he tells me is the four hundred and sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr. Filch’s office door.

“We have had two changes in staffing this year. We are very pleased to welcome Professor Grubbly-Plank, who will be taking Care of Magical Creatures lessons; we are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.

“Tryouts for the House Quidditch teams will take place-”

“Hem, hem.”

Dumbledore fell silent and glanced over at Umbridge. Nobody had ever interrupted him before.

“This should be good,” Fred quipped under his breath.

“Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome,” she said in her same sickeningly sweet voice as she walked up to the front in her sickeningly pink and sickeningly fluffy cardigan. “Well, it is lovely to be back at Hogwarts, I must say! And to see such happy little faces looking back at me! I am very much looking forward to getting to know you all, and I’m sure we’ll be very good friends!”

Then she launched into her speech. 

“The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the Wizarding community must be passed down through the generations lest we lose them forever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished, and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching.”

Lucy's face suddenly flushed with anger. Her nostrils flared as she exhaled sharply, her jaw clenched.

“What?” I asked, eager for an excuse to listen to her rather than to the speech.

She shook her head. Her blue eyes were uncharacteristically cold, not leaving Umbridge's face. She was hanging onto every word she said.

I couldn't bring myself to pay the same attention. Her speech was dreadfully long and dreadfully... well, dreadful. Dreadful, period.

By the time she finally sat down, Lucy's face was Gryffindor red. I could see her positively quaking with suppressed anger. 

Dumbledore assumed his typical position at the front of the room with obvious relief, though his words were kind and calm. “Thank you very much, Professor Umbridge, that was most illuminating. Now — as I was saying, Quidditch tryouts will be held at the discretion of the captains...”

“Yes, it certainly was illuminating,” Hermione muttered.

“You’re not telling me you enjoyed it? That was about the dullest speech I’ve ever heard, and I grew up with Percy,” Ron whispered.

“I said illuminating, not enjoyable. It explained a lot.”

I blinked. “Did it? Sounded like a load of waffle to me.”

“There was some important stuff hidden in the waffle, some...” Lucy said suddenly from across the table, a biting edge to her words. “I could... oh, I'm so _furious_ I could...” She shook her head, too upset to continue. 

“Like ‘progress for progress’s sake must be discouraged’?” Hermione said. “How about ‘pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited’?”

Lucy nodded. “Not to mention what she said in the beginning that sounded dangerously close to blood supremacy.”

“Well, what does that all mean?” Ron asked.

Hermione sighed heavily. “I’ll tell you what it means. It means the Ministry’s interfering at Hogwarts.”

“And there are thinly-veilied blood supremacy ideas behind it all,” Lucy added, shooting Umbridge a murderous look. But as soon as she did, like a switch had been flipped, the fire in her eyes died. She released a shuddering sigh that sounded like a sob, shaking worse than ever. 

Dumbledore had apparently concluded his speech, because the Great Hall began to empty. Lucy jumped up and rushed out, and I darted after her, also eager to avoid the stares I knew we would receive if we stayed.


	99. Together

LUCY:

Tears burned the backs of my eyes as I pushed through the crowd, keeping my head low so no one would see. A hand on my shoulder stopped me at the base of the stairs.

"Hey," Harry said gently. "Together, remember?"

I nodded, taking a deep breath to try to calm myself. "Sorry. Just... just angry, then... then..."

"I know," he replied. "C'mon. Let's go to the common room."

"Together," I said. 

Harry nodded. "Together."

We climbed the stairs side-by-side in silence. I made a mental list of what I had to do before class in the morning in an effort to stop myself from crying.

_Bring Tuck down to Hagrid's hut._

Even without Hagrid, he couldn't stay in the dormitory.

_Make sure someone's been feeding Fang._

I was sure someone had been. But I had to see for myself. I would take responsibility for him until Hagrid was back from... wherever he was. I opened my mouth to ask Harry, but the tears I had been trying to fight remained stuck in my throat and didn't allow me to speak. I closed my mouth and kept listing.

_Make sure Angelina got my letter. She's Quidditch Captain now. Just like Cedric guessed she would be._

I took another deep breath and forced the tears away. 

_Check in with Madam Pomfrey._

She had sent me a letter saying I should have gone to St. Mungo's but that she would offer what relief she could — if any — for the shaking.

_And most importantly, don't fall apart._

Eventually, we reached the portrait hole, only to realize neither of us had asked Ron or Hermione for the password.

“Brilliant,” I whispered with a resigned sigh.

“No password, no entrance,” the Fat Lady said, and I nodded.

“Wait, Lucy, Harry, I know it!” Neville ran up to us, his plant still clutched in his arms. “Guess what it is? I’m actually going to be able to remember it for once! Mimbulus mimbletonia!”

“Correct!” the Fat Lady announced, and the three of us climbed into the common room.

“Thanks, Neville, that's a great password,” I said, inspecting the plant more closely. “I wonder if all of the passwords will be Herbology-themed this year.”

“That would be great!” he exclaimed with a wide smile. “Hey, Lucy, do you want to head down to the greenhouses with me on Saturday? Professor Sprout told me to invite you, too, when she sent a letter asking me over summer.”

I nodded, trying to find a smile for the sweet boy looking at me so earnestly. “Sure, Neville, that'd be great.”

His smile grew even wider, and he waved. “I'd give you a hug, but I'd rather not spray stinksap all over the common room by accident. So you get a good night wave instead. Good night!”

“Night, Neville,” I called after him as he hurried up the stairs to his dormitory. I turned to Harry, who was looking at me with a searching expression. I rubbed the back of my neck. “Well... g'night, Harry. I... I doubt Prefect Granger would let you... you know...”

He nodded. “I was just thinking the same thing. But I'll see you in the morning, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I replied. I bit my lip. “I have a couple of things to do, early, but I'll be there at breakfast.”

“Ah, right, Tuck. Oh!” He dropped his voice to almost a whisper. “Hagrid. He wouldn't tell us what it was, and he told us we weren't supposed to tell you about it at all, but, well...”

I felt as if ice water had been dumped over my head.

He must have gone to talk to the giants.

The way Professor Lupin was talking to the werewolves.

The way the Death Eaters had tried to talk to me.

I pushed my emotions away and nodded. “I get it. It's fine.” I swallowed hard. “Thanks for telling me. G'night, Harry.”

“G'night, Lu,” he said. 

I made my way up to my dormitory, pushing down on my emotions harder and harder and harder, further and further and further away.

I didn't want to feel anything at all for a nice long while.

Feeling was exhausting.


	100. Oh My Dear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Merry Christmas to those who celebrate! And happiest of holidays to those who don't. 
> 
> Thank you all for joining me on this incredible journey this year. Some of you have been here since March, while others have been here for only a couple weeks. Regardless of how long you've been reading this story, thank you so much for supporting me and my wild idea. Thank you for loving this story. Thank you for encouraging me to keep doing what I do, because I truly love doing it.
> 
> I know this part of the story is so incredibly dark. But I wanted to try to share a little bit of light this Christmas. So... here you go. Chapter 100, "Oh My Dear." I hope you all enjoy.

HARRY:

Lucy didn't appear in the Great Hall until a couple minutes before we had to head to our first class. She slid into the open seat between the twins and immediately pulled a small glass vial from her bag.

"Did Professor McGonagall already come by with the schedules?" she asked breathlessly, shaking the glass up and down. 

"Yeah, she gave me yours," I said as I slid it across the table.

"Thanks." Lucy popped the cap and downed whatever was inside in a single swallow. She grimaced as she set it down, shaking her head in disgust.

I was about to ask what it was when Neville spoke up. "Lucy, was that...?"

"Just something that might help with the shaking," she said quickly — too quickly — holding a hand up for emphasis. "It started over summer and it's been rather annoying, really, but it hasn't been serious enough to go to St. Mungo's." Neville looked as if he wanted to say something else, but Lucy glanced down at her schedule and sighed. "Defense Against the Dark Arts first? Didn't we get a week's worth of class lectures from her speech last night?"

"A month's, more like," Ron retorted. 

"We have her second, if that makes you feel any better," Fred volunteered with a shrug. "We can wallow in our misery together at lunch."

The bell tolled over our heads, and we made our way to the DADA classroom. We entered silently, unsure as to how lenient or strict Umbridge would be as a teacher. 

“Well, good morning!” she said once we had all settled in.

A couple people mumbled a half-hearted “Good morning.”

Umbridge shook her head. “Tut, tut. _That_ won’t do, now, will it? I should like you, please, to reply ‘Good morning, Professor Umbridge.’ One more time, please. Good morning, class!”

“Good morning, Professor Umbridge,” we replied robotically.

“There, now. That wasn’t too difficult, was it? Wands away and quills out, please.”

Lucy's hand clenched around her wand. Rather than tucking it into her bag, she tucked it into her pocket with her right hand as she got a quill and ink and parchment from her bag with her left. I followed suit. I had gotten in the habit of having my wand on me at all times. I didn't want to tuck it away, especially not while Lucy was beside me.

The words _Defense Against the Dark Arts: A Return to Basic Principles_ appeared on the board.

“Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn’t it? The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your O.W.L. year. You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory-centered, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please.”

With another flick of her wand, the board changed.

_Course aims:  
1\. Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.  
2\. Learning to recognize situations in which defensive magic can legally be used.  
3\. Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use._

Once this was copied down, she asked, “Has everybody got a copy of _Defensive Magical Theory_ by Wilbert Slinkhard?” A half-hearted sound of confirmation rippled through the classroom, but it wasn't good enough for her. “I think we’ll try that again. When I ask you a question, I should like you to reply ‘Yes, Professor Umbridge,’ or ‘No, Professor Umbridge.’ So, has everyone got a copy of _Defensive Magical Theory_ by Wilbert Slinkhard?”

I fought not to roll my eyes. “Yes, Professor Umbridge.”

“Good. I should like you to turn to page five and read chapter one, ‘Basics for Beginners.’ There will be no need to talk.”

I tried to read it, somewhat, but I was distracted by the sight of Hermione's hand in the air. Before long, the whole class was staring at her; well, everyone except Umbridge. 

Finally, Umbridge acknowledged her. “Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?”

“Not about the chapter, no.”

“Well, we’re reading just now. If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of class.”

“I’ve got a query about your course aims.”

“And your name is...?”

“Hermione Granger.”

“Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully.”

“Well, I don’t. There’s nothing written up there about using defensive spells.”

Umbridge laughed after a moment of stunned silence. “ _Using_ defensive spells? Why, I can’t imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to _use_ a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren’t expecting to be attacked during class?”

“We’re not going to use magic?” Ron asked.

“Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr.-”

“Weasley.”

But when Ron raised his hand, she turned her back on him. I shot my own hand up, and Hermione did too.

“Yes, Miss Granger? You wanted to ask something else?”

“Yes. Surely the whole point of Defense Against the Dark Arts is to practice defensive spells?”

“Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger?”

“No, but-”

“Well then, I’m afraid you are not qualified to decide what the ‘whole point’ of any class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised our new program of study. You will be learning about defensive spells in a secure, risk-free way-”

I shook my head indignantly. “What use is _that_? If we’re going to be attacked it won’t be in a-”

“Hand, Mr. Potter!”

I lifted my hand again, but she turned her back on me and addressed Dean, whose hand was now up.

“And your name is?”

“Dean Thomas.”

“Well, Mr. Thomas?”

“Well, it’s like Harry said, isn’t it? If we’re going to be attacked, it won’t be risk-free-”

“I repeat, do you expect to be attacked during my classes?”

“No, but-”

“I do not wish to criticize the way things have been run in this school, but you have been exposed to some very irresponsible wizards in this class, very irresponsible indeed — not to mention _extremely_ dangerous half-breeds.”

The entire class stiffened at that. Chaos slowly began to unfold, the students versus Umbridge, who tried desperately (but in vain) to maintain order.

“If you mean Professor Lupin, he was the best we ever-”

“ _Hand_ , Mr. Thomas! As I was saying — you have been introduced to spells that have been complex, inappropriate to your age group, and potentially lethal. You have been frightened into believing that you are likely to meet Dark attacks every other day-”

“No we haven’t, we just-”

“Your hand is not up, Miss Granger! It is my understanding that my predecessor not only performed illegal curses in front of you, he actually performed them _on_ you-”

“Well, he turned out to be a maniac, didn’t he? Mind you, we still learned loads-”

“Your hand is not up, Mr. Thomas! Now, it is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more than sufficient to get you through your examination, which, after all, is what school is all about. And your name is?”

“Parvati Patil, and isn’t there a practical bit in our Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L.? Aren’t we supposed to show that we can actually do the countercurses and things?”

“As long as you have studied the theory hard enough, there is no reason why you should not be able to perform the spells under carefully controlled examination conditions.”

“Without ever practicing them before? Are you telling us that the first time we’ll get to do the spells will be during our exam?”

“I repeat, as long as you have studied the theory hard enough-”

I shot my hand into the air. “And what good’s theory going to be in the real world?” 

“This is school, Mr. Potter, not the real world.”

“So we’re not supposed to be prepared for what’s waiting out there?”

“There is nothing _waiting out there_ , Mr. Potter.”

“Oh yeah?” I challenged, on the edge of my seat.

“Who do you imagine wants to attack children like yourselves?”

“Hmm, let’s think... maybe _Lord Voldemort_?”

“Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Potter.” Umbridge looked rather pleased with herself. “Now, let me make a few things quite plain. You have been told that a certain Dark wizard has returned from the dead-”

“He wasn’t dead, but yeah, he’s returned!” I interrupted.

“Mr.-Potter-you-have-already-lost-your-House-ten-points-do-not-make-matters-worse-for-yourself! As I was saying, you have been informed that a certain Dark wizard is at large once again. _This is a lie_.”

My anger peaked. “It is NOT a lie! I saw him, I fought him!”

“Detention, Mr. Potter! Tonight. Five o’clock. My office. I repeat, _this is a lie_. The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours. If someone is alarming you with fibs about reborn Dark wizards, I would like to hear about it. I am here to help. I am your friend. And now, you will kindly continue your reading. Page five, ‘Basics for Beginners.’”

“Not in danger? What about my brother, wasn't he in danger?” scoffed a cold voice to my left.

Lucy had entered the discussion.

Her hand was dutifully in the air, both halves of the ring blazing scarlet.

“Is there something you would like to say, Miss Everlin?” Professor Umbridge asked in a falsely sweet voice.

“Diggory,” Lucy corrected through gritted teeth. “Yes, I'd like to say I am so very tired of everybody thinking my brother's death was anything other than what it was: murder.”

The room fell silent. Lucy did not falter. 

Umbridge's smile faded to nothingness. “Cedric Diggory’s death was a tragic accident.”

“My brother was an incredibly talented wizard,” Lucy said loudly, rising to her feet. “He was the top of his class. Hufflepuff prefect, Quidditch Captain. He learned the Patronus Charm in a single night. He was a Triwizard Champion, on track to becoming Head Boy, hoping to one day become a healer. No 'accident' would have killed him. To say his death was an accident is _unfathomable_. It is nothing more than a _lie_.”

“You can join Potter in detention, Miss _Everlin_ ,” Umbridge snapped, her air of sweetness completely gone.

“Diggory!” Lucy and I shouted in unison.

I jumped to my feet, too. “So, according to you, Cedric Diggory dropped dead of his own accord, did he?”

“His death was a tragic accident!” Umbridge repeated.

“It was murder.” I drew a shaky breath. “Voldemort killed him, and you know it.”

Silence fell again. Umbridge's face was a perfect blank for a second. 

“Come here, both of you.”

Lucy and I walked to the front of the room side-by-side, not looking at each other.

“Take these to Professor McGonagall,” she said, pressing identical pink notes into our hands.

“Gladly,” Lucy snapped, glaring at Umbridge. “'Silence is cowardice with no guarantee of safety.' Do you know who said that, Professor?”

“Pardon?”

“My mother died for the truth. _Cowards_ are silent. Only the _most shameful liar_ would adamantly push the falsehood that Voldemort hasn't returned. And you are exactly that, Professor.” 

With that, Lucy spun on her heel and marched back to our shared desk. I followed half a second later. We still avoided each other's eyes as we grabbed our books and bags and left the classroom.

Lucy made sure the door slammed loudly behind us.

Then for the first time, we dared to glance at each other. 

I half-expected Lucy to break down. That had been the angriest I had ever seen her, surely the wave of sadness would follow. But to my surprise, she didn't break at all. Rather, she lifted her chin and offered a smug smile.

“Do you pity her?”

I blinked. “What do you mean?”

Lucy shoved her hand into her bag as we started walking toward Professor McGonagall's office, eventually pulling out a worn piece of parchment.

I recognized it instantly and grinned.

_I've never seen you look so murderous, Lu, and I pity the poor soul who receives your full unbridled anger one day._

_I pity them too. Don't worry, I don't plan on exploding at anyone._

_Unless they deserve it?_

“No, I don't pity her,” I scoffed.

“Neither do I,” Lucy replied, putting the piece of parchment in her pocket rather than in her bookbag. “She deserved it.”

“I just hope McGonagall agrees,” I muttered. 

“Even if she doesn't, I don't regret it one bit. I can't wait to read what wonderful things Umbridge has surely written about us.”

Professor McGonagall's office was quite far from the DADA classroom, so Lucy and I had a bit more time to talk. So, I asked a question.

“Lu, I know what Professor Lupin said, but since you mentioned it-”

“Yeah, I figured I would have to answer a lot of questions about that line about Mum,” she said, a little more quietly. “I still don't regret it. My mum was killed by Voldemort himself for writing and publishing that article in July, but the Ministry chalked it up to the work of the same Death Eaters from the Quidditch World Cup.”

“I would say I'm sorry, but I know that it's not the right thing to say.”

Lucy nodded. “Yeah. I understand. There's nothing you can say in response, because it's not like you can say it's okay. It's not okay she was murdered for speaking out. It's not okay Dad was murdered too just for being in the way, even though he didn't speak out. And Cedric... Merlin, don't even get me started on how...”

Professor McGonagall's head poked out of her office door. “I thought I heard you two. Why aren't you in class?”

“We’ve been sent to see you,” Lucy replied mildly.

“Sent? What do you mean, sent?”

Lucy held out her note, and I did the same. Professor McGonagall scanned them, looking more and more grim as she read.

“Come in here, you two.”

We followed her, the door closing behind us. We stood in front of her desk, waiting for whatever came next.

She spun around. “Well? Is this true?”

“Is what true, Professor?” I asked.

“Is it true that you both shouted at Professor Umbridge?”

Lucy and I answered in unison. “Yes.”

“You called her a liar?”

“Yes.”

“You told her He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is back?”

“Yes.”

Professor McGonagall lowered herself into her chair.

“Have a biscuit, you two.”

“Have — what?” I asked disbelievingly.

“Have a biscuit, and sit down.”

Lucy shook her head. “I'm not hungry, but thank you. Madam Pomfrey's potion doesn't seem to be doing me any favors yet. It must have dittany,” she added quietly.

Professor McGonagall's face softened. “Right. Your allergy.”

I took one and sat in the chair that had appeared behind me. Lucy sank down too, some of the fire in her eyes having given way to sadness. But I could still see a bit of anger, smoldering just below the surface. The bell rang for class, but neither of us moved.

“Look... Potter, Diggory, you need to be careful.”

Lucy and I both looked up at her in surprise.

“Misbehavior in Dolores Umbridge’s class could cost you much more than House points and a detention. I heard from your former professor Lupin that he's already spoken to you about the risks of speaking out, Lucy, and I know Arthur Weasley passed along Percy Weasley's advice. And as for you, Potter, you know where she comes from, you must know to whom she is reporting.” Professor McGonagall studied the note. “It would seem the two of you have gotten off easy this time. She is only giving you detention for tonight, though it does not say how long it will last. Just the same, you two must remember to tread carefully around Dolores Umbridge.”

“But, Professor, we're telling the truth! Voldemort’s back, you know he is, Professor Dumbledore knows he is,” I cut in.

“For heaven’s sake, Potter, do you really think this is about truth or lies? It’s about keeping your head down and your temper under control! Quite frankly, I'm surprised at the extent of your apparent temper, Lucy, but I suppose that is to be expected after what you had to endure this summer.”

“Professor, my mother died for speaking out, and my father died even though he didn't,” Lucy said quietly. “If it doesn't matter to Voldemort whether I speak out or not, why should I stay silent? I've gotten away once, haven't I?”

“This is exactly what Remus- Professor Lupin expressed concern over, Lucy. In other words, your lack of it.” Professor McGonagall shook her head. “Didn’t you listen to Dolores Umbridge’s speech at the start-of-term feast?”

Lucy nodded. “I didn't like it one bit, but I did.”

“Then you should understand by know that You-Know-Who is not the only one seeking control. And it would serve you well to do as so many have recommended and keep your head down, both of you.”

* * *

Lucy and I didn't yell at any other teachers that day. I did get a bit short with Angelina Johnson at lunch when she got upset with me for not being able to attend Quidditch tryouts that night because of detention, but she was short with me first so I didn't let it weigh on my conscience.

The whispers were nearly unbearable at lunch, then again at dinner. Whispers, stares, pointing fingers, all directed at Lucy and me. She sat between the twins as always, but we exchanged meaningful looks throughout the day, neither of us looking forward to detention at five o'clock.

"I will say," she commented as we climbed the stairs to Umbridge's office, "I'm not terribly excited by the prospect of my first detention. But I still don't regret a single thing I said."

"Me neither," I replied. "Really? First detention?"

"Yeah. I always kept my head low because I knew my dad would bite my head off if I ever got detention, but he's not around to do that anymore, is he?"

"Lu-" 

"It's fine, I don't need sympathy," she muttered, blushing a bit. "I don't know what made me say that."

"Well, if anyone would understand..." I said with a shrug. "D'you think we could play the pitiful orphan card to get out of detention to go watch tryouts?"

Lucy snorted. "Doubt it."

Umbridge greeted us at the door. "Mr. Potter, Miss Everlin, right on time. How wonderful to see you, dears."

_Everlin? This nonsense again?_

I felt Lucy stiffen beside me as we walked into the disturbingly pink and cat-filled room. I knew she wanted to punch this woman as desperately as I did, if not more. 

Just the same, she tried to hide her anger. Her voice could not have been more different than it had been the last time she had spoken to Umbridge. It was as if she were trying to mock Umbridge and her falsely sweet tone. "Why of course, Professor Umbridge. What will you have us do?"

"Lines," she replied, gesturing toward the table in the middle of the room, already waiting with two pieces of paper. Lucy grabbed a quill from her pocket, but Umbridge's smile deepened. "Oh no, don't worry. You won't have need of that. I have my own quill."

"Oh. Alright." Lucy tucked her quill away.

"Who shall start?"

"I will," Lucy and I said in unison. I opened my mouth to say something else, but Umbridge interrupted.

"I have an idea." The gaze she fixed on Lucy made my skin crawl. "How about we have the bigger liar go first?"

"Me, then," I said.

"No, Mr. Potter. Not you."

"I don't think Lucy said anything false, according to you," I protested. 

"How brave." Her words dripped with venom. "You stand up for her now, but if only you knew exactly what a liar Miss Everlin was."

"Diggory," Lucy said, but her voice trembled.

"Yes, that would be the name on the official report submitted to the Ministry after your illegal use of magic in August," Umbridge said. "However, I felt it appropriate to do further research into why a rogue group of Death Eaters would want to target your family-"

"They weren't a rogue group, they were organized and Voldemort himself was going to come if I hadn't decided to escape when I did-"

"The point being-" Umbridge spoke over her. "-I found in your father's file that you were adopted in 1985 following a magical attack on the Everlin family, of which you were presumed to be the only survivor. How lucky, really," Umbridge said in a voice that might have sounded gentle if not for the suspicious, goading, manipulative, infuriating undertones, "to be such a survivor. One might wonder what other secrets-"

"Alright, alright, just stop it!" Lucy cried, tears sparkling in her eyes. "You're right! You read through the contents of my dad's file and found the truth about me! I'll write the lines, I'll write the lines."

"On second thought, you two can write the lines simultaneously," Umbridge said with a small smirk of satisfaction.

Lucy released a shaky breath as she walked over to the chair on the left. I dropped into the chair on the right, still reeling from what had just taken place.

"Your line is 'I must not tell lies,' and that goes for both of you."

"How many times?" Lucy asked in a trembling voice.

"Oh, as long as it takes for the message to sink in. Off you go."

"You haven't given us ink, Professor," I noticed, my brain still trying to catch up to the present moment.

_Lucy? Everlin? Adopted? Voldemort? What?_

"Oh, you won’t need ink," she replied with a lofty laugh, snapping me back to reality. 

I glanced out of the corner of my eye at Lucy, but she kept her eyes fixed on the parchment as she began to write. I followed suit, then immediately gasped in pain, the back of my left hand stinging.

The ink was red. A glance at my hand confirmed it was my blood.

I glanced at Umbridge in horror. She merely smiled at me. "Yes?"

"Nothing," I whispered, looking back down and glancing at Lucy's hand. 

She had not yet drawn blood. But I could read the words in her skin, in her shaky handwriting.

My handwriting shook more and more as I wrote, too. After quite a while, Umbridge came over and decided I was done, that the message had been sufficiently engraved in my skin, that I had winced and grimaced enough times to have "learned my lesson."

"So she's done too," I said, jerking my chin at Lucy, my voice rough with the pain I was barely managing to shove aside.

"No, I don't think she is," Umbridge replied, taking Lucy's hand in her own, far more aggressively than I ever had. "She's barely written anything at all!"

"My hands, th-they shake, so I'm writing slowly," Lucy explained. Her eyes flashed as she looked up at Umbridge. "I can keep going, though, if you want me to. Harry can go, I'll stay."

"I'm not leaving you here alone," I said, shaking my head incredulously.

Lucy didn't acknowledge what I said. She kept her eyes on Umbridge's.

"Very well, you can keep going," Umbridge replied with a smile. "I don't think the lesson has really had a chance to sink in. You may stay or leave as you wish, Mr. Potter."

I remained firmly in the chair next to Lucy, having half a mind to smack the quill from her hand and drag her from the room and ask her if she really was adopted or if Umbridge had made it all up just to get a rise out of her. But I knew I'd get us in even more trouble if I did, so I sat next to Lucy, nursing my injured hand, watching helplessly as she carved the words into her own skin over and over and over again. 

But I noticed that she never flinched, never grimaced, never winced. I had known Lucy had a high pain tolerance from all of the times I'd seen her beaten up in Quidditch matches, but it was... almost unnatural, watching her hand bleed more and more without the slightest hint of pain on her face.

After what felt like hours had passed, we were dismissed. Lucy followed me out of the office, but as soon as the door closed behind us, she sprinted past me in the direction of the common room.

"Lucy, wait!" I called as I chased her. "Lucy, please, stop!"

But she didn't. I pursued as fast as I could, but she was faster. She panted the password and leapt through the portrait hole as I reached the base of the stairs. I flew up after her, but by the time I got to the common room, she was gone. The Weasleys were the only ones left.

"Where'd she go?" I asked at the same time as the Weasleys all asked "What _happened_?" in unison.

I shook my head. "I don't know, but all I know is that I need to talk to her."

"Hermione followed her to the dormitory. Neither of them said a word. She was crying, and was her hand bleeding?"

I nodded, but before I could elaborate further, Hermione entered the common room again.

"She's gone," she panted. "I tried to stop her, but she opened the window, jumped on her broom, and took off."

"Well," Fred said slowly. "That girl's always had style. Let's go after her."

"It's past curfew!" Hermione replied, wringing her hands. "I'll go by myself. I'm a Prefect."

"I'm the one with the Invisibility Cloak," I snapped. "And the Marauder's Map. And I was there with her."

"She did run away from you," George pointed out.

"Only because... it's too much to explain, I'm going, and no one else is going with me."

I stormed up to my room and managed to get the map and the cloak without waking anyone.

I tossed the cloak over my head as I made my way back to the common room. I climbed through the portrait hole without another word. 

"Lumos!" I hissed, opening the map. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

The map came to life by the light of my wand. Lucy's name sped off toward the Quidditch Pitch. I tucked the map and my wand away, hurrying through the halls as quietly as possible. I struggled to find my way in the dark, but I eventually reached the Pitch. I shed the cloak as soon as I was in the stairwell and sprinted up to the commentary box. Lucy was racing back and forth across the field. Left to right to left to right.

"Lucy!" I called.

I knew she had heard me, because I hadn't been quiet, but she didn't stop. Back and forth. Left to right.

"Lucy, I'm not leaving!" I tossed the cloak onto the bench behind me, dropping the map and my wand, too. "I'll wait for you. As long as you need. But I'm not leaving."

That was what made her hesitate. Anyone else would have missed it, but I saw even in the pale moonlight the way her hands tightened around her broomstick and her head jerked slightly backwards.

I walked forward until my hands rested on the edge of the commentary box. I didn't say anything else, just watched her fly around.

She really was a natural on a broom. I'd been told I was, too, but Lucy was better than I would ever be. I was a good flyer; Lucy was _effortless_.

After about five minutes, Lucy slowed to a stop across the Pitch and turned so she was facing me. She didn't speak, didn't move. She just looked at me, the pale moonlight illuminating the tear tracks on her cheeks.

I watched her shoulders rise then fall as she took a deep breath. Then, she flew over.

"You shouldn't be out here, it's past curfew," she said, the words sounding empty.

"Lucy, I'm not going anywhere."

"Why not?" I had never seen Lucy look as vulnerable as she did in that moment. Her eyes were wild and afraid, the type of raw fear of an animal backed into a corner. "You saw me blow up at Umbridge earlier, you heard that Professor Lupin and now Professor McGonagall too think I'm a threat to myself, you... you must think I'm..." She shook her head, eyes filling with tears again. "Harry, if you stay, I might..."

"Might what?" I asked gently after a moment.

"Harry, if you stay, I might let myself believe you really aren't going anywhere. I might let myself believe you'll actually always be here, no matter what."

"Where else would I be?"

For a moment, time stood still.

The moonlight cast the world around us in a melancholy glow, but Lucy's eyes were all that mattered to me. I could see a war being waged just beneath the blue, then all at once, it stopped.

Lucy climbed into the commentary box and let her broom fall.

She staggered backward and collapsed onto the bench. Her head dropped into her hands.

"Harry, there's something you should know. Something I should have told you a long time ago. I've just... I've just been so afraid. And I still am, but I... I... I have to tell you now, I want to tell you, before... before..."

I sat down beside her and wrapped an arm around her trembling shoulders. I didn't say anything that would rush her, I didn't say anything to stop her. I just held her and waited.

* * *

_Oh my dear, I'll wait for you  
Grace tonight will pull us through  
Until the tears have left your eyes  
Until the fears can sleep at night  
Until the demons that you're scared of disappear inside  
Until this guilt begins to crack  
And the weight falls from your back  
Oh my dear, I'll keep you in my arms tonight_

* * *

Finally, she twisted away so she was sitting cross-legged on the bench facing me. She sighed shakily.

"Harry... what she said was true. I _am_ adopted. I was born Lucy Everlin. But she didn't have the whole truth." A tear slipped down her cheek, and she glanced out at the Pitch. "I didn't know until third year. My dad, or, well, Amos Diggory, had me obliviated so I wouldn't remember my first family. Cedric, too, to an extent, so he'd think I had always been there. You know how the dementors brought up your worst memory? The night your parents died?"

I nodded.

"Well... the dementors brought up my worst memory. You see, there are only two ways to overcome obliviated memories, both of which I understand now. The first is dementors. I saw bits and pieces of my worst memory with every dementor encounter. Then over summer, when I was tortured in the caves, I saw a couple more, since the Cruciatus Curse overcomes being obliviated too."

I felt as if I'd been punched in the gut. _Lucy? Tortured? Why?_ But I didn't have time to dwell on it much longer, because she kept talking.

"My worst memory was... is... I don't know..." She shuddered. She glanced down, squeezed her eyes shut, then brought her eyes back to mine. "When I was five, my grandmother fell ill, very ill. My parents — the Everlins, not the Diggorys — brought my sister and me here, to the UK somewhere, to see her. Well, we were there when she died, which is how I can see thestrals, and you know, you'd think that would be the worst of it, but it wasn't." She stopped to take a breath, having said the last sentence in one quick burst. "There was an eclipse. October 28, 1985, from my research. And well, it was a full moon, and..."

She blinked, looking at me earnestly, silently begging me to understand so she didn't have to say it out loud. 

I wish I had said something more intelligent. What I said was "Oh, Lucy."

She nodded, looking up at the moon, little more than a sliver in the sky. "The night I was bitten was my worst memory. I heard more and more of it every time, the same way you did, but it was confusing at first. My family's American, so the accents were confusing, and I was obviously in a great deal of pain at the time so it wasn't a terribly clear memory anyway, the way yours wasn't..." Lucy looked back at me. "That's why I'm sick every month, that's why I had to go home without you in August, that's why I'm... me. I'm sorry, Harry, I-"

"Stop," I said, unable to hold back anymore. I reached forward and pulled her into me in the tightest hug possible. "I understand, Lucy, it's okay, I don't hate you, I'm not mad at you, it's okay."

"You don't hate me?" she choked out. "You're not mad?"

"Lucy, of course not, of course not." 

Relief surged through me first. _She trusts me._

Then a wave of sorrow. _She's... been through so much._

Then relief again. _I can help now. Now that I know._

"I'm so glad I know," I said. She buried her head against the nape of my neck in response, and we remained that way for a long time.

* * *

_Oh my dear, I'll wait for you  
Grace tonight will pull us through  
Until the tears have left your eyes  
Until the fears can sleep at night  
Until the demons that you're scared of disappear inside  
Until this guilt begins to crack  
And the weight falls from your back  
Oh my dear, I'll keep you in my arms tonight_

_"Oh My Dear"  
Tenth Avenue North_


	101. The Beautiful Ghost

_If you listen just right, you can almost hear it  
The symphony of secrecy, life, and fear  
_

_Like a moth to the flame we become helpless  
To the beautiful ghost that true love sheds_

_"Ghosts"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

LUCY:

I'll never forget the way Harry looked in the melancholy moonlight. I searched him for any sign of anger or fear or resentment. Any sign that I had made a grave mistake in telling him. But I saw nothing of the sort. Sorrow. Understanding. Relief.

Love.

Nothing romantic. But love. The kind of love that can only come from vulnerability, the kind of love that can only come when someone dares to show the truth for the first time.

"You're really glad you know?" I asked, still not quite believing just how... perfect he was. 

He nodded. "Of course I am, Lu. You don't have to look at me like that."

"Like what?"

"You look as if you think you've done something wrong. It's like you're hiding." Harry pushed a lock of hair back from my face. "You don't have to hide anymore, not from me."

I glanced down, face heating a bit. "I guess I _have_ been hiding. I didn't even realize it for what it was, really." I spied a hair tie on my wrist. I pulled my hair up, twisting it into a high ponytail. I had forgotten just how freeing it was to have my hair out of my face. I drew a deep breath and released it with a smile. "Better?"

Harry grinned right back at me, then reached forward and tipped my chin up. "There. Now it's better. You're looking more like yourself already."

"Yeah." I shrugged, with a quiet laugh. "This is who I am. You now know more about me than anyone else. You still must have so many questions, though, so... ask me anything, and I'll answer it."

He scratched the back of his neck. "Merlin. Er. Well, when's the next full moon?"

"Next Saturday."

"Oh, so that must have been wolfsbane at breakfast this morning... wait, does Neville know?"

I bit my lip. "You've already landed on a difficult question. It wasn't wolfsbane, and no, Neville doesn't know."

"Who does know? I reckon I must be among the last to know," he added, blushing a bit.

That made me smile. "No, you're not. Hermione figured it out back in first year, and the twins figured it out last December. You're the first person I've ever told willingly, everyone else has had to confront me about it. But they're the only three who know, aside from Professor Lupin and Professor McGonagall and a couple other adults." My smile faded. "No, the potion this morning was to help with the shaking. Apparently one of the lingering effects of the Cruciatus Curse is shaking, which is why Neville recognized the potion. I'm sure his parents have taken it before."

"Does 'ask me anything' apply to... you know...? It's okay if it doesn't-"

"It does," I said softly. "I don't want to hide from you anymore. I-I can talk to you." I glanced out at the Pitch. "You're the only person who knows about my family, aside from Professor Lupin and a couple of other Order members. I want you to know about this summer, too."

"Why didn't the diaries work?"

"Mum's protective enchantments. Nothing got in, nothing got out."

"So why didn't the messages go through even after...?"

"I think the diaries were magically damaged by the enchantments. I can try to fix them before next summer, but I... I don't know how. I'd need to figure out exactly which enchantments she used and why they..." I swallowed hard. "Why they failed. Or, well, how they were bypassed that day."

I shuddered and inched closer to Harry. I couldn't bring myself to meet his eyes, but it was nice when he started rubbing a small circle on my shoulder. 

"My parents were betrayed, too," I said quietly. "There was a knock at the door. Mum told me it was a friend of hers, someone she had seen at the Ministry. Mum told her how to get past the enchantments. Her friend said she wanted to talk to me. Rose," I managed to choke out. "Rose was the one who betrayed us. She lost a brother in the war, and she told my mum she would be able to help me. I tried to be cautious, I even asked her to show her arm-" I slapped my hand to my forehead. "MERLIN! Harry, it's on the left forearm, isn't it? The Dark Mark?"

"It is," he confirmed, his voice soft. "It's okay, Lu. What happened next? Did you leave your house?"

"We did. She... she asked how I was feeling. I said I didn't know, so she started going through different emotions. It was when she asked if I felt forgotten that I dropped the bracelet. Instinct took over, and I hoped someone would find it, if someone came looking for me. More than anything, she wanted me to be angry, but not with Voldemort. With Dad for convincing Ced to enter, with the Ministry and Dumbledore for letting it happen. It was when I said I was most angry with Voldemort that the Dark Mark appeared."

"I felt that." The circles on my back stopped. "I felt Voldemort's wrath when he killed your parents. And I... I heard his laugh when the Dark Mark was sent up."

Harry started to pull away from me, as if it was somehow _his_ fault. So I buried my head against his shoulder and kept talking to stop him from going anywhere.

"I could tell I was surrounded. Werewolf senses. I tried to draw my wand, but I was unconscious before I even touched it. Then I was brought back around in a cave, and they broke my wand, and they told me my parents were dead, and that Voldemort wanted me to join him, and-"

I hadn't even realized how quickly I was talking and how horribly I was shaking until Harry gently pushed me away and loosened my tie a bit.

"Just breathe," he whispered, green eyes worried but voice calm. "You're safe now. It's okay. You don't have to finish the story if you don't want to."

"I want to," I said, "I want to, I will-"

"In a minute," Harry insisted. He loosened my tie a bit more. "Just breathe for now."

I felt a pang of... an emotion. I couldn't place it.

I had known the Cedric in that dream wasn't the real Cedric because he hadn't stopped me when I spiraled. I needed Cedric to stop me. The way Cedric always stopped me.

But Harry had stopped me. He had known when to stop me.

I felt a rush of dizziness, feeling as if I'd been launched back in time, to a different moment in this same place, where the sun was shining and Cedric was there telling me to breathe after the incident with the boggart in which one of my worst fears was Cedric's lifeless body on the floor of the classroom-

"Breathe."

I blinked. The moon was in the sky. Harry was there. Telling me to breathe. After I had told him about everything, my lycanthropy and my family and now my kidnapping in the caves that had been so cold and hopeless and terrifying and-

"Lu. It's okay. Come back."

I blinked again. Harry was still there. His hands were on my shoulders. I was still dizzy.

"You're alright, yeah? You don't see or hear something I don't?"

I shook my head. "We're safe here."

He nodded. "Good. Listen to yourself. We're safe."

"Okay." I inhaled through my nose and exhaled slowly. "Sorry, I don't know what-"

"It's okay," he said gently. "Are you okay now?"

I nodded. "I'm okay." I took one more deep breath before continuing. "The caves were horrible, Harry. Every time I refused to say I'd join Voldemort, they'd torture me until I was nearly unconscious. I'd slip away, then they'd bring me back, ask me again, I'd refuse again, they'd torture me again..." I swallowed hard. "I saw memories. Of my family. Just short bursts, but... they're my own memories. So I suppose it wasn't all bad."

"Hefty price to pay, though," Harry murmured, his voice sad. He lifted an arm slightly. "D'you mind if...? I just... I get nervous, too, sometimes, because I told Cedric I'd take care of you and I already couldn't and-"

I didn't let him continue. I wedged myself beneath his arm and pressed myself to his side. "It's not your fault, Harry. You were a bit busy being trapped with your horrible family and fighting off dementors, in case you've forgotten."

He snorted. "Yeah. 'Bit busy.'" 

"Would you feel better if I told you how I got out?" I asked.

"Go for it," he replied.

"Did I ever show you the book Cedric got me when I turned twelve?"

"I don't think so."

" _Uggla Uzely's Guide to Utterly Useless Spells_ ," I said with a small smile. "Prank spells, joke spells. I had to steal the wand from my sleeping guard. I wasn't sure if I would be able to do real spells, good defensive ones, so I... created as much chaos as possible."

"Is that what Professor Lupin meant by your 'handiwork' that one time he mentioned it?" Harry asked.

I nodded. "Oh, yeah. Glitter, fireworks, clown noses, you name it. It wasn't pretty."

Harry actually laughed. It was so nice to hear him laugh. "I wish I could have seen it, Lu. That's brilliant."

"It did the trick," I said, glad he couldn't see me blushing. "I ended up not being too far from my house. I remembered the cave. So I just ran to my house, remained conscious long enough to let Professor Lupin make sure it was me and not an impostor, then promptly passed out until Mrs. Weasley arrived. Then you know the rest."

Harry was quiet for a while, just rubbing a small circle on my shoulder with his thumb. I wracked my brain for any words I could offer to make him feel better. I was alright, after all.

"I'm not going to take the potion anymore because of the dittany," I said. "but I'm sure the shaking will stop eventually. It's already better than it was a month ago. My handwriting is already a bit better, and-"

I froze, then jolted upright.

"Harry, your hand. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Lu," he said. "Twinges a bit, but I'm sure yours does, too."

I nodded, suddenly aware of the continued stinging. 

"So if that wasn't wolfsbane this morning, when do you start taking it? Is it just the day of the full moon?"

I shook my head. "I don't take it. Wolfsbane, I mean."

"What? Why don't you take- oh. Does it have dittany?"

"Yeah. It does. I've taken it a couple of times, like first year when the unicorns were dying in the forest. I found a couple of trails, and I was able to help a bit, since wolfsbane lets you think clearly."

"But... if you don't take it... what happens?"

"I don't know who I am," I said quietly. "I would bite any human who crosses my path. That's probably why Quirrell attacked me first year, he didn't know I was harmless."

" _Quirrell_ did this?" Harry asked, taking my hand in his and running a thumb over one of the scars.

I blushed. "I think it was technically Voldemort who told him to. But I-I don't know. I was in the forest one night they were out hunting unicorns. I got in the way, though I didn't know why they were there at the time. Nobody knows the curse they used, or the countercurse, so... this is what happened." I blushed even more intensely, the humiliation of the scars pouring through me all over again now that Harry knew why they were there. "Cedric found me half-dead in the forest and brought me back just in time. That's when I learned I was allergic to dittany, too. I really almost died then," I added with a humorless laugh. "That's why I've always been so cavalier about getting hurt in Quidditch and whatnot. If I could handle this, then, well, a broken nose doesn't seem too bad. And now, with a kidnapping escape under my belt, I feel damn near unstoppable."

Harry didn't laugh. "I'd still rather not see you hurt, Lu," he said softly. He sighed. "I reckon we should try to heed McGonagall and not make an enemy of Umbridge. Sounds like we both have enough enemies without her making matters worse."

I nodded. "What should we tell the others, about why we've been out here so long? We should probably not tell them about our hands, just so they don't worry even more about us. I've seen the way they look at us sometimes, like they think we'll break down any second."

"Yeah." Harry sighed. "We can just say Umbridge said something upsetting about Cedric and you were sad instead of angry this time."

"Fine by me."

Neither of us seemed to want to leave. I stared at the words carved on my hand.

"So where are you right now?" Harry asked after a moment.

"What do you mean?"

"You said you swing between angry and sad, but you never really got sad after being so angry earlier. So where are you?"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Still angry. With Umbridge, with Voldemort, with a lot of people. I'm sure the sadness will come soon enough, but part of me is still in disbelief at everything that's happened today. I mean..." I glanced up at Harry. "This is... somewhat of a shock to me still."

"Me too," he replied with a grin.

I blushed. "Right. More so for you than for me."

Harry laughed. "Don't look so embarrassed, it's alright. It's been a long day for us both."

I nodded, then suddenly, I had to force away a yawn.

Harry grinned. "I saw that."

"Saw what?"

"You almost yawned. C'mon, let's head back to the common room. You look exhausted."

"So do you," I replied, letting myself yawn for real. 

But as I stood, a flicker of white appeared in the corner of my eye.

An osprey had landed across the way.

Tears filled my eyes at the sight. "Cedric."

"What, Lu?" 

I gestured to the bird across the way with my chin, lower lip trembling. "Cedric's patronus was an osprey. I-I saw an osprey the night of the third task, a-and again that day at the lake."

"I saw one, too, over summer," he said in a low voice. "D'you think...?"

"I don't know," I replied. "B-But... I think Cedric would be proud of me regardless. H-He always hoped I'd tell you about... about everything. H-He told you to t-take care of me for a reason."

The bird took flight then, disappearing from view over the hills.

And just like that, grief stamped out the last flickering flames of anger.

And just like that, I couldn't breathe. 

And just like that, Harry's warm hand, his uninjured hand, found my cold one.

The tempest of grief inside me was only beginning, I realized.

But Harry was there. My lifeline. My safety net. My center of gravity.

I gripped his hand as if my life depended on it.

In that moment, I think it did.


	102. Something Big

GEORGE:

Hermione paced back and forth, on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

"They should be back by now," she muttered.

"You said that ten minutes ago," Ron pointed out.

"And ten minutes before that," Fred added.

"And ten minutes before-"

"I get it!" she snapped, pacing faster. "I just hope nothing went wrong, that's all I'm saying."

"Hermione, relax, it's Lucy and Harry," Ginny said. "You know bloody well neither would ever let anything bad happen to the other when they're together."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, it's when they're _not_ together problems arise. But there's no way _that_ will happen anytime soon. They're inseparable."

"Ron and Ginny're right," I said. "I'm sure they're fine. I wish I could have seen the two of them shouting at Umbridge, though. You said they even shouted _together_ at some point? Like, in unison?"

That distracted Hermione, as I hoped it would.

She smiled a bit. "Yeah. Umbridge kept using her middle name for some reason, calling her Miss Everlin instead of Miss Diggory. At one point, they shouted 'Diggory!' at her in unison, then Harry jumped up, too. They were... quite the pair." 

"Just wish they'd hurry up and start snogging already," Ginny commented, reaching forward for another liquorice wand. "But that won't happen until Harry gets over Cho Chang. Bloody idiot got all starry-eyed yesterday when she showed up."

"How'd Lucy react?" Ron asked. "Can't imagine she was terribly thrilled."

"She looked more sad than anything." Ginny ripped a solid six inches off the wand in one bite. "I mean, Cho was Cedric's girlfriend. She didn't seem too fazed by Harry making a fool out of himself, come to think of it."

"She better not be giving up on him, blind though he may be," I said with a chuckle. "I honestly expected him to come to his senses after the Yule Ball, but here we are."

"But what if they _are_ snogging right now?" Fred asked with a waggle of his eyebrows.

Hermione swatted his arm when she passed him mid-pace. "Lucy was crying, so I doubt he'd decide tonight was a good night to... well, you know."

"It'd certainly cheer her up a bit, though-"

The portrait hole swung open then, and Fred immediately shut up. Lucy and Harry climbed through. Lucy's hair was up in a ponytail, and even though her eyes were red and swollen from crying, there was a different air about her. 

Something big had happened between Lucy and Harry.

"Merlin, you're all still up," she said, blushing a bit.

"Told you they would be," Harry muttered.

She blushed harder. She didn't reply.

"So how was detention?" Hermione asked as she rocked back and forth on her feet. "What did that horrible woman make you do?"

Lucy and Harry exchanged a look before Harry answered, "Lines." 

"Which wasn't too bad," Lucy said quietly. "It was just... the principle of it all. Set me off a bit, I guess." She shook her head, blushing somehow even harder, then glanced at me. "How'd tryouts go? Who's the new Keeper?"

I hesitated.

Lucy hadn't been there, obviously. Neither had Harry.

But Harry didn't know that there was a new Chaser as well as a new Keeper.

"Well, go on," Fred said, punching Ron's knee. "It's your news."

"Ron, that's amazing!" Lucy exclaimed, grinning. 

Ron turned red. "Yeah, well, someone had to fill in for Wood."

Harry grinned. "Bloody hell, that's great! Merlin, now the team will be nearly half-Weasley." Harry glanced at me. "Angelina wasn't too upset about us missing tryouts, right?"

I shook my head. "No, it was alright." 

"Harry, mate, you should have seen it!" Ron seemed to be glad to have a new audience for his favorite story from tryouts. "There was this one shot Angelina made, and I really thought she was gonna make it, but I..."

Lucy's eyes found mine again, and she wedged herself between Fred and me.

"Angelina was honestly glad Harry wasn't there," Fred whispered. "She seemed worried he'd blow up like he did at Umbridge once he realized there were two open positions. Because you still haven't told him, have you?"

Lucy blushed all over again, swearing under her breath and shaking her head. "I forgot. I'll tell him tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow morning's the first practice," I said.

She sighed. "Then I guess he'll figure it out when he sees... who's my replacement?"

"Katie Bell," Fred answered. "She's good, but she's not you."

"Yeah, well, that's for the best, the world doesn't need more of me," Lucy muttered moodily.

Fred and I exchanged a brief W _here did that come from?_ look. Before either of us could speak again, Lucy yawned and dragged her sleeve across her face, suddenly looking so much more exhausted and sad. 

"I can't believe I just told him," she whispered, eyes sinking shut. Her entire demeanor had shifted, just like that.

"Took you bloody long enough," Fred whispered back.

Lucy opened her eyes wide enough to offer a playful exaggerated glare. Her entire demeanor had shifted again. "Fine, if you're going to be like that, I'll use _George_ as a pillow." With that, she let her head drop onto my shoulder and stuck her tongue out at Fred.

"I'm honored to be your pillow of choice, but I think your bed would be more comfortable," I said in a louder voice, catching Harry's eye. He understood my meaning and came to crouch in front of Lucy.

"George is right, you know," he said with a small smile. "We'll all be here in the morning."

Lucy sat up to turn to me. "You're lucky I don't know the human-to-pillow transfiguration yet."

I laughed. "That doesn't exist."

"I'll invent it," she said, making a face and rising to her feet. "Fred can be my test subject, in case something goes wrong."

"Oh, shove off, Cub," Fred retorted, laughing too.

Lucy offered him an innocent smile. "Sweet dreams, my future pillow. Enjoy being human while it lasts."

"Yeah, sleep well, you might want to try to beat me to breakfast tomorrow before I spike your pumpkin juice with one of our new products."

"George wouldn't let you, would you, Georgie?" she asked with puppy-dog eyes.

I looked between my twin and Lucy, pretending to be thinking hard about it. "I don't know, Cub, I think you'd benefit from your old favorite." I glanced at Fred. "You think we could whip up a liquid form of truth or dare overnight?"

"Oh, don't you dare, George Weasley," she said, sounding legitimately concerned now. Her face turned the same color as the red Gryffindor banner behind her.

"What?" Harry asked in a voice so low only the three of us could hear him, grinning. "I say go for it. It's not like you have to keep secrets from me anymore."

"Right," she replied with a nod, sending me a look that informed me that while she may have confessed that she was a werewolf, she had _not_ confessed that she was head over heels in love with Harry. "You know what, go ahead. I'll tell everyone that it was you two who gave Peeves the idea to, er, creatively fill in the gaps of the Christmas carols the statues were supposed to be singing."

Fred and I high-fived, laughing.

"Go ahead, Cub, tell the world, that was one of our best ideas yet!" Fred crowed.

Lucy shook her head. "Unbelievable. Sounds like I'd better get up early tomorrow, then, that was my worst threat. G'night, boys."

We all watched her leave, Hermione close behind.

"She'll be alright," Harry said softly as we listened to their footsteps fade away up the stairs. "I'll make sure of it."

"And we'll help, of course," Ginny added. "Don't think she's all your responsibility, Harry."

He gnawed on his lower lip for a second before responding. "Right."

But his "Right" was the same as Lucy's.

He was hiding something, too.

Something _big_ had happened between Lucy and Harry.


	103. So Much for Fairness

HENRY:

I didn't want to go to my dormitory. I didn't want to have to face his empty bed again.

It had been bad enough the night before. It would be so much worse after a full day of Hogwarts without him.

We'd always had an odd number of people in our classes. But Cedric made a point of sitting with a different person every single day so that nobody was ever sitting alone two days in a row. 

Now, without him, there was an even number of people. Nobody had to sit alone anymore. Yet everyone in the classroom felt more alone than ever.

Angelina had taken the spot next to me in Herbology to talk about Quidditch. Cedric and I always worked together in that class. But I was glad for the distraction from the sorrow.

She had wanted to have tryouts first, which was more than fine by me, so she took the Friday night slot. I would have been fine with waiting until the next weekend to start practicing, I would have been fine with never practicing at all, but Roger Davies of Ravenclaw and Cassius Warrington of Slytherin had insisted I take the second slot, Saturday afternoon after the first Gryffindor practice.

I didn't want to have to replace Cedric as Seeker. But I had no choice.

_Shouldn't a Captain be better than this? I'm a disaster._

I stared at Cedric's plans, spread all over the table before me. He had tailored each play to the specific strengths of each player. His neat handwriting in the margins explained when each play should be used. I couldn't help but notice that none of his plans for Gryffindor ever involved targeting the other team's Chasers. He'd always protected Lucy so well.

Lucy. 

Word had spread like wildfire around the school about what she and Harry had done in Umbridge's class. I heard about it from Archie, who was severely disappointed he'd missed it. I, for one, was glad I hadn't been there.

If I had been there, I would have wanted to shout at her, too. But I was a prefect. I couldn't shout at a professor.

Cedric would never have shouted at a professor, no matter how badly they deserved it.

_Right?_

I glanced over at his spot. He always sat cross-legged on the soft white rug. Far enough from the fire to feel safe but close enough to feel its warmth. Close to the middle of the room, so he was always accessible, if anyone needed help with homework. I was the only person left in the common room, seeing as it was long past midnight, but that specific emptiness ripped through my chest like a dagger because I could remember a time when it _wasn't_ empty. 

It had so rarely been empty before.

Cedric loved being able to help people overcome obstacles they never thought they could. Usually, it was Transfiguration, a subject that was nearly impossible for everyone but came so naturally to Cedric. I couldn't count the number of times younger kids would shyly approach him, almost in tears because of their frustration, and ask for help. He'd drop whatever he was doing and help however he could, even before he was prefect. Once he was prefect, he didn't usually get his own homework done until late, so late, because he had been so busy helping everyone else with theirs. But he never once complained, about being up so late or being so tired the next day, because he loved it. He loved helping.

I ripped the prefect badge off my chest, tears springing to my eyes. I clenched it in my fist.

"How am I ever supposed to be you?" I asked his vacant spot. I slammed the badge down next to the Quidditch plans and rested my head in my hands. "I'm doing my best, but you were so... so... Merlin, it's just not fair, nobody in the world deserved your fate _less_ than you, Cedric. You were just so... good. It's not _fair!_ "

I sighed shakily and lifted my head, forcing the tears back. My eyes landed on a small poster across the room. 

_Hard work. Patience. Fairness. Justice. Loyalty._

I shook my head. I had to work harder to fight the tears. 

So much for fairness.

What had happened to Cedric, to all of us, was so bitterly unfair.

I returned my attention to the plans, still spread across the table, and tried to get my head in the game, so to speak. But my head was still lost in time.

A small sound snapped me from my daze. I glanced up as the door to the girls' dormitories creaked open.

"Henry?" I recognized my eleven-year-old sister's voice immediately.

"What's wrong, Gretch?" I asked, also immediately recognizing that she was close to crying. I jumped up and made my way to the couch, gesturing for her to join me.

"I miss home," she said in little more than a whisper, holding her cat closer to her chest. "I'm glad I brought Nibbles with me, because I would miss home even more if he was still there, but I miss Mum, and Dad, and my own bed, and..."

Her lower lip trembled for a second before the first tear fell. I inched closer and put an arm around her shoulders.

"It's okay, Gretch, I'm sure Mum and Dad will send a letter from home soon," I said. "It takes time, but Hogwarts will start to feel like a second home soon."

"It's scary here," she whispered. "Professor Snape is mean. Professor Umbridge seems like she could be mean really easily, if someone upsets her. And I know you said Professor McGonagall was one of Cedric's favorite teachers, but she scares me."

I swallowed past the lump in my throat at the mention of Cedric and did the best I could to comfort her. "At least you're not in Gryffindor. He's downright cruel to Gryffindors." I froze. "Don't tell anyone I said that. I have to be more careful with what I say, now that I'm a prefect."

She laughed a bit. "I won't tell."

"Good. And I haven't had Professor Umbridge yet, but you should be safe as long as you're nice to her the way you're nice to everyone else. And Professor McGonagall is scary at first, but I promise she's really a great teacher, even if she's stern. She would never do anything to hurt or embarrass a student, and you'll learn more from her than from anyone else here."

Gretchen nodded. "O-Okay. I feel a bit better now."

"Good, I'm glad." I pulled her a bit tighter and reached forward to pet our family cat. "I'm glad you're here now. Nibbles, too. I missed you both while I was here and you were with Mum and Dad. I got homesick sometimes, too, especially when I was a first year like you."

"Really? How did you manage it?"

"It helped having such a good best friend," I said, my heart clenching at the thought, "and a good group of friends in general. I know you'll make good friends soon, too. Once you surround yourself with good people, I promise it will start to feel more like home. And hey, it's a good thing you're in Hufflepuff with me, because we like to think we're the friendliest house!"

She smiled, wiping the last of her tears away with the sleeve of her pajamas. "I think we are. I wouldn't have minded Ravenclaw, though, because blue is my favorite color."

I laughed. "Well, maybe you can make friends with Ravenclaws, then, since we share so many classes with them."

"I like that idea." Gretch stood up, adjusting her hold on Nibbles. "Why are you still awake, Henry? I think it's past midnight."

"Ah, just working on Quidditch before tryouts tomorrow," I replied as casually as I could. 

"Will you go to bed soon?"

I shrugged. "Probably. I still have a bit of work to do, though."

"In that case..." She dropped Nibbles into my lap. "He can keep you company for tonight. He missed you, too, while you were here."

"Thanks, Gretch," I said with a smile. "Good night."

"Good night, Henry," she replied, smiling one last time before heading back to her dormitory. 

I took a moment to breathe, stroking Nibbles with one hand and twirling my wand with the other. 

I was glad Gretchen had come downstairs. I realized three things:

1\. Even though I didn't know Hogwarts without Cedric, she had never known Hogwarts _with_ him. But I could help make it as great as possible, in the one year I had with her before I graduated.

2\. I couldn't leave her behind the way Lucy had been left behind. I had to be smart, and be safe. She needed me and I needed her, the same way Lucy needed Cedric and Cedric needed Lucy.

3\. I wasn't the only one who had lost Cedric. But as his best friend, and as Hufflepuff prefect, and as Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain, I had to try to fill his shoes as best I could. I had to help Lucy and try to keep her out of trouble. I had to help my house and try to keep the spirit of Hufflepuff as vibrant as possible. And I had to help my team and try to keep Cedric's hopes for a Hufflepuff Quidditch Cup alive.

I hoisted Nibbles and made my way back to the table with the plans, poring over them with renewed vigor.

It wasn't fair. It would never be fair. But I could try to make it alright anyway.

I wasn't Cedric. I would never be Cedric. But I could sure as hell try my hardest to be like him anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> In case anybody's forgotten (I can't blame you if you did, she's only mentioned a couple of times), Henry has a little sister named Gretchen! Gretch for short. She's a first year Hufflepuff and just a sweetheart. I can't wait to write a little more of her journey, and I'm excited to write her first official encounter with Lucy at Hogwarts! They're met a couple of times, in Diagon Alley for instance, since their brothers are friends, but now that they're both at Hogwarts, they'll get to know each other a bit better.
> 
> For some reason, this chapter really got me, more so that some of the other sad ones I've written. I teared up writing the part where Henry's lost in thought looking at Cedric's spot. I'm sorry if anyone else cried, too! Just the same, I'm really excited to continue writing in Henry's perspective. Lucy knew Cedric well, better than anyone, but Henry saw sides of Cedric Lucy never did, such as in class or at Quidditch practice, so I'm excited to share that with you all!
> 
> See you all tomorrow with Chapters 104 and 105! 106 will be posted on Saturday. I'm going to officially start returning to my more regular Wednesday-Saturday publishing schedule.
> 
> Thank you for reading! See you soon!


	104. Only Lines

LUCY:

I slipped off to take a quick shower to wash the salt from my face and the blood from my hand. Thankfully, no one had noticed it or remembered it. I tried to heal it with a handful of whispered spells, but nothing did anything to help. 

Hermione was sitting in bed reading by the light of her wand when I returned. 

"She really only gave you lines?" she whispered.

I nodded and repeated the lie Harry and I had agreed to tell. "Only lines. But it took me a while because, well-"

"Your shaking hands," she finished for me. "Is that getting better?"

"A little." I ran the fingers of my uninjured hand through my wet hair and climbed into bed, careful to hide my injured hand under the sheets. "I told Harry. I told him everything."

"Oh. Oh, that's good, I'm glad you did. What changed your mind?"

"When he followed me..." I closed my eyes and recalled the events of the night. Him calling my name as I sprinted away. Him following me in spite of me ignoring him and continuing to run away from him. Him saying he wouldn't leave. I opened my eyes again and rolled onto my back to stare at the ceiling. "I don't know. I've always known I could trust him. I just didn't want to add yet another worry to his shoulders, we all know he has enough. But he... he followed me, and he said he wasn't going anywhere, and I figured... well, I knew he meant it. And I realized I didn't want to spend another moment worrying about what he would do if he ever found out. I decided that I wanted to rip the Band-Aid off, so to speak, and prove to myself for once and for all he really meant it."

"Risking it, all or nothing," she summarized. "Very Gryffindor of you."

"So was shouting at a professor in my first class of the year," I replied lightly. 

"That was a bit of a step up from standing up to Snape first year."

I snorted. "A bit."

Hermione closed her book, extinguished her wand, and slid under her covers. "While I'm still sorry the two of you got yourselves landed in detention on your first day back... I'm glad you told him."

"I am too. And I don't regret it one bit, so don't be sorry at all."

"Harry seemed to take it well?"

"Better than I would have ever dared to hope." I yawned. "I never doubted he wouldn't take it well, but it's just... so hard to trust people when the world as a whole is so biased against you. I trust Harry, wholeheartedly, but you just can't shake all of the 'What if?' questions."

"Well... I understand that, to an extent. And so does Harry."

"You're right." I yawned again. "Well, good night, Hermione."

"Good night, Lucy."

I rolled onto my side so my back was to her and relived the day in my mind.

I'd had nightmares all night, without Harry there. But waking up in the morning didn't bring any relief, because I had a lot to do. I hurried down with Tuck to Hagrid's hut and fed both dogs. When Angelina wasn't in the Great Hall yet, it was off to Madam Pomfrey, who realized I was worse off than anyone had realized. I found Angelina in the Great Hall the second time I checked and dragged her out into a deserted hallway to talk to her. She wasn't angry that I wasn't in a place where I could play — physically or emotionally — but she understood.

But that wasn't even the worst of it. No, no, _then_ it was Umbridge. Then it was History of Magic. Then it was double Potions. 

At least in Ancient Runes I was finally sitting next to Hermione and not Draco. But the sight of him still sent the storm within me into turmoil again. Facing a reminder of the caves every day of my life in the form of Draco Malfoy's smug face was going to be a problem, but I didn't have time to dwell on it because after that class ended, Harry and I managed a couple of bites of dinner before leaving for our detention. And then... everything else.

_Merlin. What a day._

My eyes sank shut. I was exhausted.

But my mind conjured up one last thought.

_Cedric would want to know._

So I pushed myself out of bed, grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill, and began writing by the light of the fire.


	105. Dear Cedric,

_Dear Cedric,_

_I told Harry tonight. I told him everything. I thought you'd want to know._

_I really should have told him sooner, I know. But, well, I've told him now._

_He handled it so much better than I ever dared to let myself dream._

_I love him, Cedric. I love him so much I don't even care if he ever loves me back, because he didn't run away when I told him the truth about me. At least not yet._

_I got my first detention today. I don't regret it one bit, even though my hand hurts a bit now. I wish you were here to heal it; you would probably know exactly which spell or potion to use. Episkey didn't work. I think the wound is cursed._

_Our new DADA teacher is a monster. You know better than anyone that I don't use that word lightly. But after just a single day, I know enough about her to say with confidence that she's despicable. Harry and I agreed tonight that we'd try to do as Professor McGonagall recommended and keep our heads down. But something about today felt... so good. Normally, I'm angry, then sad. And I was incredibly angry, but I have yet to be sad, somehow. I know it will come. I can already see the ring on my finger losing its scarlet glow and giving way to blue. But for tonight, somehow, I'm alright. I feel like I've done something right today. Maybe two somethings: standing up to Umbridge and talking to Harry._

_I think you'd be proud of me. I remember that conversation we had, the night I found out about the legislation passed last year. You said you'd be willing to get in trouble if it meant doing what was right. You told me right and wrong don't always play by the rules. That's never been more true than it is right now. Voldemort is back and it's certainly wrong to try to deny that, but... people are denying it. Everywhere. I may never understand why speaking the truth goes against the rules right now, but I'm proud to be a rule-breaker if it means standing for what's right._

_I just hope I'm brave enough to keep doing it. Over and over again. Until the world decides to stop being wrong and start being right again._

_But will the world ever be right again?_

_There's a hole in my chest now right where you used to be. You were everything to me. I turned to you whenever something was wrong, but now everything is more wrong than it's ever been and it's all because you're not here._

_~~Maybe that's for the best. Maybe you're the lucky one.~~_

_I miss you. I miss you, I miss you, I miss you. The pain of you not being here hurts more than the Cruciatus Curse ever could. I honestly wish someone would use it on me right now, something to distract me, something to focus on instead; anything in the world is better than the excruciating pain of having to face this terrifying new world without my brother here with me._

_I can feel the sadness coming. The ring is getting more and more blue by the minute. I should probably try to sleep before I start crying again; I'm getting up fairly early tomorrow to work with Neville in the greenhouses._

_I love you. So much._

_I miss you. So much._

_Love always, Lucy_


	106. The Bag of Carrots

LUCY:

Falling. 

Falling.

Falling.

The world around me was pitch black. The only indication I was falling was the whoosh of air around me and the steady tug of gravity. 

Suddenly, Cedric above me.

"I'm right here! Take my hand!" he shouted.

But the harder I strained trying to reach him, the faster I fell.

"Cedric!" I screamed.

The world around me pitched. Cedric disappeared into the blackness, and I pulled my hands back into my chest.

Falling.

Falling. 

Falling.

The world around me was full of color. I recognized the walls of the cave from which I had escaped. 

Fireworks sizzled around me.

"Get her! Don't let her escape!" Lucius Malfoy shouted.

A thick arm wrapped around my throat, pulling me back.

"No!" I shrieked.

The stolen wand fell from my hand, clattered to the rock below me, sent me flying backward with the force of an explosion.

Falling.

Falling.

Falling.

* * *

I jerked awake. No longer falling. Suffocating.

Danger. Something told me there was danger.

I pushed myself to a sitting position and snatched my wand off of my nightstand, holding it out in front of me with two trembling hands.

It was dawn. The weakest ray of sunlight peeked between the red curtains. 

My other three roommates were sleeping still. The room was silent.

That explained why my heartbeat was so deafening.

I remained in that position until my neck and shoulders ached with the effort of holding my arms out so far. Sharp pain coursed from my injured hand all the way up my arm and made me gasp from the suddenness and severity of it.

There was no danger. I had just overreacted.

Madam Pomfrey's warning from the day before whispered in the back of my mind — "You will be more sensitive to pain than perhaps you have ever been, so you will need to be incredibly careful not to overexert yourself. No Quidditch, and certainly no adventures with Harry Potter. I know the transformations are unfortunately unavoidable, but you will need to rely on the Room of Requirement more than ever. You cannot risk another incident like the one you had in August, because I can see even now that one nearly killed you, Lucy." — but I forced it away.

I wasn't fragile. I wasn't weak. 

I was a Gryffindor.

I was tough. I was brave.

And I was going to prove it.

Neville and I happened to walk into the common room at the same time, and we exchanged an amused look.

"You've got your gloves?" he asked, pulling his out of his pocket.

I nodded, showing him mine, which I had already donned in order to hide the wound from the previous night's detention. I noticed his eyes widen slightly. They had been Mum's professional gloves, meaning they were among the best gloves in the world. I thought about giving them to Neville, Herbology lover that he was, but his hands were too large. My hands fit perfectly.

I knew I'd never be able to fill Mum's shoes. She had been one of the most famous Aurors in the world in her day. But her gloves? I could try to fill those.

"Do you know what Professor Sprout has in mind?" I inquired as we started making our way down the stairs.

"She asked if I would take care of feeding the Chinese chomping cabbages!" he exclaimed. "She's heard from Hagrid that you like helping feed the magical creatures in the reserve, so she thought you might enjoy feeding plants in the greenhouses, too."

"I'm looking forward to it," I replied, but I felt something twist in my chest. Dad had inspired my love of creatures. Mum had given me my green thumb. I swallowed away my pain and opted for a topic that would allow Neville to talk and me to listen. "So you said your great uncle Algie gave you the _Mimbulus mimbletonia_?"

Neville nodded and immediately launched into a detailed description of all the ways he had learned to care for it, mostly by trial and error. He kept talking all the way down to the greenhouses and kept talking as we started working, moving from cabbage to cabbage and feeding each accordingly — Professor Sprout had given Neville a key to the greenhouses so the two of us could work alone. It was nice, so nice, to have the distraction. At Grimmauld Place, I was used to everyone turning to face me when I walked in, people talking in low voices, furtive (and not so furtive) glances my direction every time I moved or made a sound. But with Neville, who knew nothing of what happened over summer, I felt almost normal for the first time in a long time. I wasn't Lucy the werewolf, Lucy the orphan, Lucy the kidnapped, Lucy the American. I was just Lucy, the girl who liked Herbology too.

It was... so nice.

So — naturally — I had to ruin it. At least I didn't ruin it until the end of the final row of cabbages.

My shaking uninjured hand accidentally dropped the heavy bag of carrots on my shaking injured hand.

Which wouldn't have been that big of a deal just a few months earlier.

I was a werewolf. My pain tolerance was off the charts, always had been.

But between the caves and the quill, I couldn't bite back the loud yelp that escaped me when the bag — naturally — landed directly on top of the words _I must not tell lies._

"Lucy, are you okay?" Neville asked, instantly shoving the carrot he was holding into the mouth of the nearest plant and reaching out for the hand I was cradling to my chest.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, but the tears that had involuntarily filled my eyes betrayed the truth. "I-I just hurt my hand yesterday, and the bag landed right on top, my hands were shaking so I dropped it and..." I hurriedly swiped away the tear that had escaped with my uninjured hand, and Neville's eyes widened when he saw the other one, the injured one.

"You're bleeding all the way through the glove!" His hands shot forward before I could pull away, and he slipped the glove off. His eyes widened even further when he saw the words carved into my skin. "Lu-Lucy-"

I pulled my hand back to my chest, shaking my head. "It's fine. N-No big deal. I just overreacted is all."

"Overreacted," he repeated in a disbelieving whisper. I watched in silence as a number of gears began to turn in his head, just behind his eyes, which were locked on my hand even though he could no longer see the bleeding words. "Lucy... are you alright?"

I froze. Then I made a decision.

"You recognized the potion yesterday, didn't you? And you've seen me shaking?"

Neville nodded.

I nodded back. "Th-Then you already know the answer, I-I think."

"B-But how- why-"

"It's a long story," I replied quietly. "I-I just-"

Neville opened his arms suddenly. "C-Can I...?"

I nodded and let him wrap his arms around me. I was careful to keep my hand facing outward so I didn't get blood on his robes — the back of my hand was still stinging painfully. 

"I'm so sorry, Lucy, no one in the world deserves that less than you, I..."

I shook my head as we pulled apart. "It's alright. It's already happened. I-I'd just really like for the shaking to stop, honestly, the pain I can handle. M-Most of the time, anyway."

"The shaking comes and goes," he whispered, leaning back against the table and putting his hands in his pockets. "If you don't mind my asking, when was...?"

"Late July, early August. It was about a week before I escaped, if I remember correctly," I replied in an equally soft voice. 

"It was- it was that long?"

I nodded.

Neville's eyes widened even further, but he composed himself after a minute and glanced down at his shoes. "The shaking should stop soon. B-But it comes and goes. Sometimes it'll get really bad again, but it'll get better eventually."

"Is there anything else I should know?" I asked. "It's okay if you'd rather not talk about it, I just-"

"No, no, Lucy, you've helped me so much, I want to help you," he replied, nearly tripping over his words because he was speaking so rapidly. "I-I don't know off the top of my head because I try not to think about it while I'm here, but I'll let you know, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you, Neville, I just don't know anyone else who..." I had a sudden realization. "A-Actually, no. I do know one person who..." I swallowed hard. "Harry. Voldemort, he..." I crossed my arms over my midsection, wincing as I accidentally touched the back of my hand.

Neville didn't miss my little wince. He blinked. "Lucy, can I see that again?"

I nodded, holding my hand out.

"'I must not tell lies'...? Lucy, did you do this to yourself?"

"No. Well, yes, but... not in the way you might think." I sighed. "Neville, can you promise not to tell anyone else what actually happened?"

"I... of course, yes, but what _happened_?"

I swallowed hard. "Umbridge. She has these quills that carve whatever the line is onto your hand. So I did do it to myself, technically, but it was her, it was detention-"

"That's horrible!" For the first time ever, I saw anger flash in Neville's eyes. It seemed there was anger aplenty those days. "Lucy, you have to tell someone."

I shook my head. "N-No. Harry and I aren't going to get in trouble with her anymore. Professor McGonagall wants us to keep our heads down, so we will. It's not worth it, Neville, really."

"It's worth it to me," he said fiercely. "Neither of you deserve this for telling the truth."

"It's like I said yesterday," I replied in a whisper. "My mum died for the truth. I can get by with the one detention."

"What do you mean by that? You said it yesterday... d-did she really?"

I nodded. I couldn't bring myself to meet his eyes, so gentle and sad. "They killed my parents and tortured me. All because of that article my mum wrote that said Voldemort was back."

Neville didn't speak for a minute. "Y-You know, Lucy. If my parents have taught me anything, it's that sometimes our sacrifices have far-reaching impacts. I-I've never been told what the information was, but I know that whatever it was, they decided it was worth it to sacrifice themselves. A-And sure, their sacrifice has impacted my life, but I like to believe it impacted someone else's, too. A-And that it impacted theirs for the better. I guess what I'm trying to say is, well..." He swallowed hard. "I don't want anything to happen to you, Lucy. S-So I really do hope you stay out of trouble. I would understand, though, if you decided this was worth standing up for, and I would want to stand up with you if that's what you decided."

I glanced up, and our eyes met.

"You really mean that?" I asked quietly. "Neville, I don't want to ask you to fight." I held up my hand, which had finally stopped bleeding. "I don't want to have to see you do this, too, I don't want to see you hurt, too."

"I really mean it," he replied, steadfast in his resolve. "You don't have to decide today. Or tomorrow, or the day after that. But... think about it, okay?"

I nodded slowly. "Okay. Thank you, Neville."

He offered a weak smile. "Of course. I really do mean it. Now, let's see if we can find something to take care of your hand. I know Professor Sprout keeps first aid supplies in the next greenhouse over."

"That would be good," I said with a nod. "This way, if anyone asks about the bandages, I can just say I was bitten by a cabbage." 

Neville's smile widened a bit. "That works. I still think you should tell someone about the quill, though." He passed me my bloodied glove, and the two of us headed to the next greenhouse in search of the first aid supplies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thank you all for reading! I'm so sorry this is so late — it's still technically Saturday where I live, but I know it is likely Sunday for most of you by the time you're reading this. I've barely had WiFi since New Year's, and that obstacle plus writer's block made this chapter difficult. But I'm happy with how it turned out in the end, and I hope you all enjoy it, too!
> 
> Thank you for sticking with me, and HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope 2021 treats you all well. :) Love yoooooou!


	107. Saturday Morning

HARRY:

Saturday morning dawned bright and early. Ron was already awake — to my surprise — and pulling his Quidditch robes over his head. I soon jumped out of bed and followed suit; I'd been looking forward to Quidditch more than nearly anything else about returning to Hogwarts. I wanted to wait for Lucy in the common room, but Ron seemed tense at the prospect of his first practice, so I didn't say anything and instead followed him out of the portrait hole.

 _She won't be alone, Angelina and Alicia will walk down with her,_ I reasoned to myself.

The twins were already there when Ron and I arrived in the changing room.

“Alright, Ron?” George asked, taking in the paleness of his face and the stiffness of his shoulders.

Ron nodded. “Yeah.”

Fred smirked. “Ready to show us all up, Ickle Prefect?”

“Shut up,” Ron muttered back.

The curtain behind us parted, and I turned around with a smile to offer Lucy.

My smile vanished when it was Katie Bell who entered with Angelina and Alicia instead of Lucy.

Angelina started talking as if nothing was wrong. “Okay everyone,” said Angelina, entering from the Captain’s office, already changed. “Let’s get to it; Alicia and Fred, if you can just bring the ball crate out for us. Oh, and there are a couple of people out there watching but I want you to just ignore them, alright?”

I blinked, remaining rooted to the ground even as the rest of the team filed out around me.

Lucy had always been there for Quidditch. She had been there when Ron first told me about it. She had been there when I had chased after Malfoy with the Remembrall. She had been there for the match where Quirrell jinxed my broom and the match where I beat her brother to the Snitch. She had been there and even replaced me in the match I missed because I was in the Hospital Wing. She had been there when I broke my arm and when Lockhart made it worse, and she had been there that night in the Hospital Wing, too. She had been there that fateful day Hermione was petrified, and she had been there when Quidditch practice started up again the next year. She had been there when I fell off my broom, she had been there when we cast our Patronuses at the "dementors," she had been there when we won the Quidditch Cup. She had been there at the Quidditch World Cup, too, and even though we didn't watch the match together and found ourselves separated when the Death Eaters attacked, we'd still spent the early hours of the morning together, away from everyone else.

Lucy had always been there for Quidditch. I had no idea what it would be like without her, or why she wasn't there in the first place.

But I didn't have time to wonder. I reluctantly tossed my broom onto my shoulder and followed everyone else out onto the Pitch.

We were immediately met with a mocking uproar from a group of Slytherins in the stands. 

Malfoy's voice, of course, rang out the loudest. “What’s that Weasley’s riding? Why would anyone put a Flying Charm on a moldy old log like that?”

Ron kicked off, ears reddening from anger and humiliation, so I shot up behind him.

“Ignore them. We’ll see who’s laughing after we play them,” I muttered.

“Exactly the attitude I want, Harry!” Angelina said with a smile. She opened her mouth to say something else, but Pansy Parkinson interrupted her.

“Hey, Johnson, what’s with that hairstyle anyway? Why would anyone want to look like they’ve got worms coming out of their head?”

Fred looked for half a second as if he'd chuck his bat straight at Pansy's face, and if I'd had something to throw I would have thrown it, but Angelina wasn't fazed. She merely pushed her hair over her shoulder and said, “Okay everyone, we’re going to start with some passes just to warm up, the whole team, so spread out and let’s see what we can do!”

The Quaffle went from Angelina to Fred to George to me to Ron. The only problem was that Ron dropped it, and when he went down after it, he slipped a bit and almost fell. While the team ignored it, the Slytherins cheered as if that was the best thing they had ever seen.

“Pass it on, Ron,” Angelina called, so he passed it to Alicia.

A couple more passes happened before the Slytherins interrupted. 

Malfoy again. “Hey, Potter, how’s your scar feeling? Sure you don’t need a lie-down? It must be, what, a whole week since you were in the Hospital Wing, that’s a record for you, isn’t it?”

“I'd love to send you there, I still owe you for what you've done to Lucy over the years,” I growled under my breath.

I snagged the Quaffle and sent it Ron's way. He dropped it again, but his recovery was cleaner. He caught it securely the third time, but in his excitement, he threw it directly into Katie's nose, which immediately spurted blood.

He immediately started flying toward her. “Sorry!”

Angelina shook her head. “Get back in position, she’s fine! But as you’re passing to a teammate, do _try_ not to knock her off her broom, won’t you? We’ve got Bludgers for that!”

The twins flew over to Katie, Fred rummaging through his pockets until he found a small purple candy and dropped it into her hand. 

”Here, take this,” he said. ”It’ll clear it up in no time.”

Angelina took charge again. “Alright! Fred, George, go and get your bats and a Bludger; Ron, get up to the goalposts, Harry, release the Snitch when I say so. We’re going to aim for Ron’s goal, obviously.”

I landed at the same time as the twins, and we fished out our respective balls.

“Ron’s making a right pig’s ear of things, isn’t he?” George asked.

I shrugged. “He’s just nervous. He always does alright when we play over summer.”

“Yeah, well, I hope he hasn’t peaked too soon,” Fred replied as we kicked off again.

When Angelina blew her whistle, the Bludger and Snitch were released, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I experienced something rather akin to relief. There was so much going on in the world, so much out there that was unknown and frightening. I didn't know where I belonged in any of it. But I knew Quidditch. I knew I belonged on the Pitch. I could play Seeker, I could find the Snitch, and I could do it all well. While I was hunting for the Snitch, I wasn't listening to the Slytherins or worrying about Ron or thinking about Voldemort. I was just Harry, Quidditch player, which was quite frankly all I wanted to be at the moment.

Angelina's whistle put an end to that blissful state. “Stop — _stop_ — STOP! Ron — you’re not covering your middle post! You keep shifting around while you’re watching the Chasers!” said Angelina. “Either stay in center position until you have to move to defend a hoop, or else circle the hoops, but don’t drift vaguely off to one side, that’s how you let in the last three goals!”

“Sorry,” Ron said, turning bright red again.

“And Katie, can’t you do something about that nosebleed?”

“It’s just getting worse!” she said, pressing her sleeve to her nose.

The twins exchanged a horrified look. Fred rifled through his pocket, pulled out another purple candy, and looked back at Katie, even more horrified.

“Well, let’s try again,” Angelina said, making a point of ignoring the Slytherins in the stands who had taken up the childish chant “Gryffindors are losers!”

I had just spotted the Snitch when the whistle sounded again.

“What now?” I asked Alicia.

“Katie,” she replied, and the team all sped toward her as fast as we could. She was ghostly pale, blood still shooting out of her nose.

“We’ll take her. She — er — might have swallowed a Blood Blisterpod by mistake,” Fred admitted. 

Angelina sighed as he and George left with Katie. “Well, there’s no point continuing with no Beaters and a Chaser gone. Come on, let’s go.”

The Slytherin chants faded as we returned to the tent. Lucy wasn't in the common room when we arrived a couple minutes later, so I headed up to my dormitory and showered. The air in the dormitory was still tense after the row Seamus and I had the first night of term. 

_“I’ll have a go at anyone who calls me a liar.”_ Those had been my exact words. 

I hadn't backed down from that yet, and I wasn't sure I ever would.

When I emerged, the dormitory was empty except for Neville, who blinked when he saw me. “Oh, hi, Harry.”

“Hi, Neville,” I replied, recalling with a rush of gratitude the way he'd defended me during the Seamus incident. 

His eyes wandered to my hand, and I was too slow in trying to hide it. “It's okay,” he said. “I saw Lucy's. She told me that you two don't want anyone else to know, though, so don't worry. Your secret's safe with me.”

I nodded, tossing my Quidditch robes into the trunk at the foot of my bed. “Thanks.”

“L-Look,” he continued, suddenly seeming shy. “Lucy told me a little bit about what happened to her this summer. A-And I'll do what I can to help, but I think she needs you more. You understand better than I do, even though I want to help, too. You were the one who saw... well, you were there, and I wasn't, and... and Lucy means a lot to me. I hate seeing her hurting so much.”

“So do I,” I said with a sigh. “Don't worry, Neville, I'm doing my best to take care of her. Did she happen to mention this morning why she quit the Quidditch team, by any chance?”

“She did? But she loves Quidditch! And she's really good!”

I nodded, rubbing the back of my neck and reaching for my stack of homework, already tall after a single day of classes. “Yeah. Well, I should probably go find her, but thanks for taking care of her this morning while I was at practice.”

This time when I entered the common room, Lucy was sitting at a table with Hermione, forehead resting against a bandaged hand as she-

_Wait, bandaged hand?_

I slid into the seat next to her and gently grabbed her wrist.

“And here I was thinking that you quit because Quidditch was too dangerous,” I commented as lightheartedly as I could. “How'd you manage to hurt yourself in a greenhouse?”

She blushed a bit. “I got bitten by a cabbage.” But she discreetly slid a scrap of parchment over to me, on which she'd already written the true explanation. _I dropped something onto where the quill cut me last night and it started bleeding again, but I'm telling everyone it's a cabbage bite._

I released her wrist and offered a smile. “Lucy, Herbology extraordinaire, bitten by a cabbage? I almost don't believe you.”

“Well, believe it, Potter,” she replied, a faint amused smile toying with the corners of her lips as her face reddened a bit more. 

“So if it's not too dangerous... why did you?” I asked quietly.

“I can't play.” Her voice was oddly strained. 

Hermione glanced up from her homework for the first time. “But you love Quidditch. You know, Lucy, Cedric would want you to play. You don't have to not play just because he's not playing anymore.”

Lucy winced. “Well, I can't play whether he'd want me to or not.” She sighed, dropped her quill, and held up her uninjured hand. It trembled so violently I wondered how she was able to write at all. “If I tried to throw a Quaffle right now, it'd probably end up in the Forbidden Forest or something. I'd be rubbish. And Madam Pomfrey says I can't play anyway, so it's not like I have much choice.” 

Ron chose that moment to take the fourth chair at the table, looking nearly as defeated as Lucy did.

“How was practice?” Hermione asked.

“Completely lousy,” Ron muttered.

“Well, it was only your first one, it’s bound to take time to-”

“Who said it was me who made it lousy?”

“No one, I just thought-”

“You thought I was bound to be rubbish?”

“No, of course I didn’t! Look, you said it was lousy so I just-”

Ron started to get up, but Lucy shot her leg out and practically kicked him back down into the seat. “I'm sure practice was better than you think it was. You've been a bloody good Keeper when we've played over summers. What happened?”

“We had an audience,” I said. “A whole group of Slytherins.”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “Don't let the bullies get to you, Ron, they're just determined to make life living hell for us. They were probably only attacking you because you're new to the team.” She glanced at me. “How was Katie?”

Ron sighed, pushed Lucy's leg off, and stomped off to the dormitory.

“Should I not have said that?” Lucy asked quietly, cheeks reddening. “I didn't mean to set him off, I was just curious.”

“No, it's alright, you didn't do anything wrong,” I replied. “Ron did hit her in the face, though, and when the twins gave her something to try to help, it only made matters worse. I reckon he just feels bad about that.”

“But they've already perfected their anti-nosebleed candy. That's what George...” She blinked and shook her head. “He gave her the purple end, right?”

I nodded. “Fred said something about a Blood Blisterpod?”

Lucy sighed. “Brilliant.” She shook her head. “Anyway, I do wish I could play, I know he would want me to, it's just... I'd be rubbish. I'd bring the team down.”

“You're far from rubbish, Lu, but I understand. Maybe you should stick to the cabbages for now.”

She reddened slightly and reached for her quill again. “Shove off, Potter.”

Hermione glanced at me. “ _Was_ Ron lousy?”

“No.”

She raised her eyebrows in response. 

“Well, I suppose he could’ve played better, but it was only the first training session, like you said.”

“Yeah, he'll be fine, I just know it,” Lucy added, not looking up from her essay. 

_And I know you will be, too,_ I thought to myself, studying her for a second while she wrote. 

The way the autumn sun streamed through the window made her eyes seem almost startlingly blue. Now that her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she didn't hide behind it anymore, I could see better than I had in a while the swirling storm of emotion that lay just beneath, but at the moment, it seemed she was only thinking about her essay.

I reluctantly reached for a quill of my own and cracked a textbook. It was O.W.L. year, after all. The fight to stay on top of homework started on a Saturday morning.

I sighed. “Have I complained yet about Potions this year? Because I bloody hate Potions.”

“Complain all you want,” Lucy muttered in response, “because so do I. One potion in particular.”

She glanced up for half a second, a small smile on her face, then bowed her head again and continued writing. It was the smallest gesture, but somehow, it felt important.

I'll admit it took me longer than it should have to realize she was talking about wolfsbane.

So much had happened in the past 24 hours, I was still struggling to keep up with it all.

“Merlin, this whole you-know-what idea will take a bit of time to sink in, won't it?” I whispered, shaking my head.

“A bit,” she whispered back, glancing up at me one more time. Some of the tension in her shoulders disappeared, and she offered me another small smile before looking down again.

Merlin, I missed her smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I'm personally very excited for Saturday's, but I have to survive three more days of school before then. This is the first day I've gotten the chance to breathe in a week, and it's wonderful. Thank you all for reading! See you Saturday!


	108. Unbelievable

LUCY:

Upon waking up on Monday morning, I just rolled over and closed my eyes again. I didn't fall asleep again, with the full moon being on Saturday, but the thought of getting up was almost too much to handle. It wasn't until Lavender and Parvati had left the room and Hermione came back up to see what was taking so long that I finally dragged myself out of bed, but I really would have liked to just stay there all day and not have to face anything or anyone. 

I slid between the twins and managed a bit of breakfast before heading to Care of Magical Creatures a bit on the early side. I never liked taking too long at meals, because then people stared, and when people stared, I felt like crying, and when I felt like crying, I would leave before I could actually start crying, which only made more people stare. Harry didn't mind leaving early, either, so the two of us left with fifteen minutes still before class.

“Let's see how Professor Grubbly-Plank's first lesson goes,” Harry said as we left the castle.

I sighed. “I had forgotten. Merlin, I miss Hagrid.”

“Me too,” he replied. 

As we approached, Professor Grubbly-Plank waved me over. “Lucy Diggory?”

I nodded. “Yes, Professor, that's me.”

“Would you mind helping me briefly? I've heard you've got a knack for creatures.”

“I can help, Professor,” I said, ears burning with embarrassment. _At least she knows me for that and not for being the poor girl who lost her brother... oh, who am I kidding, she knows me for that too, she's just being nice._ I passed Harry my bookbag and hurried around behind Hagrid's hut, where there were a number of small crates of bowtruckles. 

“I'm going to have Harry help me set up a table in front, if you wouldn't mind bringing these around a few at a time.”

“Of course. I've always liked bowtruckles.”

“Oh, that reminds me. The Headmaster mentioned that you've helped Hagrid tend to the creatures in the past. I understand it's your O.W.L. year, but Professor Dumbledore seemed to think you would benefit from having something you enjoy while you're not playing Quidditch, so if you'd like to .”

My entire face flushed red at that point. “I would like to help. But I... well, I would ask how he knew all of that, since I haven't spoken to him at all yet this term, but I'm not terribly surprised he does.”

“He does have a way!” she said with a laugh as she disappeared to set up the table. 

I released a breath I hadn't realized I was holding and removed the lid from one of the crates. A number of bowtruckles climbed up into my hands, so I carried them out to the table Professor Grubbly-Plank had conjured. I rested my hands down, one still bandaged to hide the scar from Umbridge, both shaking, and the bowtruckles hopped off. Well, all except one, who climbed up my arm and perched herself on my shoulder. 

"Alright, Daffy, you can be my partner today," I said. I winced as she gave my ponytail a curious yank. "Yeah, that's new. D'you like it?"

She yanked it again in response before using it as a rope to swing to my other shoulder.

Harry laughed, having watched the entire interaction with an expression somewhere between amusement and amazement.

I offered a small shrug and smile in return. "Glad we could amuse you." 

"I am in fact very amused. Are there more?"

I nodded, and the two of us brought the rest of the bowtruckles to the table just as the rest of the class arrived. Draco made a comment I couldn't hear as he walked up with his typical crew, and they all laughed, looking at Harry.

"Just ignore them," I muttered, waving at Neville, who was clearly amused by the bowtruckle still using my ponytail to swing from shoulder to shoulder. 

Professor Grubbly-Plank clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. “Everyone here? Let’s crack on then — who can tell me what these things are called? Miss Granger?”

“Bowtruckles. They’re tree-guardians, usually live in wand-trees.”

“Five points for Gryffindor. Yes, these are bowtruckles and, as Miss Granger rightly says, they generally live in trees whose wood is of wand quality. Anybody know what they eat?”

“Wood lice. But fairy eggs if they can get them.”

“Good girl, take another five points. So whenever you need leaves or wood from a tree in which a bowtruckle lodges, it is wise to have a gift of wood lice ready to distract or placate it. They may not look dangerous, but if angered they will gouge out human eyes with their fingers, which, as you can see, are very sharp and not at all desirable near the eyeballs. So if you’d like to gather closer, take a few wood lice and a bowtruckle — I have enough here for one between three or four — you can study them more closely. I want a sketch from each of you with all body parts labeled by the end of the lesson.”

“Alright, down you go,” I said, gently removing Daffy from my shoulder and setting her down on the ground as Ron and Hermione joined me. 

Harry made his way over a minute later. “I asked her where Hagrid was,” he said in a whisper, “and Malfoy overheard. He made a comment about Hagrid messing with something too big for him. Do you think he knows...?”

Hermione shook her head. “Dumbledore would know if something had happened to Hagrid. It’s just playing into Malfoy’s hands to look worried, it tells him we don’t know exactly what’s going on. We’ve got to ignore him, Harry. Here, hold the bowtruckle for a moment, just so I can draw its face.”

Harry scooped her off the ground and held her up for Hermione. Unfortunately, Malfoy's voice carried well.

“Yes, Father was talking to the Minister just a couple of days ago, you know, and it sounds as though the Ministry’s really determined to crack down on substandard teaching in this place. So even if that overgrown moron does show up again, he’ll probably be sent packing straight away.”

Harry dropped Daffy with a yelp; he hadn't realized he was squeezing her in his anger.

“Honestly,” I muttered, reaching forward and catching her just before she hit the grass. I drew my wand with my other hand and pointed it at the two long gashes across the back of Harry's hand, the result of Daffy clawing him in protest. “Episkey.” I stowed my wand again and held Daffy up. “You're alright. I can hold you now, my hands are shaking too much to try to draw you anyway.” 

“Thanks,” Harry said sheepishly, wiping his bloodied hand on his robes.

“I would have done the same,” I replied under my breath. I shook my head, anger swelling up in me. 

“Don't you lash out, too,” Hermione warned. 

“Wouldn't dream of it, just wishful thinking,” I retorted, irritated by her tone of voice. Harry bit back a smile and started sketching as I held Daffy out. 

“You _did_ almost attack him on the train.”

“And fortunately for him, he left before I could make good on my threat.”

“You should still be careful-”

“Hermione,” Ron interrupted with a laugh, “you're the one who punched him third year, so don't you start on Lucy.”

“I didn't punch him, I slapped him,” she huffed, cheeks flushing even though she did look rather pleased with herself.

“The difference being?”

Hermione scowled at Malfoy. “He's not even worth the respect that comes with being punched. A slap seems like more of an insult, don't you think?”

The boys and I had to bite our lips to try to restrain our laughter. She was right.

Though the mood was temporarily improved, as we left, Malfoy made another comment that set Harry off.

“If he calls Hagrid a moron one more time...” Harry said, shaking his head.

“Harry, don’t go picking a row with Malfoy, don’t forget, he’s a prefect now, he could make life difficult for you,” Hermione sighed.

“Wow, I wonder what it’d be like to have a difficult life?”

Ron laughed, Hermione frowned, and I clapped my hand over my mouth, completely torn between amusement and horror. Harry seemed to like my reaction the best and raised his eyebrows at me, grinning.

I shook my head and lowered my hand from my mouth. “Unbelievable, Potter, just unbelievable.”

Behind me, in the softest whisper, I heard someone say, “Yeah, he's been saying a lot of unbelievable stuff lately.”

I whirled around to see Seamus had just whispered to Lavender, who was in the middle of nodding her agreement. I felt as if I'd been struck across the face. I looked back and forth between the two of them, too shocked to be properly angry.

“I believe Harry,” I said. My voice trembled as I fought to hold back my tears. I turned on my heel and hurried forward, crossing my arms as I bowed my head against the chill wind.

Harry was right behind me. “What just happened?” he asked, resting his hand on my arm gently.

I wrenched my arm away. “Seamus doesn't believe you?”

“No. We had a bit of a row about it the first night of term.”

I clenched my jaw and shook my head. “Unbelievable.”

Ron and Hermione hurried forward to catch up then, and we reached the greenhouses shortly thereafter.

Ginny emerged with a smile, Luna just behind her. Luna immediately hurried toward Harry, eyes wide.

“I believe He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is back, and I believe you fought him and escaped from him.”

I relaxed my shoulders slightly, which I hadn't even realized were nearly to my ears with pent-up tension.

Harry nodded. “Er — right.”

Parvati and Lavender were laughing, and Luna puffed her chest indignantly. “You can laugh! But people used to believe there were no such things as the Blibbering Humdinger or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack!”

“Well, they were right, weren’t they? There weren’t any such things as the Blibbering Humdinger or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack,” Hermione said.

Luna glared at Hermione for a second before following after Ginny. 

I exhaled sharply through my nose. 

Harry seemed similarly peeved. “D’you mind not offending the only people who believe me?”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Harry, you can do better than _her_. Ginny’s told me all about her, apparently she’ll only believe in things as long as there’s no proof at all. Well, I wouldn’t expect anything else from someone whose father runs _The Quibbler_.”

I slammed my bookbag down once we were in class. “I don't know what all Ginny's told you about her, but Luna's one of the sweetest people I've ever met and I could care less what she believes or doesn't believe about magical creatures. She believes Harry. Those people are in short supply.”

Before Hermione could respond to my angry outburst, Ernie Macmillan made his way over to us.

“I want you to know, Potter, that it’s not only weirdos who support you. I personally believe you one hundred percent. My family has always stood firm behind Dumbledore, and so do I.”

“Er — thanks, Ernie,” Harry said, looking relieved.

I had half a mind to reprimand Ernie for calling Luna a weirdo, but like Harry said, the last thing I wanted to do was offend someone who believed him. Besides, Seamus and Lavender had finally stopped laughing. I stared at them for a second longer before pulling my gloves on and going to stand with Neville and his Hufflepuff friends, since I was still irritated with Hermione.

Professor Sprout's O.W.L. lecture was the closest to being encouraging rather than terrifying, but it still sent me into an anxious frenzy.

Cedric had spent nearly every waking minute studying for his O.W.L.s and received perfect marks.

_I have to make perfect marks, too. Just like Cedric._

But Cedric hadn't been a werewolf. There hadn't been a law written punishing those who hired him.

Cedric knew exactly who he wanted to be. He had always known exactly who he wanted to be.

_Without Cedric... where does that leave me?_

_Without Cedric... what future do I have?_

And then, just like that, my anger crumbled like a cliff into the sea, and I dropped my head to hide the tears that clouded my vision. Professor Sprout released us to our screechsnap plants after a couple more minutes, and I forced my emotions away and tried to focus.

Neville's excited explanation of the plant to the rest of us was a nice enough distraction from the sense of hopelessness swelling inside me, and I might have actually been alright if Hannah Abbott hadn't changed the topic five minutes to the end of class.

“Are you alright, Lucy?” she asked. “You've been awfully quiet.”

I nodded, glancing at her briefly before bowing my head again. “Sorry. I'm alright.”

“Are you really?” Susan Bones asked. “It's okay, you know. We all miss him very much, but we know you must miss him the most.”

I nodded again, a lump of tears clogging my throat. I swallowed hard and pushed the fertilizer into the pot with renewed vigor. “Yeah. I miss him a lot.”

“Did you hear that Ethan Summerby is playing Seeker now?” Zacharias Smith inquired. “Henry had tryouts after the Gryffindor practice Saturday morning.”

“I hadn't heard,” I replied. I was fighting to keep my voice even and losing badly. “I-I haven't talked to Henry since the train ride here, when I gave him Ced-” I swallowed hard. “When I gave him my brother's plans for last year's season, before it was canceled. H-How's Henry doing?”

“He's a good Captain,” he said. “It's neat that he's using your brother's plans. Inseparable, Cedric and Henry were.”

I nodded. “Yeah. They were.”

“He's a good prefect too,” Susan said. “It's just... not the same.”

“Right,” I replied, my voice finally breaking. I hurriedly dragged my sleeve across my face to try to ward off the rapidly-approaching tears. 

When the bell rang, I tried to get my gloves off, but my shaking hands didn't allow me to get a good enough grip.

“Here,” Neville said. He pinched the middle fingers of both gloves. “Try pulling now.”

The gloves slid off easily this time. 

“Thanks.” My face burned red. “I-I hate being like this.”

“It'll get better soon,” he replied.

I nodded. “Right.”

“No, really.” I glanced up and met his eyes. He nodded. “It will. Get better soon, I mean.”

“I believe you” was what I said. But I didn't believe it in the slightest.

_How can it ever get better without Cedric?_

* * *

HENRY: 

Instead of heading to the Great Hall for lunch, I made my way to the tree under which Cedric and I had spent so many cloudy mornings and sunny afternoons and evenings that were somewhere in between. 

I drew my stack of letters from my bookbag with a violently trembling hand. After the one I had written on the first of August, I had found myself unable to stop writing. The thought of him never reading those letters continued to bring me no small amount of pain, but in a sense, it was liberating, too.

After all, it wasn't the first time I'd written a letter to Cedric he was never going to read.

One by one, I pushed the letters through a crack in the hollow part of the trunk, listening as each envelope fluttered to the earth below. I only had one left in my hand when I heard footsteps crunching through the leaves. I jumped, but I relaxed when I saw it was Lucy.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," she said quietly. "I-I just... I saw what you were doing and I..."

"It's okay, you didn't scare me," I replied, pushing the last letter through and pulling my bag closer to me so she could sit. "Have you been writing to him, too?"

She nodded. She lowered herself to the ground and stared at the crack in the trunk. "That's a good spot. I still have all of my letters. I'm not quite sure what I want to do with mine."

"That's alright. You don't have to do anything with them, necessarily. It's alright if you want to hold onto them."

"Okay," she said with another nod. She tore her eyes away from the tree and glanced at me. "How has it been for you? Everything?"

I couldn't bring myself to keep her gaze. Though her eyes were blue and Cedric's were grey, I saw too much of him in her eyes. They looked at people the exact same way. Only, now, Lucy's eyes were far more broken than Cedric's had ever been. And that was the main part of what made it so difficult to look at her.

"I'd be lying if I said I was handling it all well," I admitted finally. 

"I just came from Herbology, and the Hufflepuffs told me you've been doing a great job so far. But... I understand. Doing something well and handling it well are different."

I nodded. "Very different."

A moment of silence passed before Lucy whispered, in a voice so soft I almost missed it, "I don't know what to do without him, Henry."

"I don't either," I heard my voice say before I could stop myself.

"I know I have to keep doing my best," she continued in the same whisper, "but what am I supposed to do now? He brought out the best in everyone, and I-I don't know what to do without him around to bring out the best in me. D-Do you know what I mean?"

I brought myself to meet the intensity of her gaze again. Her eyes shone with tears, but there was something still so brave yet vulnerable about the honesty in the way she looked at me. It allowed me to be honest right back.

"I feel the same exact way."

She nodded, looking down and ripping out a chunk of grass with shaking fingers. "It's a horrible feeling, isn't it?"

"It is," I agreed after a moment. "And I know in my head he wouldn't want me to feel this way. I know in my head that he wouldn't want me, or you, or any of us, really, to try to be like him. But at the same time... the world seems so much darker without him in it, so I want to try to be that same light. E-Even though I know it'll never be the same."

"Exactly." 

Silence fell again, and I leaned my back against the tree, letting myself get lost in my own head for a moment.

That very spot had become both hallowed and haunted.

"I should probably go," Lucy said after a couple of minutes. "I told my friends I wouldn't be gone too long. But thank you for talking to me, Henry."

"Of course, Lucy. I'm always here if you need anything, anything at all. I know I'm not him, but... I'm trying to be."

Her eyes were equally woeful and wistful as she looked at me one last time. "You were right, you know. Cedric would want you to find your own light, rather than trying to recreate his."

With that, she pushed herself to her feet and headed in the direction of the castle with her head bowed.

Hot tears pricked the backs of my eyes as I watched her leave. She was really the closest person to Cedric I had left. I buried my head in my hands.

 _If there's any light left in me, he would be the only one who could find it and bring it to the surface,_ I thought to myself.

* * *

LUCY: 

I scrubbed my cheeks just before entering the Great Hall to try to hide any evidence I'd been crying. Leaving Henry had been a lot harder than I had expected. He was really the closest person to Cedric I had left. I slid between the twins and immediately drained an entire goblet of water to chase away the last of the tears. 

"Everything alright, Cub?" George asked.

I nodded. "Just figured I should check in with Henry. I'm not sure if anyone else has."

"We can start doing that in the classes we have with him," Fred offered. "I can't imagine it's easy for him, prefect and Quidditch Captain both."

"Yeah." I reached for a sandwich and immediately took a bite so I wouldn't have to talk anymore. Fortunately, there wasn't much time left in the lunch period, so soon enough, I was heading to Ancient Runes with Hermione. Professor Babbling hadn't arrived yet, but we took our seats anyway. We had just gotten out our books when I heard a sinister voice over my shoulder.

"Your second detention with Professor Umbridge is tonight at five o'clock in her office. Don't be late."

I shot about two feet into the air. _Malfoy._ I turned around, confused. "W-What? I already served my detention with her, last Friday. She only assigned the one."

He puffed out his chest, emphasizing his prefect badge. "When I told her about how you attacked me on the train, she seemed to think you needed another detention to try to keep your dangerous temper in check."

"Attack you? She didn't attack you!" Hermione protested.

"It's fine, it's fine," I said quickly, swatting her to shut her up. The last thing I wanted was to get her a detention with Umbridge too for defending me. "I'll go to her office tonight at five and clear this up. She surely won't give me detention once she knows the truth."

Draco smirked. "Just remember that you must not tell lies. Tell me, does your new wand have a unicorn hair core still?"

He didn't give me a chance to respond before going to sit in his new seat, next to Michael Corner. I felt panic, raw and visceral, rising up inside of me. I was stuck between my past in the caves and my future in Umbridge's detention again.

_Malfoy must know. Why else would he use that specific phrase about not telling lies? Why else would he ask about my new wand core?_

_What does he know? What does he know?_

"Lucy?" Hermione asked, touching my arm to draw me back to the present.

I jumped, turning back around so I faced the front of the room again.

"It'll be alright," she said slowly. "Like you said... you can just go explain to her what really happened. Do you want me to go with you, as a witness?"

I shook my head. "I-I don't want to risk getting you in trouble, too."

"Okay. Well, even if she doesn't listen and gives you detention anyway, at least it's only lines."

"Y-Yeah. Only lines." I tried to take a deep breath, but it felt as if my lungs had been replaced by a dark hole. I was dizzy.

As darkness danced across my vision, I felt as if I was slipping back through time. The darkness reminded me so much of the caves.

The broken trust.

The broken wand.

And me, broken, on the ground.

Hermione swore under her breath suddenly and gripped my arm. "I'm taking you to the Hospital Wing, you look as if you're going to faint."

I shook my head. "'M fine. I just... 'm just a little dizzy." I rested my head on the table, closed my eyes, and stayed there until the world stopped spinning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hi, everybody! I'm sorry if the last two chapters were too short or boring. I ended up being happy with them, but after chapters like 81 or 100, I just... didn't feel that great about how they turned out. If I'm being honest, I was planning to post both 106 and 107 last Saturday, then this one on Wednesday, but for whatever reason, I was really depressed and low on motivation this week so getting through school was all I could bring myself to do. BUT I'm coming out of my funk, I wrote 18 pages in 7 hours today, and I'm already super excited to write about Harry's first (knowing) full moon experience in Chapter 110! Thank you for sticking with me even when it's boring, and I'm sorry again if Chapters 106 and 107 were unsatisfying. Hopefully these two chapters make up for it!
> 
> Oh yeah... did I mention I double-posted today? Click through to read Chapter 109! 😁
> 
> Thanks for reading, love yooooou!


	109. Reckless But Honest Words

_Like wildfire_

_It starts in my chest_

_The silence grows louder  
Ringing out in my head  
I feel the Earth shaking under my feet  
I feel the pressure building until I can't breathe  
And it takes everything  
And it spills out_

_Reckless but honest words leave out my mouth  
Like kerosene on a flame of doubt  
I couldn't make it right  
Alarms will sound  
But it's too late for holy water now  
Sooner or later the fire dies down  
I'll open up my eyes  
And I'll try and find the image of God  
In mountains made of ash and clouds of smoke_

* * *

LUCY: 

Harry and Ron skipped dinner to go practice Quidditch, which was just as well. I didn't want Harry finding out about what Malfoy had done, especially since I knew she wouldn't possibly make me write with the quill once I explained to her what had actually happened. So, at five o'clock sharp, I knocked on her door. I had taken the bandage off, thinking she might see how raw the skin on my hand still was and consider that when I told her the truth.

"Oh, Miss Everlin, how good to see you. Please, come in. You know what to do."

"A-Actually, Professor," I said, rocking back and forth on my feet nervously as I remained in the doorway, "it would seem there's been a misunderstanding. I never attacked anyone on the train."

She smiled. I felt my heart drop. "Why don't you come in, and we can discuss this further?"

I didn't resist a second time. I entered the room, and she shut the door behind me.

"Why don't you have a seat?" she said, gesturing to the seat at the desk, where the quill and paper were already waiting. 

"I would rather-" I tried to say, honestly intending to make my case then leave, but her eyes hardened.

"Sit."

I did, hating myself for being so nervous. I swallowed away my fear and said in the strongest voice I could muster. "I never attacked Draco Malfoy on the train, Professor."

"Now, now, Lucy, we've already discussed this! You must not tell lies."

"I'm not lying! He's the one who's lying!" I insisted, but my voice shook. I was losing this war of words. 

"Mr. Malfoy informed me that on the train to Hogwarts this year, he noticed you were in possession of a Crup, which is not allowed, and when he attempted to investigate, you made a number of rude comments to him that ultimately resulted in you drawing your wand and attacking him, effectively stopping him from taking disciplinary action at the time. He confessed to me that he was too afraid of being attacked again to pursue the matter further, and he was hoping I would be able to assist him."

"I never attacked Draco Malfoy," I said again. "I could bring anybody from that compartment to prove it, there were a number of other witnesses who would support me-"

"Oh, there is no need for that," she replied with a smile. "Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle accompanied Mr. Malfoy and supported his story. I have sufficient evidence proving that you have lied to me tonight, Miss Everlin. You know what to do." She nodded at the quill. "'I must not tell lies,' until the message sinks in, better this time than it did last time."

"But I'm not lying," I said one last time. "I did have a Crup, but it was allowed by the Headmaster, I had written permission with me at the time. I can't deny that I made comments that I shouldn't have made, and I did draw my wand, but I didn't use any spells against him."

Umbridge clucked her tongue. "Such a shame you have yet to learn not to tell lies. You may begin writing now, and I would like to not hear another word from you until you have finished."

* * *

_It's fight or flight  
Buried in my mind_

* * *

Fight.

I felt white-hot anger flash in me, but it didn't disappear. The fire continued to grow. 

Maybe I'd lost the war of words, but I refused to let her defeat me in the end.

After all, I was many things — a werewolf, an American, a Diggory, an Everlin — but I was _not_ a liar.

I gripped the quill and began to write, but my fury made my hand tremble worse than ever. 

The pain was worse, so much worse, than it had been the first time. The first time, I had been in so much shock I could barely feel it. The first time, I was distracted, waging war on myself, trying to decide what to tell Harry, if anything. The first time, the pain was just one of many horrible things happening within me, and the least important of these things at that.

The second time, the searing pain only made the angry fire grow hotter, and hotter, and hotter.

But still I fought.

When she finally made her way over to see how I was progressing, the back of my hand was a mess, nicked with accidental scratches straying from the letters when my fingers had twitched and sent the quill in the wrong direction, completely covered in my own crimson blood.

She had the audacity to frown.

"It is unfortunately not as clear as I would like it to be. Come back once your hand has healed over, and we'll try again."

I put my bag over my shoulder without a word and made my way to the door. But when I laid my uninjured hand on the doorknob, Professor Umbridge had one last comment.

"I will never understand why you tried to lie to me tonight, Lucy. After all, Lucius Malfoy, Draco's father, is one of the most reputable and trustworthy men in the Ministry, and I would expect nothing less from his son, who has caused no trouble whatsoever in my class."

I felt as if I'd been slapped across the face.

Lucius Malfoy, from the caves.

Lucius Malfoy, reputable and trustworthy.

* * *

_It's fight or flight  
It keeps my mind cold_

* * *

Flight.

I was tired of fighting a losing battle.

"Have a good night, Professor," I said as I left the room. 

The door shut behind me. 

My hand was throbbing.

The world around me pitched.

My foot shot forward to catch me.

The world steadied a bit.

I took another step forward.

I walked to the end of the corridor, turned the corner, and kept walking. One foot in front of the other, all in the direction of the Gryffindor common room.

I was dizzy. I was still reeling.

_What just happened?_

"I'm nowhere near as good a Chaser as Lucy is, but you blocked most of my shots tonight! You're really getting better, mate!"

Before I could even think about trying to run and hide, Ron and Harry had rounded the corner.

My eyes found Harry's. His smile instantly faded.

Harry and Ron spotted my hand at the same time.

Before I could even blink, they were right in front of me, Harry's hand shooting forward for mine.

"What happened?" Ron asked, reading the words on my hand and looking as if he'd be sick.

"Umbridge," Harry muttered. He looked at me, face paler than it had been in a long time, possibly ever. "Lucy, what did she- why did-"

I shook my head, but before I could answer, Hermione appeared around the corner.

She didn't notice my hand as she walked over, saying, "Well, _there_ you three are! When you didn't come back, Lucy, I figured she had given you lines, and I was just about to head up and see if I could help by telling her the tru-" She froze when she saw the bloodied mess that was my hand, and her jaw dropped in horror. "Lucy, you have to report this! And Harry-" Hermione reached for his hand, revealing the identical words on his hand. "Harry, you t-"

"I thought she was giving you lines!" Ron said, eyes wide as he looked from my hand to Harry's. 

"She was, in her own way," I replied in a small voice. I cradled my hand to my chest. It was stinging, burning, throbbing. 

"Come on, we need to talk about this and I don't want her to find us," Hermione said. She cracked the door to the nearest classroom and waved us in once she confirmed it was empty.

I collapsed into a chair, still holding my hand up against my chest. 

I closed my eyes, seeing black and red flash behind my eyelids. 

* * *

_But I feel it break  
With just one misstep down a fire escape  
And suddenly I'm someone that prays  
A last minute man of faith  
But I'll leave behind miles and miles of jagged lines  
Upon the surface of the Divine  
I wish I could set them straight  
Till it all spills out_

* * *

I couldn't help it. When I tried to explain what had happened in her office, I couldn't help but begin to cry. 

It was devastating. It was humiliating. It was defeating. 

Harry jumped up once the story was done. "I'm going to find Malfoy. This is the last time I'm letting him get away with doing this to you."

"No, it's okay," I choked out, catching his sleeve just before he stormed off.

"Lucy, please," he said, clearly on the verge of an angry outburst but trying desperately to keep his voice level for my sake. "This is _not_ okay. Look at you, look at your hand, this isn't- I can't just let him do this again and again-"

"Lucy's right, Harry," Hermione piped up. "You can't risk getting into trouble-"

"I don't care! I don't care if I get into trouble, not one bloody bit! He's been nothing but horrible to us for years, all four of us! Look at her hand, Hermione, give me _one good reason_ I shouldn't go march down to the Slytherin common room right now and-"

"Let Hermione and I handle it, mate, we're prefects too," Ron said. 

Harry's eyes flashed dangerously. I knew Ron hadn't meant anything bad by his prefect comment, but it hit a little too close to home for Harry.

"Please don't go," I whispered. A fresh wave of tears coursed down my cheeks. "You might not care if you get into trouble, Harry, but I do. Please don't do anything to Malfoy, it's my own fault. I shouldn't have threatened him."

"But you didn't do anything wrong," he protested.

I winced as a fresh wave of pain accompanied the fresh wave of tears, and I dropped his sleeve to cradle my hand.

Something in Harry's expression softened, and he slowly sat back down next to me. "Alright. If you don't want me to do anything to Malfoy, I won't. But..." His eyes wandered to my hand, which was still bleeding. "Bloody hell, Lucy, let me see that."

I winced again as I held out my hand for all three of them to examine. Harry started to clean my hand with the sleeve of his Quidditch jumper, and the voices of him and Ron and Hermione swirled around me incoherently as the pain grew nearly unbearable.

 _I just want you, Cedric,_ I thought to myself, closing my eyes and resting my head against the desk, Harry still keeping pressure against the wound as best he could. At that point, he had just pulled his sleeve over his palm and gripped my hand.

"You two really should report this," Hermione said, one of the only clear things I had been able to understand.

I lifted my head with some effort. "No."

"Why not? Professor McGonagall would want to know-"

"I don't know how much power she has over Umbridge," I said.

"Dumbledore, then?" Ron suggested.

Harry shook his head. "He has enough on his mind."

"We should probably go back to the common room," I suggested before any other suggestions could be made. I didn't want anybody else knowing about what had happened. "The last thing we want is for her to catch us out after curfew."

There was a general murmur of agreement, and we slipped back out into the hallway. I tucked my hand into my pocket to prevent my blood from getting all over the floor and stuck close to Harry.

A sickeningly sweet "hem, hem" behind us made us all freeze in our tracks.

"Mr. Potter, Miss Everlin, just the people I wanted to see. Will you come with me for a second?"

Ron looked as if he had a couple choice words for Umbridge, but Hermione smiled with false sincerity at Umbridge and gestured for Ron to follow her. Harry stood protectively half a step in front of me as we stopped in front of Umbridge. We towered over her, in terms of height, so it was almost embarrassing to be so afraid of her.

She had a smile glued to her face that made something deep within me burn with anger despite the sadness that had flooded me just a short while earlier. "I wanted to see how your lesson was coming along, Mr. Potter, and compare it to what Miss Everlin learned tonight."

Harry cocked his head. "I'm not sure I understand." 

"Your hand, please," Umbridge replied, holding her hand out.

He held his injured hand out for her to see, but as soon as her skin touched his, he winced. 

I blinked, startled. His scab had closed over. Did it still hurt?

But as soon as he winced, he assumed a neutral expression again. Umbridge dropped his hand and reached for mine, and it was my turn to wince.

"It would seem you have done a better job of learning your lesson, Mr. Potter," she reported, dropping my hand. "So far, at least."

Harry and I exchanged a brief glance before looking back at her, neither of us knowing what to say in response.

She merely smiled. "See you in class tomorrow." And with that, she turned, and her heels clicked all the way down the hall and into the next.

I turned to Harry. "Does your hand still hurt?" I whispered.

He shook his head, staring in the direction she had disappeared. "My scar was what hurt."

"It wouldn't surprise me," I spat. "If she really was... you know. In league with Voldemort."

Harry didn't reply for a second. Finally, he blinked and turned to face me. "Are you alright? Really alright?" he asked in a voice so gentle I nearly started crying again.

I opted instead for practically jumping on him in a hug.

He seemed to understand well enough what my answer was, even though I didn't say a word.

* * *

_Reckless but honest words leave out my mouth  
Like kerosene on a flame of doubt  
I just couldn't make it right  
Alarms will sound  
But it's too late for holy water now  
Sooner or later the fire dies down  
I'll open up my eyes again_

_"Anger"  
Sleeping At Last_


	110. Something New

HARRY:

Every day that week leading up to the full moon, I learned something new.

On Monday, I learned that the fever starts early.

We waited until we got back to the common room to tell Hermione and Ron about what had happened. The common room was empty, a welcome sight. They, of course, wanted me to tell Dumbledore, but I adamantly refused. Once they realized they weren't going to convince me, the two headed up to bed, but rather than following Hermione, Lucy made her way over to the window seat in silence, having not spoken a word since we returned. I slid in next to her, the two of us a tighter fit than ever.

With only me around, it seemed to me she dropped her guard a bit. She pulled her hair free of its ponytail so it cascaded around her shoulders and rested her chin in her hand as she stared out at the stars. Her eyes were troubled, no doubt about it.

"What's on your mind?" I asked quietly after a moment.

She didn't look at me as she replied. "It's just... whether I fight or not, something bad happens. I fight Umbridge, I get detention. I _don't_ fight Draco, I'm told I'm a liar and I still get detention. Mum fought, and she died. Dad didn't, and he died. Cedric didn't do anything wrong, nothing at all, and he... he... he still..." She sighed and shook her head, blinking back tears. "So, I guess what's on my mind is, well... what's the point of any of this? What's to stop me from just... I don't know..." This time, she couldn't blink quickly enough, and a tear slipped down her cheek. "I just want my brother back."

Her lower lip trembled, and I reached out, anticipating the sob. She buried her head against me, crying quietly but shaking violently. 

"My hand really hurts," she managed after a while. "I have high pain tolerance, Harry, but this is... it hurts so much. It r-reminds me of first year, b-but this time, there's... there's no Cedric t-to..."

She pulled her still-bleeding hand out of the little ball she had created, and I got a good look at it for the first time. It was... a disaster.

I had half a mind to march her straight to Madam Pomfrey, pay Dumbledore a visit on the way, and not leave until her hand stopped bleeding and Umbridge was on her way to Azkaban. Did I deserve the scar on the back of my hand? Maybe. I hadn't lied, but... Lucy? Lucy, who had never hurt a soul? She didn't deserve it, not at all.

Rage surged in me.

_This isn't fair._

_Lucy deserves better._

"Do you want to go to the Hospital Wing?" I asked. "I'll go with you."

She didn't answer, instead burying her face against me. I could suddenly feel even through my robes how warm her forehead was. I panicked initially, then remembered. 

_Right. Werewolf. Full moon on Saturday._

_But Merlin. It's only Monday._

I grazed her forehead with my fingers. It was warm, no doubt about it.

"This is nothing," she replied softly as if she had read my mind.

"It's not nothing," I insisted. "Lucy, it's only Monday and you're already-"

"Just give it a couple days," she muttered. "Just... give it a couple days. It gets worse."

She lifted her head to look at me. Something had changed in her expression. I couldn't place it, but it was there.

She jumped up from the window seat as if she'd been electrocuted. 

Her voice was dull and her eyes even duller as she looked at me. "This is nothing new. I've been doing this for almost ten years now. I'm fine." She started to cross her arms, but something about the way she shifted her hand made her wince. She marched over to the couch and kicked it, pacing back and forth and kicking it again, clearly in pain. She made a strangled sound of frustration and clutched her hand, bouncing on her toes a couple of times. "The monster always fights its way out in the end. There's nothing anyone can do to stop it. Bloody hell, my hand hurts-" She kicked the couch a third time, and I jumped up before she could kick the couch a fourth time.

I gripped her shoulders. "Lucy, come on, let's go to the Hospital Wing. Obviously it hurts, I'm sure she could make it better-"

"No!" She wrenched herself free, shaking her head. "I said I'm fine."

"Yeah, obviously," I huffed. "I'm not stupid."

"Neither am I." Lucy took a shaky breath through her nose, something flickering across her eyes briefly before dying again. She took another breath and took a step back from me. "There's nothing that could make me feel better right now. The wound is cursed, I already tried healing it the first time. Madam Pomfrey told me not to do anything that would get me hurt, and she's worried enough about me as is, everyone is, so I'd rather not go to the Hospital Wing and give her even more reason to worry." She took another step back, her eyes still expressionless. Her voice was a whisper as she started talking about the lycanthropy. "There's nothing that can stop the moon, Harry. Saturday will come no matter what anyone does. The fever's already started, then tomorrow my hands won't stop shaking, then over the next couple of days, the fever will get worse and worse and I'll start turning red from head to toe because of how hot it burns. I'm already hungry, and that will just get worse and worse too. Then I'll be restless, I won't be able to sleep, I won't be able to sit still. And that's not even the worst of it, Harry. _Then,_ after that, everything will be too loud, too bright, too much. It will get worse and worse until Saturday, and then the monster comes out for a night, and then afterward, when morning comes again... nothing. All of that energy, all of that fire, gone. I'll be freezing, I'll be exhausted, I'll be miserable." She shook her head, stepping back again. "Then after a couple of days, it will be like nothing ever happened, until a couple weeks later, when it all starts again. But there's nothing that can make it better, nothing that can stop it." She took another step back. "I... I should go to bed. Sleep while I still can. Good night, Harry."

She turned on her heel and started to walk away, and for a second, I remained rooted to the ground, still trying to make sense of everything she'd just told me.

"Lu, wait."

Lucy paused, partially turning around. "Mhm?"

I opened my mouth and tried to think of something to say, but nothing intelligent came to mind. So instead, I said, "I'll see you in the morning, right?"

She hesitated just a moment before nodding. "Of course," she replied after another moment's hesitation. "Good night."

"Good night, Lu." 

She headed up to her dormitory then, and I remained where I was standing for quite a while that night.

On Monday, I learned that the fever starts early, and so much more. 

* * *

On Tuesday, I learned the extent to which Lucy's hearing was heightened.

I wanted to make her smile, so I tried to make light of it.

I dropped my voice as low as I could in History of Magic. "Lu, is this a... you-know-what... talent of yours? Hearing me right now?"

She nodded.

"That's wicked. Because I can barely hear myself right now."

"I can hear you loud and clear," she mouthed back. Then she whispered, "I whispered that last sentence. Did you hear it?"

I stifled a laugh. "No, I didn't. I thought you just mouthed it to me."

The tips of her ears turned red, but she finally smiled, just the slightest bit.

* * *

On Wednesday, I learned that hearing wasn't the only sense that was heightened.

At breakfast, she suddenly sat ramrod straight, glancing around the room.

"What is it, Lu?" I asked. "Everything okay?"

She didn't answer, her eyes flitting back and forth across the room wildly until they landed on something over my shoulder. Her hand flew to her mouth, and she swore under her breath before ducking out of the Great Hall.

"I'll go," I said to the group at large, jumping up to follow her.

She had already reached the bridge on the other side of the courtyard by the time I caught up to her, staring out at the drop below.

"'M fine, Harry," she said without turning toward me.

"I still don't believe you, and- wait, how did you know it was me?" I stepped up next to her. "Never mind, not important. What's wrong?"

"I just..." She dragged her sleeve down her face. "I think Henry was wearing something of Cedric's today. It wouldn't surprise me if their clothes got mixed up from time to time, being best friends and roommates and all, sometimes Hermione's ties and whatnot end up in my trunk and vice versa, but I could smell Cedric for just a second and- and-"

"Lucy, breathe," I said.

She did. "Sorry," she whispered after a moment.

"What? Why? You didn't do anything wrong."

She didn't reply. 

"You didn't do anything wrong," I repeated.

"I'm going to go see if Professor Grubbly-Plank needs help setting up today's lesson," she said in response. "If the others ask where I went, I forgot to feed Tuck this morning."

"Lucy-"

"Please?" She turned to me desperately, ponytail swishing behind her because of how quick the motion was. "Harry, I make up stories all the time to keep my secret, please just tell everyone I ran off because I forgot to feed Tuck. I don't want everyone worrying about me."

I relented against my better judgement. "Alright."

She relaxed slightly. "Thanks, Harry."

I nodded. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, you need to eat breakfast." With that, she turned on her heel and practically jogged in the direction of Hagrid's hut.

"So do you," I said quietly as she rounded the corner and disappeared from view.

I wondered if she had heard me with those ears of hers as I turned and headed back to the Great Hall.

* * *

On Thursday, I learned that the homorphus charm didn't really cure lycanthrophy.

In the middle of an exceedingly boring DADA class with Umbridge, I remembered the DADA lesson second year where Lockhart had me recreate the scene from his book where he — or whoever had actually done it — turned the werewolf back into a man permanently with the charm. As soon as we were free, I turned to Lucy, whose cheeks at that point had taken on a reddish tinge that refused to leave, just as she had said on Monday.

"I have a random question for you, if you want to take a walk before dinner."

"What about?" she asked, eyeing me warily.

"The homorphus charm," I replied in a voice I knew only she would be able to hear.

"Doesn't work."

"What do you mean?"

"Lockhart was more than a fraud. It can work, but it's not permanent. Not to mention it's nearly impossible." She shook her head. "People have tried it with me. Never works."

I felt a surge of frustration. "Does _anything_ work?"

Lucy shook her head, sighing. "No cure, Harry. Don't even bother. I'm hopeless."

Then she started walking twice as fast and lost herself in the crowd. I tried to catch up, but she vanished.

"Just let her go, mate," Ron said from behind me, having seen the entire thing. "I couldn't hear what you two were talking about, but it looks like she'd rather be alone."

"She shouldn't be alo-"

"She won't be. She just ran straight into Henry, and it looks like he's noticed something's up. She's in good hands." He studied me for a second. "You know you don't have to try to save her all by yourself, right?"

"Yeah, well, I made a promise to Cedric, and I intend to keep it." I followed in Lucy's footsteps and stalked away from Ron, frustration still burning in the pit of my stomach.

The full moon was coming, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

Just like she said.

Just a couple months ago, I'd teased her for her optimism. I had no idea at the time just how hard-fought that optimism was.

* * *

On Friday, I learned that she meant what she said about the shaking getting worse.

She shook badly enough when it wasn't the day before the full moon, because of what had happened to her over summer.

But even in Charms, her best class, she couldn't perform the magic.

She was sitting with me to her right and Neville to her left, so at least she was between the only two students at Hogwarts who knew what had happened to her — I knew Neville didn't know _why_ , but he knew _what_. But that didn't make her feel any better.

"This bloody wand doesn't understand me," she hissed, knuckles white with how hard she was gripping it. "Why is it that the wand I stole from a Death Eater and used _once_ performed better magic than this one?"

Neville and I exchanged a brief glance before turning back to her. She hadn't noticed a thing, as she was still glaring at the wand she was now holding with both hands. But even with both hands, the wand shook so violently one would have thought there was an earthquake occurring beneath Lucy and only Lucy.

She sighed and set the wand down, dragging her hand down her face.

"I bloody hate this," she whispered, and she didn't speak again the rest of the day.

* * *

On Saturday, I learned just how high the fever climbed.

It was frightening.

I made my way down to the common room early on Saturday so I could write a letter to Sirius about my scar hurting and head up to the Owlery without having to worry about being seen (or bothered) by anyone. I grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill and slipped down the stairs.

The common room was empty except for Lucy. She was kneeling in front of the fire and holding out a piece of parchment. The flames slowly licked up the sides, and she didn't drop it until the last second, just before it singed her fingers.

"What was that?" 

She whirled around, and I could tell from her bloodshot eyes and damp cheeks she had been crying all night long. 

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," I said quickly. 

"It's okay," she replied, shaking her head and trying in vain to dry her face, but tears were still shining in her eyes and slipping down her cheeks.

I immediately hopped over the back of the couch and patted the spot next to me. "C'mere. You look like you haven't slept all night."

"'Cause I haven't." She pushed herself to her feet and collapsed next to me.

"Oh, Merlin," I said before I could stop myself. The heat of the fever was radiating off of her, as if my own personal fire had just taken the seat beside me.

"Hm?"

I pressed a hand to her forehead. "Lucy, how are you even-"

"Alive? I don't know. Happens every month, though, so..." She adjusted slightly on the couch and tightened the bandage around her hand. I could tell the fever was getting to her, because she loosened and tightened the bandage five times in a row the exact same way, eyes somewhat glazed over, still sniffling after crying for so long. She stopped suddenly and looked at me. "Wait, why are you up so early?"

"I was going to write to Sirius to tell him about my scar hurting. D'you want to head down to the Owlery with me once I'm done?"

She nodded, shifting her position again so she was sitting sideways with her head against the back of the couch. "Cool morning air is nice."

She didn't say anything else, so I started writing my letter to Sirius, careful not to move too much once I realized Lucy had fallen asleep.

_Dear Snuffles,  
Hope you’re okay, the first week back here’s been terrible, I’m really glad it’s the weekend.  
We’ve got a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Umbridge. She’s nearly as nice as your mum. I’m writing because that thing I wrote to you about last summer happened again earlier this week after Lucy and I did a detention with Umbridge.  
We’re all missing our biggest friend, we hope he’ll be back soon.  
Please write back quickly.  
Best, Harry_

I read the letter, then read it again, then read it again. I knew I had to be vague — I hoped I had been vague enough to not be understood by outsiders, but not so vague Sirius couldn't understand. Once I was satisfied, I folded it in half, still careful not to move too much. Lucy needed the sleep.

But even the soft sound of me folding the paper had woken her up, which was odd considering how hard it had been to wake her up in June. Merlin. June felt like so long ago.

"Ready to take it to the Owlery?" she asked sleepily.

I nodded. "Nice nap?"

She swatted my arm in response, which was the liveliest she'd been all week. So, naturally, I egged her on a bit more, trying to lure her out of her shell a bit more.

"But was it?"

"C'mon, let's get that cool morning air we've discussed," she replied, dragging her sleeve across her face. 

I felt her forehead again once we were both standing. "Merlin."

"Yeah, see what I meant on Monday?"

I nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. I do."

We climbed through the portrait hole and made our way down to the Owlery. About halfway down, Mrs. Norris appeared in front of us, then started to turn around as if she were reporting to Filch. 

“I’m not doing anything wrong,” I said loudly, but she didn't turn around again. I shook my head. “Is _nothing_ going right today?”

“Welcome to my world,” Lucy muttered in response. She stopped and hissed suddenly, hands flying over her face.

“You alright?” I asked, skidding to a stop.

She nodded. “Sensitive eyes. Sunbeam hit me just right. _Merlin_.”

“You could keep your eyes closed. You sleepwalk around often enough, don't you?” She snorted, and I grinned. “I’m only partially joking.”

“Yeah, I know you are.” She lowered her hands, squinting. “Alright, I'm good.”

We made it the rest of the way down to the Owlery in silence. It wasn't awkward or uncomfortable in the slightest; quite the contrary, after how, well, _loud_ the year had been so far, the silence was refreshing.

The second we entered the Owlery, the silence ended. Birds swooped back and forth, hooting loudly, feathers falling in all directions. I headed to the window where Hedwig was, and Lucy headed in the opposite direction to check on Malachi.

Hedwig alighted on my shoulder, and I passed her the letter. “Right, I know this says ‘Snuffles’ on the outside, but it’s for Sirius, okay?”

She blinked, and I chose to interpret that as “Got it!”

“Have a safe flight, then,” I said as she took off into the sky. I watched as she disappeared, then glanced over at Hagrid's cabin. It was so obviously empty. _Merlin, I miss him._

Before I could think on this more, I saw a thestral appear suddenly above the trees, its skeletal wings silhouetted against the hillsides. I turned around to ask Lucy if she had seen it, too, but at that moment, the Owlery door opened, and Cho walked in, carrying a letter and a small package.

“Hi,” I said.

“Oh, hi. I didn’t think anyone would be up here this early. I only remembered five minutes ago, it’s my mum’s birthday.”

“Right.” I scrambled for something to say. The best I could manage was “Nice day.”

She looked around for an owl as she replied. “Yeah. Good Quidditch conditions. I haven’t been out all week, have you?”

“Yeah, a bit,” I replied.

“Hey, has Gryffindor got a new Keeper yet?” she asked as she tied her parcel and letter to a school owl's leg.

“Yeah. It’s my friend Ron Weasley, d’you know him?”

“The Tornado-hater? Is he any good?”

“Yeah, I think so. We've been practicing together this past week. I didn’t see his tryout, though, I was in detention.”

She froze suddenly, glancing up at me with her hair falling in her eyes a bit. “That Umbridge woman’s foul. Putting you in detention just because you told the truth about how — how — how he died. Everyone heard about it, it was all over the school. You were really brave standing up to her like that.”

A strange fluttering sensation filled me then. The fact that she thought I was brave. I thought about showing off my scarred hand as I helped her tie the parcel to the owl, but the door banged open before I got the chance. 

Filch marched over to us, red in the face and glaring at me. “Aha! I’ve had a tip-off that you are intending to place a massive order for Dungbombs!”

I crossed my arms. “Who told you I was ordering Dungbombs?”

“I have my sources. Now hand over whatever it is you’re sending.”

“I can’t, it’s gone,” I replied calmly.

“Gone?”

“Gone.”

He seemed to be at a loss for a second, mouthing angry words that never made it past his lips. Finally he managed, “How do I know you haven’t got it in your pocket?”

“Because-”

“I saw him send it,” Cho snapped, glaring at Filch. 

“You saw him?”

“That’s right, I saw him.”

After a long moment of the two glaring at each other, Filch stomped over to the door.

“If I get so much as a whiff of a Dungbomb!” he said threateningly as he made his way down the stairs. 

I glanced at Cho, who was tying the strings to the owl's leg as if nothing had happened.

“Thanks,” I said, a rush of relief coursing through me. The last thing I needed was more trouble that week.

“No problem. You _weren’t_ ordering Dungbombs, were you?”

I shook my head. “No.”

“I wonder why he thought you were, then?”

“Beats me,” I replied with a shrug. That seemed rather inconsequential, really, with Cho standing so close to me, not hating me for living, thinking I was brave for standing up to Umbridge. I watched as she walked over to a window and let the owl fly from her arm, black hair shining in the sunlight-

“I'm going to go feed Tuck, but wish Ron and Katie luck at practice for me,” a soft voice said behind me.

I jumped and whirled around to face Lucy. I'd forgotten she was there. 

Cho seemed to have not noticed she was there. Lucy must have been somewhat hidden behind the door when Cho walked in. 

“Oh, hi Lucy,” she said, her voice trembling suddenly.

Lucy nodded. “Hi.” She rubbed the back of her neck, flushing an even deeper shade of red. She glanced back at me. “I-I'll go now. I'm sorry. I'll see you later, Harry.”

With that, she turned on her heel and passed through the open door, her footsteps echoing down the stairs.

Cho sniffled behind me, and I turned around.

“Cho, you — are you alright?” I asked, somewhat unnerved by the tears suddenly streaming down her cheeks.

“She just looks so much like him,” she whispered. “It's the eyes. I...” Cho cut herself off, blinking a couple of times as if to reset. “Are you heading back to the castle?”

I nodded. “Walk with me?”

“Alright,” she replied, her voice cracking.

Silent tears continued to flow down her face as we walked in silence back to the castle. I wanted to try to say something that would make her feel better, but I was at a loss. I didn't know how to help her the way I knew how to help Lucy. Cho was more difficult.

We parted ways at the Great Hall when she headed in the direction of her common room instead, after a friend of hers had appeared. The friend gave me an accusing look, as if it were _my_ fault Cho was crying. I elected to ignore it and headed into the Great Hall, overall feeling rather pleased with how the conversation had gone, at least at first. She thought I was brave. She stood up to Filch for me.

“Morning,” I said with a smile as I sat next to Ron. 

“What are you looking so pleased about?” he asked suspiciously.

“Erm... Quidditch later.”

“Oh. Right.” Ron looked across the table, then turned back to me. “Where's Lucy? We thought she'd be with you.”

“She went down to Hagrid's to feed Tuck,” I explained. “She said she wasn't hungry.”

“She did?” Hermione asked, head snapping up to face me.

Then I realized my mistake.

It was the full moon. She would be starving, according to what she had explained on Monday. There was no _way_ she wasn't hungry.

And on top of that, she was never supposed to be alone.

“I'll go check on her,” I said as I jumped up from the table and hurried from the Great Hall. I jogged all the way down to Hagrid's hut, beating myself up with every step.

_She's never supposed to be alone._

I pushed the door open without knocking.

She glanced up and immediately shielded her eyes. “Harry? What're you doing?”

“Merlin, sorry, didn't realize how bright that'd be,” I muttered, slamming the door shut behind me.

“It's alright, you're new to this.” She lowered her arm, still eyeing me warily. “What're you doing here? I thought you were walking back with Cho.”

“I was. Well, I _did_. I just...” _Does she know she isn't supposed to be alone? What if she thinks I see it as a chore? I don't, really, I just want her to be safe-_ “I thought you might want help.”

“Oh.” She glanced down, and I realized exactly how stupid that reason was. Tuck had made himself very comfortable nestled in her crossed legs, and Fang's head was on her knee because she was scratching him behind the ears. She didn't need help. “I think I've got it handled for today, but thanks, Harry.”

“Right,” I said, feeling even more ridiculous. 

“Though,” she added quietly, “if you do want to help, would you please remind me to feed them tomorrow morning? I can be... forgetful. Afterwards. I'm so tired afterwards.”

“I'll feed them tomorrow,” I replied. “Don't worry about it.”

“Are you sure? I don't mind.”

I nodded. “Positive.”

“Thanks, Harry.” She leaned back against Hagrid's couch and sighed. “I might stay here all day. It's dark, and quiet, and no one would bother me.”

“Except for me, of course,” I replied, crossing my arms and leaning against the door. “Because I'm not about to leave you here, alone, all day.”

“You have Quidditch practice, though,” she said.

“I'll get Hermione to come bother you while I'm at practice. I reckon she'd be less bothersome than the twins.”

“I don't need to be bothered.”

“You don't need to be alone, either. Would you rather I bother you?”

“You don't bother me.”

We held each other's eyes for a long moment, something unspoken happening between the two of us that I wouldn't have been able to articulate even if I tried. Then she blinked, and I blinked, and it was gone.

“Besides,” I said, trying to keep the conversation moving, “you're hungry, aren't you, today being what it is? Would you like being bothered if it meant someone bringing you food?”

“You drive a hard bargain,” she replied as she glanced away. Her voice was tight and quiet again. 

_She really doesn't like talking about it,_ I realized.

“It's a deal then.” I tried to keep my tone light. “I'll get Hermione to bother you during practice, then I'll bother you until sunset.”

Lucy sighed, but a small smile toyed with the corners of her mouth. “Fine.”

* * *

It was nice, really, that afternoon with Lucy in Hagrid's hut. It would have been too dark in there to see homework, if we had wanted to do it in the first place, so instead, we forgot about homework, and watched Tuck and Fang play, and talked in low voices about anything that would take her mind off of the full moon. 

It was nice, so naturally, it had to end. As the sky started to turn pink, she closed her eyes and groaned, the groan ending in a high-pitched sound of frustration and desperation and resignation. 

“I don't want to have to go,” she whispered, eyes still closed. “But I know I have to.”

She pushed herself to her feet, and I followed suit. 

“Off to the Room of Requirement,” she said.

“Where's that?”

“You can follow if you want. Hermione does sometimes. Cedric does — d-did — too.”

I nodded. “You don't have to be alone.”

She nodded in response, carefully avoiding my eyes as we slipped from the hut and headed up to the castle. We walked in silence up flight after flight of stairs until we reached a door I had never seen before.

“This is it,” Lucy whispered, still not meeting my gaze. “See you in the morning.”

She turned toward the door, but something flashed in me, and my hand shot forward for her wrist.

“Be careful, alright?” I asked, all of the fear I'd been burying for over a week now surging to the surface. What was about to happen was dangerous for her, so dangerous. I'd seen Professor Lupin's scars, I'd seen his transformation, I'd seen how horrible it was. The thought of Lucy going through the same exact horror, with nothing I could do to help...

Her eyes softened, and it looked for a second as if she might cry. “Harry, I have no control. I forget who I am. I forget everything.”

“Just try then? Please? For me?”

She nodded slowly, removing her wrist from my group and resting her hand on the handle. “I'll see you in the morning.”

“See you in the morning,” I replied. She disappeared behind the door with a swish of her ponytail, and just like that, I was alone.

And so was she.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm so sorry this update was later than usual! I have been drowning in homework — almost literally. I have cried so many tears of frustration this week over homework. BUT, that being said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! This story continues to be a bright spot in my life, and I always look forward to reading everyone's super sweet comments. Thank you for always being so supportive. You're the best.
> 
> I hope you all have a great rest of your week, and I'll see you all on Saturday with Chapter 111!


	111. Unnecessary Shield Charm

LUCY:

Once I was human again and I stopped screaming, I found myself incapacitated by pain. I couldn't help but whimper as I writhed around. Nobody would hear me. I was free to make as much noise as I wanted without having to worry about anything or anyone.

I screwed my eyes shut, letting out a hoarse yell as one of my writhing movements sent pain shooting up my neck. My hand flew up to try to massage away the massive knot, but I cried out again because I had forgotten that it was the hand Umbridge — well, that I at the direction of Umbridge — had shredded open. Unsurprisingly, it was bleeding again, but when I went to cradle it, I felt an unusual tension in my shoulder.

I opened my eyes slowly. On the floor, all around, were ropes. Ropes that had been bitten to strings. 

I had never seen anything like that before. The room had never done anything like that before. It was always just cushioned. Nothing more, nothing less.

Then, a vision from the night flashed through my mind. A blur of ropes shooting up from the ground to stop me. 

_To stop me from what, though?_

Another vision. The ropes pinning me to the ground, me whining in protest, struggling as hard as I could.

 _That must have been how I had injured my shoulder._ I pushed myself up with the other arm and looked around. _I must have twisted free in an awkward way._

Another vision. Me launching myself at the wall.

_That was stupid. Was I trying to hurt myself?_

Another vision. Lunging for my wrists — or, well, the part above my paws that corresponded to my human wrists — with teeth bared just before ropes clamped my snout shut so I couldn't bite myself.

_Oh._

The realization made me dizzy, so I braced myself with my other arm for only half a second before my shoulder gave way again and I landed on the floor again. A soft whimper escaped me, then I lay still and stared at the ceiling, dazed by the pain running through me like a current.

_Monster._

_Monster._

_Monster._

_Monster._

_Monster._

"I know!" I shouted to the whisper of the part of my soul that had always known the truth no matter how many times Cedric or Hermione or Fred or George or Harry or _anyone_ tried to tell me otherwise.

I froze. Harry.

I pushed myself up again and looked around at all of the ropes.

_If I'm this much of a danger to myself, I'm even more of a danger to him._

I shook my head to dispel the thought, then winced as my head started pounding more intensely in protest. I inhaled through my nose and pushed myself to my feet. I swayed, but the world steadied itself once I braced myself against the wall. I closed my eyes and inhaled again, but even _breathing_ required monumental effort. I reached up — carefully — to drag my hand down my face, but the skin of my nose started stinging, and when I pulled my hand away, there was a stripe of blood across my palm.

_Bloody hell. The ropes. I must have resisted so hard I cut my own nose open._

I sighed. I would have to try to get up to the dormitory before anyone else woke up and use some of the dittany-free healing cream I'd brought from home. I had already told Madam Pomfrey I didn't need a wideye potion since I was planning on sleeping all day Sunday, so she wouldn't be expecting me in the Hospital Wing — not that I would have wanted to go there, anyway. I didn't want to worry her... I also didn't need yet another reminder of Cedric's absence.

I hugged the wall as I made my way to the door, pressing my sleeve to my nose to try to keep the bleeding to a minimum.

_Nothing to it. Just get to the common room, grab the cream, and disappear into the bathroom before you wake Hermione up. Shower, clean it all up, then sleep all day. Nothing to it._

But when I opened the door, my plan went out the window. 

"Bloody hell, why are you holding your nose, are you okay?"

I kept my sleeve up hiding my face, scrambling for an explanation as Harry rushed over to me, panic in his eyes.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," I said. "I-I thought you were feeding Tuck and Fang, I didn't think you'd-"

"I've already been down to Hagrid's. I didn't want you to be alone when you came out." His eyes roamed from my face to my hand. "Merlin, did that split open again?"

I nodded, still reeling. I was too exhausted to try to say anything that would make the situation better.

Harry gently reached forward and lowered my sleeve from my nose. He took in a sharp breath, but his voice was calm when he spoke, if a little shaken. "I thought you said nothing would hurt you in there. I thought- I thought it was the safest place for you to be."

Involuntary tears rose to my eyes, but I forced them away just as soon as they appeared. There was no way in heaven or hell or anywhere in between that I would tell Harry about the ropes. I was humiliated enough as it was. So instead, I said, "It's definitely the safest place for me, but it's not always perfect."

He nodded slowly, reluctantly, maybe even a bit disbelievingly. "Right." He reached forward and laid a hand on my forehead. "Merlin, you were right, you're freezing."

"Yeah. It happens."

"Right," he said again, blinking. "Alright, let's head to the Hospital Wing."

I shook my head. "I'm heading to my dormitory."

"I- what? Lucy, you're bleeding."

"I can take care of it," I said quietly. "I brought healing cream from home. It'll take care of my nose in no time."

"What about your hand?"

"It'll be fine." I glanced away from his eyes and started walking, and he followed suit. 

"Are you alright otherwise?" he asked after a moment. "Did anything else happen?"

"I'm alright," I lied. "Just tired. Did I miss anything last night?"

"No. I went out to help Ron practice as Keeper for a while. Hermione bugged us both about doing homework, but we could tell her heart wasn't really in it so we talked her into playing Exploding Snap instead. She seemed really worried about you. I'm sure she'll interrogate you about... well, _this_ , once you make it to your dorm."

I nodded. "Probably."

He was right; as soon as I opened the door to the dormitory, Hermione rushed over and wrapped her arms around me, unable to help herself. She had already retrieved the cream from my trunk and dragged me into the bathroom to apply it to my nose. I understood why Harry had reacted the way he had — my nose was rubbed raw.

"How did you do that?" she asked, scanning my face for any other sign of injury.

"I don't know," I muttered. Another lie. "Did you let Harry be the one to get me?"

She nodded. "He was already awake when I went down to the common room. Something about how he was so worried he couldn't sleep-"

"I shouldn't have told him," I whispered. "I shouldn't have told him, Hermione, now I've ruined everything-"

"You didn't let me finish. He also said in no uncertain terms that he's glad he knows now and that he wishes he had figured it out first year like I did."

"Well then, he's a bloody idiot if he's actually _glad_ he knows, considering how worried he seemed to be all week-"

"Lucy, listen to yourself! Don't you see he's only worried because he cares about you?"

"Then maybe he's an idiot for that too, because I'm not worth..."

I hesitated when I saw the look on Hermione's face. 

"So _that's_ why you've been shutting everyone out, is it? You think you're not worth the worry?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure you do. Or are you telling me it's a mere coincidence that you've talked more to Dolores _Umbridge_ of all people than to me, or Ron, or Ginny, or anyone other than Harry in the week we've been back at school? And even then, I'm only _assuming_ you talk to Harry when the two of you are alone because he doesn't talk to anyone much anymore either. Maybe you've spoken to Umbridge more than him, even."

I glanced away, at a loss for words. When she laid it all out like that...

"Look," she said, more gently, "like it or not, we care about you, Lucy, and we want to help you. But you've got to get out of your head if you want us to stand a fighting chance of actually helping you feel better."

I nodded meekly.

 _But what would you say if I told you I wasn't sure if I want to get better?_ I wondered to myself.

Hermione made a small noise in her throat and hugged me again.

"Just please promise not to go somewhere we can't follow."

"Alright," I managed. "I promise."

* * *

I stumbled down to the Great Hall the next morning five minutes before class.

"Feeling better? Heard you were sick," Fred commented for the sake of any curious ears around who didn't know my secret as I slid between him and George. George offered me an exaggerated wink, as if I could forget that they both knew I was a werewolf.

"Sick as a dog," I replied, making Harry choke on his pumpkin juice across the table. I was too tired to even smile at his reaction, but I would have liked to — it was funny. Ron slapping him on the back made it all the funnier; it must have been a large swallow.

The day passed in a hazy blur. I fell asleep in History of Magic, but Harry let me sleep and told me I could copy his notes — I noticed even in my tired stupor the effort he had taken in making his handwriting neater than his usual scrawl. I would have ruined my potion the following period if Hermione hadn't grabbed me by the wrist to stop me from dropping the completely wrong type of crushed-up whatever into my cauldron. I fell asleep again in Ancient Runes, and Hermione kicked me to keep me awake, but Professor Babbling dropped a note on my desk saying I looked exhausted and that it was alright to sleep since I was top of the class, so I was more alert in DADA than I would have otherwise been. I skipped dinner, instead heading up to the common room to get a head start on the ever-growing mountain of homework, but before I knew what had happened, Ron was shaking me awake and Hermione was siphoning up the ink I had spilled over my essay when I had (apparently) crash-landed on the bottle and Harry was wiping a smudge of ink from my forehead with his thumb.

I managed to stay awake with the three of them sitting around me and asking me questions from time to time, but exhaustion pulled down on every part of my body. I was just about to succumb to sleep when Hermione closed her book with a snap and looked over at Ron and Harry.

“Nearly done?”

“No,” Ron muttered.

She glanced at his Astronomy essay. “Jupiter’s biggest moon is Ganymede, not Callisto, and it’s Io that’s got the volcanos.”

“Thanks.” He nearly tore through the parchment with how hard he was dragging the quill through the incorrect lines.

“Sorry, I only-”

“Yeah, well, if you’re just here to criticize-”

“Ron-”

“I haven’t got time to listen to a sermon, Hermione, I’m up to my neck in it here-”

“No, look!”

We all looked in the direction she was pointing.

“Hermes,” I said. I blinked. I wondered if I was so tired I was hallucinating.

Ron jumped up. “Blimey, it is! What’s Percy writing to me for?”

Hermes landed on Ron's essay and held his leg out to me. I untied the letter and passed it to Ron, who collapsed into his chair and began reading. After a couple of seconds, he held the letter out so I could see it too, and I soon understood why.

 _Dear Ron,  
I have only just heard (from no less a person than the Minister of Magic himself, who has it from your new teacher, Professor Umbridge) that you have become a Hogwarts prefect.  
I was most pleasantly surprised when I heard this news and must firstly offer my congratulations. I must admit that I have always been afraid that you would take what we might call the “Fred and George” route, rather than following in my footsteps, so you can imagine my feelings on hearing you have stopped flouting authority and have decided to shoulder some real responsibility.  
But I want to give you more than congratulations, Ron, I want to give you some advice, which is why I am sending this at night rather than by the usual morning post. Hopefully you will be able to read this away from prying eyes and avoid awkward questions, though if Lucy is around, you might like to share what I am about to say next with her as well.  
From something the Minister let slip when telling me you are now a prefect, I gather that you are still seeing a lot of Harry Potter. I must tell you, Ron, that nothing could put you in danger of losing your badge more than continued fraternization with that boy. Yes, I am sure you are surprised to hear this — no doubt you will say that Potter has always been Dumbledore’s favorite — but I feel bound to tell you that Dumbledore may not be in charge at Hogwarts much longer and the people who count have a very different — and probably more accurate — view of Potter's behavior. I shall say no more here, but if you look at the _Daily Prophet _tomorrow you will get a good idea of the way the wind is blowing — and see if you can spot yours truly!_  
_Seriously, Ron, you do not want to be tarred with the same brush as Potter, it could be very damaging to your future prospects, and I am talking here about life after school too. As you must be aware, given that our father escorted him to court, Potter had a disciplinary hearing this summer in front of the whole Wizengamot and he did not come out of it looking too good. He got off on a mere technicality if you ask me and many of the people I’ve spoken to remain convinced of his guilt._  
_It may be that you are afraid to sever ties with Potter — I know that he can be unbalanced and, for all I know, violent — but if you have any worries about this, or have spotted anything else in Potter’s behavior that is troubling you, I urge you to speak to Dolores Umbridge, a really delightful woman, who I know will be only too happy to advise you._  
_This leads me to my other bit of advice. As I have hinted above, Dumbledore’s regime at Hogwarts may soon be over. Your loyalty, Ron, should be not to him, but to the school and the Ministry. I am very sorry to hear that so far Professor Umbridge is encountering very little cooperation from staff as she strives to make those necessary changes within Hogwarts that the Ministry so ardently desires (although she should find this easier from next week — again, see the_ Prophet _tomorrow!). I shall say only this — a student who shows himself willing to help Professor Umbridge now may be very well placed for Head Boyship in a couple of years!_  
_I am sorry that I was unable to see more of you over the summer. It pains me to criticize our parents, but I am afraid I can no longer live under their roof while they remain mixed up with the dangerous crowd around Dumbledore (if you are writing to Mother at any point, you might tell her that a certain Sturgis Podmore, who is a great friend of Dumbledore’s, has recently been sent to Azkaban for trespass at the Ministry. Perhaps that will open their eyes to the kind of petty criminals with whom they are currently rubbing shoulders). I count myself very lucky to have escaped the stigma of association with such people — the Minister really could not be more gracious to me — and I do hope, Ron, that you will not allow family ties to blind you to the misguided nature of our parents’ beliefs and actions either. I sincerely hope that, in time, they will realize how mistaken they were and I shall, of course, be ready to accept a full apology when that day comes.  
Please think over what I have said most carefully, particularly the bit about Harry Potter, and congratulations again on becoming prefect.  
Your brother, Percy  
P.S. Lucy, if you are reading this, I do hope you are recovering well. You can owl me at any time if you have any questions or concerns; I would like to hear your thoughts on Professor Umbridge. I'm sure the two of you are getting on nicely! Please consider what I have said as well, because I have both yours and Ron's best interests at heart as two people who have been closely connected with both Potter and myself._

Ron and I exchanged a look, and we shook our heads in unison, having reached the same conclusion. As he passed the letter to Harry and Hermione, I reached for a new piece of parchment and began to write my own letter to Percy.

_Dear Percy,  
Hermes has just arrived with your letter. I hope he doesn't mind making another journey so soon, but I am afraid I cannot wait.  
I'm sorry my handwriting is so shaky. As it turns out, one of the long-term effects of the Cruciatus Curse is uncontrollable shaking. My handwriting is no exception.  
Thank you for your concern. I mean that genuinely. But I'm afraid you are sorely mistaken if you think I will "sever ties" with Harry anytime soon. You see, he's my best friend, and I will stand by him no matter what comes next.   
As far as Professor Umbridge is concerned, I am afraid I have not gotten the chance to know Professor Umbridge's "delightful" side, as she gave me detention within my first 24 hours back at Hogwarts merely for speaking the truth about what happened to my family. ~~In case you've forgotten, I am the only Diggory left.~~ I am sure you will be pleased to know, however, that I hope to stop receiving detentions soon. Please ignore the blood stains on this letter. I do believe the lesson is sinking in, much to her approval.  
I want you to know that I believe Harry, no matter what you or the Ministry or anyone else says. I think to say Harry is a liar is an insult to my brother's memory. You knew him, Percy. You know Cedric wouldn't have dropped dead of his own accord. You know his death would not have been an accident.   
I'm sure that last paragraph has fallen on deaf ears, but I can't bring myself to care. I want all of this to stop, but I get the feeling everything is only getting started. I hope all is well with you, and I hope you think about at least parts of what I said. You know me, Percy, and I'd like to think you respect me. So please, just think about it.  
Again, thank you for being concerned. I mean that genuinely. If I'm being honest with you, Percy, the way you've been so brutally honest with me, I've not been doing well at all. I miss my brother. I miss my mum. I miss my dad. I miss the days where I didn't shake like this. I missed you too, over summer. Whenever you're ready to stop rejecting your family, please come back. I miss you, and I know they do too. You have a family that loves you, Percy. Why are you throwing it all away?  
Sincerely, Lucy  
P.S. If I've taken the "Fred and George" route, I'm proud of it. They don't need prefect badges to be happy. Try as I might, I'll never be able to fill my brother's shoes, so the fact that I'm not prefect doesn't bother me. At the end of the day, Cedric knew that the badge was just a badge, and it was how he helped his house that mattered; I don't need a badge for that._

I rolled the letter with a flourish, and Hermes flew over as if he had been expecting this. 

“Take this back to Percy, please,” I said to the owl, taking the time to stroke his head. “I'm sorry, I know you've flown a long way, but he needs to know where I stand.”

The owl hooted lowly and soared back through the open window. I shuddered, suddenly aware of how cold it was inside, and Harry jumped up to close the window.

“Well, if you want to ‘sever ties’ with me, I swear I won’t get violent,” Harry said as he returned to his chair. His tone was forcibly light, as if he wanted us to think he thought it was a joke. But we all knew better.

Ron's hand shot out for his brother's letter, and he began tearing it to shreds. “He is the world’s biggest _git_.” He turned to me. “What'd you say to him? I'm not even going to reply.”

“I told him he was sorely mistaken if he thought I'd ever stop associating with Harry,” I replied. I was waiting for a flare of anger, something uncontrollable that would force me to lash out, but it didn't come. It just pulsed below me, as if subdued, or muffled, or suppressed. “I told him I have yet to meet the 'delightful' side of Umbridge but mentioned that I would try to be civil with her now that I'm done with detentions for a while. Then I told him flat-out that I believe Harry and that my brother's death was no accident, and then I begged him to listen to me. I ended by telling him I genuinely appreciated his concern, but I also asked him why he was throwing his family away.”

Ron whistled lowly after a moment. “Went off on him a bit, did you?”

“Maybe a bit.” I glanced at Harry. “Look, I'd rather not get another detention with Umbridge anytime soon. My hand still _bloody_ hurts. But I'm never going to say I don't believe that Voldemort's back, no matter what it could cost me.” I glanced down at my hands. “A-At the same time, though... I'm genuinely touched by his concerned, if a bit surprised. He's always been kind to me. I more or less fainted into his arms after escaping, for Merlin's sake, so I can't hate him. And the bit about your family, Ron...” I laughed, the sound harsh and humorless and nothing like a laugh at all. “Merlin, that was what set me off most. He doesn't know how good he has it.” I glanced at Harry again, who was studying me with an intensity that made me reach for my quill again. “I don't think I was mean, though. Was I?”

“I mean, you didn't let us read it,” Hermione pointed out, “but I'm sure you weren't mean.”

I nodded, glancing back up at Harry. This time, though, he wasn't looking at me, he was looking over my shoulder. 

“What is it?” I asked. 

“I’ve just seen Sirius’s head in the fire,” he replied, getting up out of his chair and kneeling on the rug.

I joined him just as Sirius appeared a second time. 

He smiled. “I was starting to think you’d go to bed before everyone else had disappeared. I’ve been checking every hour.”

“You’ve been popping into the fire every hour?” Harry repeated with a laugh.

“Just for a few seconds to check if the coast was clear yet.”

“But what if you’d been seen?” Hermione asked, kneeling on my other side as Ron knelt beside Harry.

“Well, I think a girl — first year by the look of her — might’ve got a glimpse of me earlier. But don’t worry, I was gone the moment she looked back at me and I’ll bet she just thought I was an oddly shaped log or something.”

“But Sirius, this is taking an awful risk-”

“You sound like Molly. This was the only way I could come up with of answering Harry’s letter without resorting to a code — and codes are breakable.”

Ron and Hermione both turned to look at Harry.

“You didn’t say you’d written to Sirius!” Hermione said.

“I forgot. Don’t look at me like that, Hermione, there was no way anyone would have gotten secret information out of it, was there, Sirius?”

“No, it was very good! Anyway, we’d better be quick, just in case we’re disturbed — your scar. Well, I know it can’t be fun when it hurts, but we don’t think it’s anything to really worry about. It kept aching all last year, didn’t it?”

“Yeah, and Dumbledore said it happened whenever Voldemort was feeling a powerful emotion, so maybe he was just, I don't know, really angry or something the night Lucy had that detention.”

“Well, now he’s back it’s bound to hurt more often.”

“So you don’t think it had anything to do with Umbridge touching me?”

“I doubt it. I know her by reputation and I’m sure she’s no Death Eater-”

“She’s foul enough to be one.”

“Yes, but the world isn’t split into good people and Death Eaters. I know she’s a nasty piece of work, though — you should hear Remus talk about her.”

“Does he know her?” Harry asked, stiffening.

“No, but she drafted a bit of anti-werewolf legislation that makes it almost impossible for him to get a job.”

Hermione turned to look at me with wide eyes before turning back to Sirius. “What’s she got against werewolves?”

“Scared of them, I expect. Apparently she loathes part-humans; she campaigned to have merpeople rounded up and tagged last year too. Imagine wasting your time and energy persecuting merpeople when there are little toerags like Kreacher on the loose-”

“Sirius! Honestly, if you made a bit of an effort with Kreacher I’m sure he’d respond, after all, you are the only member of his family he’s got left, and Professor Dumbledore said-”

“So what are Umbridge’s lessons like? Is she training you all to kill half-breeds?”

Harry glanced at me briefly before turning to the fire and answering, “No, but she’s not letting us use magic at all!”

“All we do is read the stupid textbook,” Ron added.

Sirius sighed. “Ah, well, that figures. Our information from inside the Ministry is that Fudge doesn’t want you trained in combat.”

“ _Trained in combat_? What does he think we’re doing here, forming some sort of wizard army?”

“That’s exactly what he thinks you’re doing, or rather, that’s exactly what he’s afraid Dumbledore’s doing — forming his own private army, with which he will be able to take on the Ministry of Magic.”

Ron was the first to find his voice. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard, including all the stuff that Luna Lovegood comes out with.”

“She's not stupid,” I said, but Hermione talked over me.

“So we’re being prevented from learning Defense Against the Dark Arts because Fudge is scared we’ll use spells against the Ministry?”

“Yep. Fudge thinks Dumbledore will stop at nothing to seize power. He’s getting more paranoid about Dumbledore by the day. It’s a matter of time before he has Dumbledore arrested on some trumped-up charge.”

“D’you know if there’s going to be anything about Dumbledore in the _Daily Prophet_ tomorrow?” Harry asked. “Only Ron’s brother Percy reckons there will be.”

Bitterness filled Sirius's tone as he replied. “I don’t know. I haven’t seen anyone from the Order all weekend, they’re all busy. It’s just been Kreacher and me here.”

“And Beaky?” I asked, managing a small smile.

Sirius smiled back, some of the bitterness leaving his tone. “Beaky, too.”

“Have you heard anything about Hagrid, Sirius? Fang misses him terribly.”

His smile faded. “Ah... well, he was supposed to be back by now, no one’s sure what’s happened to him. But Dumbledore’s not worried, so don’t you three get yourselves in a state; I’m sure Hagrid’s fine.”

“But if he was supposed to be back by now...” I said, feeling the blood drain from my face. “If... if he's in trouble like I was...”

“Madame Maxime was with him, we’ve been in touch with her and she says they got separated on the journey home — but there’s nothing to suggest he’s hurt or — well, nothing to suggest he’s not perfectly okay.”

I gnawed on my lower lip, feeling a bit dizzy all of a sudden.

“Listen, don’t go asking too many questions about Hagrid, it’ll just draw even more attention to the fact that he’s not back, and I know Dumbledore doesn’t want that. Hagrid’s tough, he’ll be okay. Oh, say, when’s your next Hogsmeade weekend? I was thinking, we got away with the dog disguise at the station, didn’t we? I thought I could-”

“NO!” Harry and Hermione said in unison.

“Sirius, didn’t you see the _Daily Prophet_?” Hermione asked.

He grinned. “Oh that, they’re always guessing where I am, but they haven’t really got a clue.”

Harry shook his head, not returning the grin. “Yeah, but we think this time they have. Something Malfoy said on the train made us think he knew it was you, and his father was on the platform, Sirius — you know, Lucius Malfoy — so don’t come up here, whatever you do, if Malfoy recognizes you again-”

“Alright, alright, I’ve got the point. Just an idea, thought you might like to get together-”

“I would, I just don’t want you chucked back in Azkaban!” Harry replied desperately.

The bitterness returned to Sirius's voice. “You’re less like your father than I thought. The risk would’ve been what made it fun for James.”

I sucked in a small breath. I knew that _had_ to have hurt Harry.

“It's not-” I started to say, but I was talked over for a second time in that conversation.

“Well, I’d better get going, I can hear Kreacher coming down the stairs. I’ll write to tell you a time I can make it back into the fire, then, shall I? If you can stand to risk it?”

“Sirius, please don't go-” I tried to say, but he disappeared.

A moment of silence hung over our heads. 

“I'm going to head to bed,” Hermione said. “At least we learned a couple of things from that.”

“Yeah,” Ron agreed, rising to his feet and clapping Harry on the shoulder. “You coming too, mate?”

“I'm going to look over my essay one more time,” I said quickly. I glanced at Harry, who was still staring into the fire.

“Alright,” Ron said. We exchanged a brief glance, and I watched as he gathered Harry's materials as well as his own and headed up the stairs. 

I met Hermione's eyes. “I'll be up in a bit. I should probably work on more homework since I'm not terribly tired right now.”

She nodded and disappeared up the stairs, understanding my unspoken meaning.

“Harry?” I asked softly. “You alright?”

“Of course,” he muttered, his eyes not leaving the fire.

I touched his arm. “Look, Harry, what he said about your dad-”

“I'm fine.” Harry wrenched his arm away and met my eyes. “Not terribly tired? Lucy, you're exhausted, it's written all over your face.”

Our eyes locked, and for a moment, I saw the hurt and the anger and the desperation. 

And then he forced it all away. His eyes were expressionless.

He wasn't fine. But he said he was.

I looked away, unable to keep such unauthentic eye contact after his eyes had always been so honest. “Alright, then, if _that's_ what you want to talk about, I'll go to bed,” I snapped. I jumped up and started throwing my books into my bag without looking at him again. “I just thought you might want to hear that I don't care if you're like your dad or not, because in case you haven't noticed, Ron and Hermione and I never knew your dad but we like you just as you are.”

In the silence that followed, my thoughts were so loud I thought he might have heard them as they ricocheted around my skull.

 _I know how it feels!_ I wanted to scream. _I know how it feels to have someone look at you and wish you were someone else! And I would have told you all of this if you weren't so bloody stubborn!_

 _Don't hide from me,_ I wanted to whisper. _Because if you're hiding from me, I have no choice but to hide from you._

I snapped my bag shut and threw it over my shoulder, tears filling my eyes as I glanced at Harry, who seemed to be frozen on the rug in front of the fire, staring at me with those same expressionless eyes.

“Look, I know what you promised Cedric,” I said, voice trembling, “but maybe it would be easier for both of us if you let me try to take care of you from time to time, because I know all of this is hard for you too. And I know I understand better than Ron or Hermione, or even Sirius, for that matter.”

Harry didn't look away. And neither did I.

“I'm fine,” he said again. 

“So am I,” I lied right back.

_If he's going to lie to me, I'm going to lie to him._

_It would be safest for him this way._

_Percy had it wrong._

_Harry isn't a danger to me._

_I'm a danger to him._

_Harry isn't the monster._

_I am._

And just like that, an invisible barrier went up between the two of us, like an unnecessary shield charm. _Who are we really trying to protect here? Each other? Ourselves? Or our pride?_ It looked for a moment as if he felt it too, as if he felt the unnecessary shield charm too, panic flickering across his eyes, but as soon as it appeared, he pushed it away again.

“Good night,” I said. 

“Good night,” Harry replied.

As I climbed the stairs, I found myself wondering why that good night felt more like a goodbye.


	112. Venomous Tentacula

GEORGE:

Lucy always looked exhausted after a full moon, but generally, the trend was that she looked less and less tired as the days went on. But when she showed up to breakfast on Tuesday morning with Hermione, a couple minutes after Harry and Ron had appeared, she looked as if she hadn't slept in a year. Fred and I exchanged a look, making the unspoken decision not to say anything.

Tactful as ever, though, Harry took one look at her and asked, "Are you alright, Lucy? You look exhausted."

"Yeah, I'm fine," she muttered without looking up at him. "Wonder when the mail's arriving with whatever the hell Percy mentioned last night."

"Percy?" Fred and I asked at the same time. 

"Yeah, he sent Ron a lovely letter last night with a delightful P.S. intended for me. Ron tore it up as soon as I wrote my reply, though, so don't bother asking to read it. Not worth reading, anyway."

"Git," Ron commented with a roll of his eyes.

The mail arrived then, and the letter from our darling git of an older brother was forgotten as Lucy reached forward for the newspaper. She instantly dropped it as if it had burned her. Umbridge — or, more appropriately, as I had heard many times whispered behind hands, Um _bitch_ — was front and center, smiling. The headline above her was even worse.

**MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM  
DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST-EVER “HIGH INQUISITOR”**

"This can't be good," Lucy whispered.

"'High Inquisitor?' What does that mean?" Harry asked.

Lucy grabbed the newspaper again and began reading out loud, her voice trembling more and more as it went on and on. Fred and I opted to read over her shoulder instead of listen along — we'd both always been fast readers.

**In a surprise move last night, the Ministry of Magic passed new legislation giving itself an unprecedented level of control at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.**

**"The Minister has been growing uneasy about goings-on at Hogwarts for some time," said Junior Assistant to the Minister, Percy Weasley. "He is now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve."**

**This is not the first time in recent weeks Fudge has used new laws to effect improvements at the Wizarding school. As recently as August 30th, Educational Decree Twenty-two was passed, to ensure that, in the event of the current headmaster being unable to provide a candidate for a teaching post, the Ministry should select an appropriate person.**

**"That’s how Dolores Umbridge came to be appointed to the teaching staff at Hogwarts," said Weasley last night. "Dumbledore couldn’t find anyone, so the Minister put in Umbridge and of course, she’s been an immediate success totally revolutionizing the teaching of Defense Against the Dark Arts and providing the Minister with on-the-ground feedback about what’s really happening at Hogwarts."**

**It is this last function that the Ministry has now formalized with the passing of Educational Decree Twenty-three, which creates the new position of "Hogwarts High Inquisitor."**

**"This is an exciting new phase in the Minister’s plan to get to grips with what some are calling the 'falling standards' at Hogwarts," said Weasley. "The Inquisitor will have powers to inspect her fellow educators and make sure that they are coming up to scratch. Professor Umbridge has been offered this position in addition to her own teaching post, and we are delighted to say that she has accepted."**

**The Ministry’s new moves have received enthusiastic support from parents of students at Hogwarts.**

**"I feel much easier in my mind now that I know that Dumbledore is being subjected to fair and objective evaluation," said Mr. Lucius Malfoy, 41, speaking from his Wiltshire mansion last night. "Many of us with our children’s best interests at heart have been concerned about some of Dumbledore’s eccentric decisions in the last few years and will be glad to know that the Ministry is keeping an eye on the situation."**

**Among those "eccentric decisions" are undoubtedly the controversial staff appointments previously described in this newspaper, which have included the hiring of werewolf Remus Lupin, half giant Rubeus Hagrid, and delusional ex-Auror "Mad-Eye" Moody.**

**Rumors abound, of course, that Albus Dumbledore, once Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, is no longer up to the task of managing the prestigious school of Hogwarts.**

**"I think the appointment of the Inquisitor is a first step toward ensuring that Hogwarts has a headmaster in whom we can all repose confidence," said a Ministry insider last night.**

**Wizengamot elders Griselda Marchbanks and Tiberius Ogden have resigned in protest at the introduction of the post of Inquisitor to Hogwarts.**

**"Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge’s office," said Madam Marchbanks. "This is a further disgusting attempt to discredit Albus Dumbledore." (For a full account of Madam Marchbanks’ alleged links to subversive goblin groups, turn to page 17).**

Lucy dropped the newspaper, so pale she looked like a ghost. Hermione's hand shot across the table and snatched up the newspaper, eyes flashing.

"So now we know how we ended up with Umbridge!" she exclaimed angrily. "Fudge passed this 'Educational Decree' and forced her on us! And now he’s given her the power to inspect other teachers! I can’t believe this. It’s outrageous!"

"Yeah, it is," Harry said, glancing across the table at Lucy's bandaged hand for a moment before looking up at her face. "Lu, are you-?"

Lucy shook her head, still not looking at him. "I'm fine." 

"If you don't feel much like going to your next class," Fred whispered, reaching into his pocket, "we've got options for you. The nosebleed one is the most reliable, but if you'd rather try one of the newer ones-"

"Don't be ridiculous, give her one of those and she'll faint!" Hermione hissed. She leaned across the table to get a closer look at Lucy. "What is it?"

Lucy shook her head again. "Nothing. It's nothing. I'm fine." She glanced at Fred. "What was that one you were working on at my house? Fever Fudge?"

"No, no, you don't want that one," I said quickly.

"It'd get her out of class," Fred replied with a shrug.

"No." I shoved my hand into my pocket and felt around for a better solution. I found a Blood Blisterpod and offered it to her. "Are you sure about this, Cub?"

She glanced over at Hermione. "What do we have this morning?"

"Potions then Herbology, but Lucy, you really shouldn't-"

Lucy took the candy from me and held it up. "Which end first?"

"Orange. Save the purple for once you're in the hallway. But wait, you shouldn't _just_ eat it," I said with a grin. "We should make a show of it, don't you think?"

"Brilliant idea, George!" Fred replied. "Say, dearest twin, would you pass me a slice of toast from that-" He shot his arm forward, missing Lucy's nose by an inch. But to everyone else, it looked as if he'd collided with her as he pointed. 

She caught on right away. "Fred!" she complained loudly, popping the candy into her mouth as she pressed her hands to her nose. 

"Merlin, sorry!" he yelped. 

I lunged for a napkin so she didn't have to use her sleeve to soak up the blood already beginning to pour from her nose. "Oi, Fred, maybe you should take her to the Hospital Wing, looks like you really did a number on her nose!"

"Good idea, George." He grabbed Lucy by the elbow and dragged her to her feet, and the two of them hurried from the room. 

I kept a perfectly straight face as I glanced back at the three fifth-years across the table. Hermione looked torn between amusement, anger, and utter resignation. Ron was biting his lip to keep from laughing at the spectacle. Harry merely looked concerned.

"He didn't actually hit her nose, did he?" he asked.

"Oh, of course he did," I replied, reaching for a slice of toast from the very same tray Fred had pointed to. "We take our shenanigans very seriously. Anyway, what do you reckon made her so upset?"

"Everything about that article." Harry shook his head. "What about that _isn't_ upsetting?"

Fred returned a couple minutes later. "Our dearest Lucy is expected to make a full recovery by lunchtime. Funny enough, the bleeding stopped just before we arrived in the Hospital Wing, but Madam Pomfrey seemed to think it best if Lucy stay with her for a while."

"Funny indeed," I said in response.

"No rebuke, Hermione?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, Prefect Granger, aren't you going to turn us in for endangering a fellow classmate to the point she has to miss class?"

"Oh, come off it," she replied, turning slightly pink. "I've realized now she wouldn't have been able to function well in class, and she looks tired today anyway." She sighed. "We'd better head to class, just in case Umbridge is inspecting our classes."

Ron grinned suddenly. 

"What is it?" Harry asked.

Ron laughed. "Oh, I can’t _wait_ to see McGonagall inspected. Umbridge won’t know what hit her!"

We all laughed at that before heading our separate ways. Our first class was Herbology, and I made a beeline for the empty seat next to Henry.

"Happy Tuesday!" I said brightly. "Lovely day to try to avoid being eaten by plants, don't you think?"

Henry snorted. "If you say so. Say, is Lucy alright? I saw her rushing out of the Great Hall with Fred."

"That would unfortunately be my handiwork," Fred announced with a sigh as he and Lee took the seats across from us. "Buffoon that I am, I more or less squashed her nose as I pointed at a tray of toast. But don't worry, old chap, she will be fully recovered by lunchtime, according to Madam Pomfrey. For now, let's just try to survive this class with all of our fingers still attached and uneaten by these bloody venomous tentacula plants."

It was easier said than done, truthfully. The plants were merciless.

Henry had never been much of a talker, even when Cedric was around, but without him, he was quieter than ever. Just the same, the three of us Gryffindors were able to coax a couple of smiles out of him with our tremendously witty banter. We also kept him entertained with a handful (alright, more than a handful, more like a dozen or two) of near-accidents with the carnivorous plants, one of which involving my hand, dragon dung fertilizer, and a bouncing bulb plant that managed to escape its pot nearby. Fortunately for my fingers, Henry's Keeper reflexes allowed him to swat the bouncing bulb in the way of the venomous tentacula's reach, so it wrapped its thorny vines around that instead of around me.

"Umbridge is a venomous tentacula," I announced as we headed up to the castle after Herbology.

"What do you mean?" Lee asked, looking at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh, I get it!" Fred said, beating me to my own explanation. "So she's got all of these vines, right, and everywhere she touches, uh oh! Chaos! Destruction! Children eaten alive!"

"But it's not enough yet. She keeps reaching," I added. I counted on my fingers. "First it was cutting Dumbledore off at the feast. Then it was changing the Defense Against the Dark Arts curriculum. _Now_ she's High Inquisitor, and who knows where she'll go next?" I started wiggling my arms in what I hoped were venomous tentacula-like motions. "Maybe she'll go for _you_!" I suddenly jumped on Henry from behind, latching onto him. "'I'm sure we'll be very good friends!'" I said in a high-pitched imitation of the pink venomous tentacula.

Henry laughed — really laughed! — and wrestled me off of him. "Thanks for that." He dropped his voice to almost a whisper. "We've all been trying to think of a way to talk about her without using her name. I think 'Venomous Tentacula' will do nicely."

"Happy to be of service," I replied.

We parted ways with the Hufflepuffs once we reached the steps, and when we arrived in the Charms classroom, we found the devil herself already there, sitting in the corner of the room with a clipboard. Fred and I assumed our typical seats behind Angelina and Alicia, respectively.

I got the feeling Alicia fancied me, and I knew for a _fact_ Angelina and Fred thought it would be rather funny if the Gryffindor Beaters were dating two of the three Gryffindor Chasers, and she was certainly nice and fun to be around, but I didn't think I'd ever properly loved her. I'd always been under the impression that love, true love, was supposed to be empowering rather than embarrassing. Did I get flustered sometimes around Alicia? Did I stick my foot in my mouth sometimes when I was trying especially hard to make her laugh? Yeah, I couldn't deny it. But it had never seemed quite, well, _right_. I never felt the way I imagined Fred felt around Angelina when she beat him to a punchline just so she could watch him stumble over his words and bring out his exasperated smile. I never felt the way I imagined Lucy felt when Harry instinctively went to her every time he entered a room (even though he was too bloody thick to realize any of this). I liked Alicia plenty, and I might have even fancied her, but it was different, somehow. It wasn't quite right.

Flitwick didn't change his lesson any for Umbridge's sake. We were learning how to cast blue sparks, something Fred and I had been doing for years and years at that point. Typically, we would have used the free time to fiddle around with our products under the desk, but with Umbridge there, we didn't want to take any chances. Besides, we'd already used a product that day, and to great effect. We reckoned we could take the period off. 

We were glad for it, too, because Umbridge crossed the room at one point to ask Alicia a couple of questions about the class. Fred pretended to be taking notes, but when I glanced over, I saw a shoddy sketch of a venomous tentacula in the margins. I bowed my head quickly to hide my amused smile.

We swung by the Hospital Wing to grab Lucy on our way to lunch. She reported that while she was sleeping and we were all in class, she had a lovely dream about "accidentally" sending a Quaffle directly into Umbridge's face during a Quidditch match.

"Now you just need to start playing again and make it reality!" Fred remarked. "Any idea when you'll be able to take the Pitch again? Katie's great and all, but we miss you."

She blushed a bit at that. "Not yet. That's all I really know. I'm still an earthquake on two legs for the time being."

Fred laughed, and I did too, but it still made me sad. I still felt a pinch somewhere deep inside me at the thought of all she had gone through, even though I understood I didn't know the half of it. Sometimes, I still saw the Dark Mark over her house in my nightmares. Sometimes, I had nightmares where we couldn't save her in time.

I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her just a bit closer. "Well, until then, you could always come crash our practices."

"A certain someone might be happy to see you," Fred added, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

She huffed, half a smile on her face. "Yeah, well, a certain _someone_ -" She jabbed him hard in the ribs with her index finger. "-should stay out of it. Harry's gotten on just fine without me there so far."

"Who says I was talking about Harry?" Fred replied, glancing at me over his head.

For half a second, I panicked. _What's he playing at?_ Then I recovered myself and replied, "Yeah, Cub, you would be good for Ron. If he learned to block _your_ shots, he'd be able to block anything. You never miss a shot."

"Oh, shove off, I miss all the time," she replied, shaking her head. "Besides, if I tried to score a goal right now, I would hit Umbridge in the face, even if she were in her office. My aim would be that bad."

Before either of us could protest further, we had reached our destination in the Great Hall, where a spirited conversation about grades was brewing.

Ron was red in the face. "Hermione, if you want to know what grades we got, ask."

She immediately turned red, too. "I don’t — I didn’t mean — well, if you want to tell m-"

"I got a P. Happy?"

"Well, that’s nothing to be ashamed of. Nothing wrong with a good healthy P," Fred commented as we sat down. 

Hermione furrowed her brow. "But doesn’t P stand for-"

"Poor, yeah. Still, better than D, isn’t it? 'Dreadful?'"

"Yes, it is, but- well, let me get this straight. So top grade's O for 'Outstanding, and then there’s A-"

"Nope, E for 'Exceeds Expectations,'" I cut in. "And I’ve always thought Fred and I should’ve got E in everything, because we exceeded expectations just by turning up for the exams."

Even Lucy smiled at that one, and I mentally patted myself on the back.

"So after E, it’s A for 'Acceptable,' and that’s the last pass grade, isn't it?" Hermione asked, not about to be derailed.

"Yep."

“Then you get P for 'Poor' — woo hoo — and D for 'Dreadful,'" Ron said.

"And then T," I added.

Hermione's jaw dropped. "T? Even lower than a D? What on earth does that stand for?"

"'Troll,'" I replied. Then, below us, I heard the rustling of parchment. Lucy cocked her head slightly to the side, and the rustling grew louder. 

She leaned back a bit to stare at the parchment Harry had just passed her under the table.

"T — illegible!" was scrawled in the top left corner of her essay. Harry had obviously tried to be discreet about it so she wouldn't be embarrassed, but she immediately pulled the paper up onto the table and slammed it down.

"Well, what the hell does he want _me_ to do about it? I'm allergic to the only bloody potion that might help!" she burst out. Hermione and Ron both turned to look and see what was going on.

Harry winced. "I know, I'm sorry. He just gave both of ours to me since you weren't there today. He even put yours on top to make me panic at first."

"That _git_. Professor Sinistra gave me an O on my Astronomy essay, so I know it's possible to read my writing if you try," Lucy said through gritted teeth. She shook her head. "I-I do my best to write legibly. I-I just can't help it. I'll go talk to Professor McGonagall tonight and see if she'd be willing to talk to him for me. I'd do it myself, but I doubt he'd listen."

"Are you feeling better, at least?" Hermione asked sympathetically.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied with a noncommittal shrug. "Did I miss any inspected lessons?"

"Nope," Ron said. He glanced up between Fred and me. "You two have any?"

"Just now, before lunch. Charms," I replied.

"What was it like?"

"Not that bad. Umbridge just lurked in the corner making notes on a clipboard." Fred made the appropriate recreation, prompting a couple of smiles. He straightened up and continued, "You know what Flitwick’s like, he treated her like a guest, didn’t seem to bother him at all. She didn’t say much. Asked Alicia a couple of questions about what the classes are normally like, Alicia told her they were really good, that was it."

"I can’t see old Flitwick getting marked down, he usually gets everyone through their exams alright," I added. "Who do you have this afternoon?"

"Trelawney and Umbridge herself," Harry answered.

"Well, be a good boy and keep your temper with Umbridge today. Angelina’ll do her nut if you miss any more Quidditch practices," I warned him.

"It'd give Lucy a chance to brush up on her Seeker skills, though!" Fred commented, slapping her on the back.

"That was a one-time deal," she replied, flushing. "If Harry hadn't been a little busy in the Hospital Wing-"

"You caught the Snitch, though, didn't you?" I pressed. "Come off it, Cub, you could play Seeker."

She shook her head, turning even more red. "Cedric was Seeker. Not me."

We dropped it after that, and I shared with the group my new name for Umbridge. Lucy smiled again at that, but she seemed distracted. Her gaze eventually shifted to the Hufflepuff table, and I understood her distraction wasn't just distraction — her mind was elsewhere. A simpler time. A time before pink-clad toad-faces and Ts on essays Snape didn't even try to read. A time before she was, as she put it, an earthquake on two legs, or before she was, as the rest of us recognized, a thundercloud just waiting to burst. A time before all of this, a time before all of these worries and burdens and struggles.

I found myself missing that simpler time, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Well... surprise! Happy Monday!
> 
> I was planning to post both this chapter and Chapter 113 on Wednesday, since both chapters take place on the same day, just with two different narrators, but I finished this chapter today and I just finished proofreading, so here you go! I hope you all enjoyed George's perspective, because I had fun writing it. :)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! See you all on Wednesday with Chapter 113!


	113. My Problem

HARRY: 

After lunch, the girls headed to Ancient Runes while Ron and I headed to Divination. I opted for a seat in the very back of the room — after the incident with my scar a few months prior, I wasn't too keen on sitting in the middle of the room in case it ever happened again — and I had just set my dream diary on the table when Ron elbowed me and jerked his chin in the direction of the trapdoor.

The pink venomous tentacula had arrived.

She smiled as she stepped up into the classroom. “Good afternoon, Professor Trelawney. You received my note, I trust? Giving the time and date of your inspection?”

Professor Trelawney nodded, and I noticed her hands were shaking as she passed out copies of _Dream Oracle_. Umbridge settled herself in a chair just behind the one Professor Trelawney often occupied and drew her clipboard.

Once the books were distributed, Professor Trelawney addressed the class as a whole. “We shall be continuing our study of prophetic dreams today. Divide into pairs, please, and interpret each other’s latest nighttime visions with the aid of the _Oracle_.”

As I opened my book, I glanced at Umbridge, who was already writing notes. After a couple of minutes, she got up and started walking around the room, making her way from group to group, asking questions, listening to discussions.

I turned to Ron. “Think of a dream, quick, in case the old toad comes our way.”

“I did it last time, it’s your turn, you tell me one.”

I wracked my brain. “Oh, I don't know. Let’s say I dreamed I was, I don't know, drowning Snape in my cauldron. Yeah, that’ll do.”

“Okay, we’ve got to add your age to the date you had the dream, the number of letters in the subject... would that be ‘drowning’ or ‘cauldron’ or ‘Snape?’” he asked with a stifled snort of laughter.

“It doesn’t matter, pick any of them,” I replied, glancing over my shoulder to see where Umbridge was. She was talking to Neville, poor soul.

“What night did you dream this again?”

“I don't know, last night, whenever you like.” I returned my attention to our table and listened hard. _What I would give to have Lucy's sense of hearing right now..._

“Now, you’ve been in this post how long, exactly?”

“Nearly sixteen years.”

“Quite a period. So it was Professor Dumbledore who appointed you?”

“That’s right.”

“And you are a great-great-granddaughter of the celebrated Seer Cassandra Trelawney?”

“Yes.”

“But I think — correct me if I am mistaken — that you are the first in your family since Cassandra to be possessed of second sight?”

“These things often skip — er — three generations.”

“Of course. Well, if you could just predict something for me, then?”

There was a long pause.

“I don’t understand you,” Professor Trelawney said finally.

“I’d like you to make a prediction for me.”

When I turned around to see the showdown for myself, curiosity finally getting the best of me, I found I was not the only one watching as Professor Trelawney straightened up and puffed her chest.

“The Inner Eye does not See upon command!”

“I see.”

Umbridge made a small disapproving noise and started scribbling on her clipboard.

“I — but — but... _wait_! I... I think I _do_ see something... something that concerns _you_! Why, I sense something... something dark... some grave peril... I am afraid that you are in grave danger!”

Umbridge scribbled another note. “Right. Well, if that’s really the best you can do...”

With that, she walked away, and Professor Trelawney descended upon us. She interpreted my dreams loudly, the predictions getting worse and worse as she went, but I didn't mind... well, I did a bit, but not _really_. I was very much on her side in this fight, even though I knew just as well as everyone else that she was a fraud.

Finally, the bell rang, and Umbridge left in a hurry so she'd be in her classroom by the time DADA started. Ron and I caught up with Lucy and Hermione on the way and started to explain what had happened, but we arrived and were silenced before either girl had time to ask questions. 

“Wands away,” Umbridge said with a smile, her gaze sweeping the room. A couple of optimistic people tucked their wands back into their bags, sighing, but Lucy didn't move. 

Her wand remained in her pocket, just where it always was.

I didn't touch mine either, also in my pocket. 

“As we finished chapter one last lesson, I would like you all to turn to page nineteen today and commence chapter two, ‘Common Defensive Theories and Their Derivation.’ There will be no need to talk.”

 _I wonder if there are enough chapters in this brick of a book to keep us reading through the entire year,_ I thought bitterly to myself. I was about to check the table of contents to see when Hermione raised her hand.

Umbridge, rather than ignoring her, crept quietly to Hermione's desk and knelt in front of her. “What is it this time, Miss Granger?” she asked in a whisper so soft I could barely hear it even though Lucy and I were sitting right behind her and Ron.

“I’ve already read chapter two,” Hermione replied in a clear voice that carried through the room. 

“Well then, proceed to chapter three.”

“I’ve read that too. I’ve read the whole book.”

“Well, then, you should be able to tell me what Slinkhard says about counterjinxes in chapter fifteen.”

“He says that counterjinxes are improperly named. He says ‘counterjinx’ is just a name people give their jinxes when they want to make them sound more acceptable.” Umbridge looked impressed for half a second, but then Hermione continued. “But I disagree.”

“You disagree?”

“Yes, I do. Mr. Slinkhard doesn’t like jinxes, does he? But I think they can be very useful when they’re used defensively.”

“Oh, you do, do you? Well, I’m afraid it is Mr. Slinkhard’s opinion, and not yours, that matters within this classroom, Miss Granger.” Umbridge was no longer whispering, and she had risen to her feet to properly glower down at Hermione.

“But-”

“That is enough. Miss Granger, I am going to take five points from Gryffindor House.”

“What for?” I challenged immediately.

“Don’t you get involved!” Hermione hissed over her shoulder, but it was too late.

“For disrupting my class with pointless interruptions. I am here to teach you using a Ministry-approved method that does not include inviting students to give their opinions on matters about which they understand very little. Your previous teachers in this subject may have allowed you more license, but as none of them — with the possible exception of Professor Quirrell, who did at least appear to have restricted himself to age-appropriate subjects — would have passed a Ministry inspection-”

“Yeah, Quirrell was a great teacher. There was just that minor drawback of him having Lord Voldemort sticking out of the back of his head,” I retorted.

“Please, not another detention,” Lucy whispered in a voice so quiet I don't think even _I_ was supposed to hear her.

“I think detentions for the rest of the week would do you some good, Mr. Potter,” Umbridge said. “Back to work, everyone.”

Lucy stiffened beside me, and even as her hand rested on the table, curled into a fist, it trembled. I lightly bumped her knee with mine in what I intended as an _It's okay_ gesture, but she shook her head and returned her attention to the book. She didn't turn a page the rest of the class.

I didn't head down to dinner before reporting to detention, not wanting to face Angelina's wrath. The entire time I was writing, I didn't let a single sound escape me.

It somehow hurt even more the second time.

But I didn't give her the satisfaction of knowing she had gotten to me.

I was in no particular hurry heading back to the common room that night. My hand was stinging, I had three more nights to go, Sirius's words from the night before were still ringing in my ears, and I wanted nothing more than to just forget it all for a while.

But I couldn't.

I mumbled the password to the Fat Lady and climbed through the portrait hole, expecting it to be empty. 

But it wasn't.

Lucy was curled up in the window seat, balancing a book on her knees but staring out the window with her wand in her hand. 

She turned her head when she heard my feet hit the floor. "Oh, hi Harry. How was it?"

"Well, what do you want me to say?" I said as I made my way over to her. She didn't make room for me in the window seat, so I sat on the arm of a nearby chair and held out my hand for her to see. "Want me to tell you it was fun? Want me to tell you it was educational? That the lesson sank in?" I laughed harshly. "All I learned was that it hurts worse the second time."

"Yeah, well, I could have told you that much," she muttered. "Oh, and since you didn't go down to dinner, I thought you might be hungry." She jerked her chin in the direction of the nearest table, where a roll was waiting. "I brought more up, but Ron got hungry and didn't realize it was for you."

"It's okay, this is perfect," I said, taking a large bite. "Thanks, Lu."

"Yeah, of course," she replied.

"What did McGonagall say about Snape?" I asked after a moment, not feeling much like talking about Umbridge anymore.

"I, er, haven't talked to her yet."

"What? Why not?"

She shrugged, dropping her eyes from mine. She sighed before I could press further. "You weren't even lying this time. Not that we've ever lied about what really happened, but... I understand that not everyone believes us."

I didn't miss the fact that she said "us" and not "you." Like this was _our_ problem instead of _my_ problem. But it _was_ my problem, it wasn't _her_ problem.

I pushed myself to my feet, feeling frustration surge in me. "Yeah. And I'm still not good enough for the people who _do_ believe me."

_There. I said "me."_

"What do you mean by that?" she asked.

"It's just..."

_It's just Hermione telling me not to defend her when Umbridge is clearly being unfair, as if I were a liability._

_It's just Ron looking at my hand every time we're alone in the dormitory and telling me I should report it, as if that would accomplish anything._

_It's just Sirius in the fire telling me that I'm not as similar to my dad as he thought I was, as if I didn't already wonder every single day if my parents would like me._

As I tried to find a way to say this all out loud, I found that none of it mattered. She couldn't do anything to fix it, so what was the point of telling her anything? What was the point of giving her a problem with no solution? The last thing she needed was one more thing — or person — to worry about. Especially _me_ , the person who was supposed to be taking care of her.

* * *

LUCY:

Harry shook his head after a moment. "I think I'm just tired."

"But you're..."

_But you're my best friend._

_But you're worth the world to me._

_But you're... hiding from me._

I was pressed up against the invisible barrier, the unnecessary shield charm, tempted for half a second to break it and force my hand through and beg him to take it...

"But I'm what?"

...but I didn't. I backed away from the invisible barrier, the unnecessary shield charm, and pulled into myself, burying my emotions a bit deeper.

* * *

HARRY:

"Actually, you do look tired," she said after a moment. "I'm tired, too. Maybe we should both go to bed."

"Maybe we should," I agreed. I started to tuck my hands into my pockets, but her hand shot forward.

"Wait," she murmured, tossing her book behind her as she walked over to inspect my injured hand. "It doesn't look nearly so deep this time."

"She has three more nights for it to sink in."

Lucy bit her lip.

"What is it?"

"It's just... I-I'm trying to think like Cedric. And I can't remember if it would scar more from a one-time trauma, or if it would scar more from repeated, less intense trauma. I-I mean you'll have both types come Friday, but-" She swallowed hard and released my wrist. I found myself missing that warmth as she retreated to the window seat. She held up the book, which I realized wasn't really a _book_ , but more of a medical encyclopedia that more closely resembled a brick. "I mentioned that Cedric wanted to be a healer, right?"

I nodded. I noticed she had left room for me. I accepted the unspoken invitation and slid in next to her, reading over her shoulder as she flipped between bookmarks.

"Oh, here it is." She pointed to a picture of a bowl of Merlin-knows-what. "Cedric flagged this remedy because it supposedly helps with cursed lacerations. He... well, he was probably thinking of this when he put the bookmark here," she said, tracing the thin scars of her hand, "but I reckon it might help with your hand too. I'll talk to Hermione tomorrow and see if we can figure out how to harvest essence of murtlap."

"Essence of what now?" I asked. 

Lucy almost smiled. "Murtlap. They're one of the only creatures I'd classify as truly ugly. See?" She pointed to the sketch on the next page.

I nodded. "I can see why you'd classify it that way."

"Yeah, well, they're nice enough as long as you don't step on them. My dad knew someone once who had the misfortune of stepping on a murtlap barefoot, and he lost a toe or two."

"I'll be sure to wear shoes next time I'm in murtlap habitat, then," I remarked, hoping to draw a real smile from her.

But it didn't come.

She nodded. "Good idea. Well, I think I'm heading to bed if you are."

"Yeah, I am," I replied. I offered a smile as we rose to our feet. _I'm going to get her to smile tonight if it's the last thing I do._ "Thanks for waiting up for me."

Lucy blushed and shook her head. "Don't be ridiculous, I wasn't waiting up for you. I was reading and working on... well, and I lost track of time and you walked in and interrupted me just seconds before I was planning to stop anyway."

"Alright, if that's what you want to tell yourself, that's fine," I said lightly. "I know the truth, though."

"And that is?" she scoffed.

"You were positively sitting on pins and needles awaiting the return of your dearest friend, Harry James Potter himself, from his most awful and unfair punishment," I replied in the most obnoxious grandiose manner I could possibly manage. "When others retired to their bedchambers for a night of slumber, you and you alone toiled away in your window seat, your eyes wandering to the portrait hole every couple of seconds as you fervently prayed for my safe and timely arrival."

_Come on, Lucy, please, smile, make this worth it..._

"Alright, if that's what you want to tell yourself, that's fine," she replied with the most ridiculously impish little smile I had ever seen on her face. 

"You know what, that _is_ what I want to tell myself," I replied, walking backward toward the boys' dormitory stairs. "I want to tell myself that even if no one else in the world waits up for me, _you_ will. Even if no one else in the world believes me, _you_ will."

"I could have told you that much," she said, and her smile became more genuine. "And what would you say if I wanted to tell myself that at the end of the day, we'd always have each other, no matter what?"

"I would say by all means, keep telling yourself that, because it's true. I'll always come back to you, and you promised me the same exact thing once upon a time."

Lucy grew serious. "I did, didn't I?"

I nodded, growing serious as well. "You did. When you went back to Ottery St. Catchpole. You promised me you'd always come back, and you did." I backed into the door, but I didn't open it. "Just keep on keeping that promise, yeah? That you'll always come back, even when you go somewhere I can't follow for the night?"

Something flickered through Lucy's eyes. Something so quick I couldn't quite catch it. Something so powerful I couldn't exactly miss it, either.

After a moment, she nodded. "I'll always come back. I promise."

I nodded back at her, feeling it was important that I make the same promise to her. "I promise, too. I'll always come back to you. Starting with tomorrow morning." I opened the door and smiled one last time. "Should be easy enough to keep that one, don't you think?"

"Should be," she whispered, hugging the book to her chest and glancing out the window up at the stars. I looked at her for just a second longer before closing the door behind me and quietly climbing the stairs to bed.


	114. So We Fight

LUCY: 

Falling. 

It was first year again. We had successfully defended the Stone. I was heading up to the castle after filling in for Harry at Quidditch practice, and Cedric was sprinting full speed in my direction.

My brother collided with me so forcefully I would have fallen to the ground if he hadn't been holding me tight enough to make sure I didn't. 

The scene disappeared into blackness.

Falling.

It was second year again. The Chamber of Secrets would haunt Hogwarts no more. I was heading to the Hospital Wing with Ron and Lockhart, and I spied Cedric at the end of the hallway. I called his name and hurtled toward him.

My knees buckled with relief the second I was in his arms.

The scene disappeared into blackness.

Falling.

It was third year again. Cedric was leaving for St. Mungo's, and I was crying because I wasn't going to see him for two and a half months, and Buckbeak was going to be executed at sunset, and the full moon would rise after that, and Cedric wouldn't be there in the morning, and my world was falling apart.

I launched myself at him.

The scene disappeared into blackness.

Falling. 

The Quidditch Pitch was packed to the brim, but I wasn't in the sky. I was in the stands, between Henry and George. The crowd was erupting into cheers. 

I shook my head. "No, no, no, no, no..."

The scene disappeared into blackness.

* * *

"I miss you," I whispered to the darkness. 

I thought about getting up and writing him a letter, but I knew that it wouldn't help. I just wanted him back, I just wanted to write a letter I knew he would read, I just wanted to be able to slip down to the Hufflepuff common room and wake him up and talk to him, I just wanted him back.

All at once, it was too much, the storm inside of me. I parted the curtains the slightest bit, shoved my feet into slippers, and stole from the dormitory without a second thought.

I didn't even bother pretending to sleepwalk. I jumped through the portrait hole, pretended not to hear the Fat Lady asking where I was going at 2 in the morning, and made my way down the stairs. My feet did my thinking for me, and after a little while, I was standing at the entrance of the Room of Requirement.

_Why am I here?_

"You won't find him in there."

I jumped about five feet into the air and whirled around to face the voice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," the Fat Friar, the Hufflepuff house ghost, said gently. 

"It's alright," I replied, blushing. "I frighten more easily now than I used to."

"I can imagine." He folded his hands in front of himself. "That room is among the most remarkable magic I have seen in my existence, but I am afraid not even the Room of Requirement can bring back the dead."

My eyes filled with tears without warning, and I tried to force my emotion away, but the storm continued to churn. "I just want to talk to him again," I managed. "He would know what to do. He would make it better."

"You are not the only one to say that. I've heard variations of that phrase whispered throughout the Hufflepuff common room every single day since school resumed. Transfiguration homework, friendship troubles, even in regards to the new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor. You're not alone in wishing for Cedric's guidance."

I sniffled and wiped my cheeks with my sleeve. "I feel like there's a 'but' coming."

He smiled sadly. "Not quite a 'but,' though I do have more to say. You see, Lucy, your brother was an extraordinary person. And when an extraordinary person leaves us, there will always be a hole that nobody can quite seem to fill."

"Is it pointless, then? Will it be like this forever?"

_Will I never be happy again?_

"The hole will always be there, but with time, the emptiness will begin to hurt less. The hole will never be filled perfectly again, but there will be people who will come in and help fill the space." The Fat Friar paused and studied me with sympathetic eyes. "Your grief runs deep, Lucy Diggory, and I know it runs deeper than anyone else's. Just the same, you are not alone, no matter how much the darkness may try to convince you of that."

I nodded slowly. "I guess I have been feeling rather lonely."

"Perhaps it's time for you to push back against the darkness engulfing you so that the light of love can shine through."

I swallowed hard. _But I'm a monster._ I forced the thought away and nodded. "Alright. Thank you for talking to me."

"Always happy to help a hurting heart," he replied with a kind, if sad, smile. "Good night, Lucy."

With that, he drifted away. I watched him go for a moment before turning around.

The door to the Room of Requirement had disappeared, as if it had decided I had all I needed.

_So why do I still feel so empty?_

I pressed my head up against the stone where I knew the door should have been and felt hot tears prick the backs of my eyes again. 

"Please," I whispered. "Please, I need Cedric, I need to see him somehow, I need to talk to him, I..." I dropped my fist and backed away, still pleading with the blank wall. "I need this hole to go away, I need this pain to stop, I need this all to end."

I lowered myself to the ground, pressing my back up against the opposite wall. 

I thought a bit about what the Friar said. About the light of love and the darkness of grief.

Light and dark had always been complicated for me.

For everyone else, dark was bad.

When the night was dark, truly dark, I could be at peace. Darkness meant the moon was new. Darkness meant I could exist as I was in that moment without fear of what I knew was coming.

In the darkness, I could see the most stars.

For everyone else, light was good.

But when the world was bathed in the haunting glow of a full moon, I was in turmoil, tormented by my own condition. tortured by my own existence. That light, the light of a full moon, was what I hated more than anything else.

And yet... the light of the sunrise had always brought hope with it. The sunrise brought relief, release. 

It did not bring peace, though. The sunrise brought another transformation, one even more painful than the transformation that occurred when the sunset gave way to the moonrise. 

It was always harder for me to turn from a wolf to a human than a human to a wolf.

Was it symbolic? I didn't think I wanted to know.

The Friar was right. Darkness had engulfed me. I was in one endless, torturous, hopeless night. 

Cedric always said some things never changed. Cedric always said to have faith in the sunrise.

But Cedric never considered that one day, the sun would rise without him to greet it. 

Cedric never knew just how much agony a sunrise could bring. Cedric never knew that sometimes I found myself wishing the sun wouldn't rise at all. 

Just the same, the sun rose. I remained in that corridor the entire time. Silently begging the room to do the impossible. Silently wishing the pain would just go away. Silently crying for everything I had lost.

But the wall remained a wall. The door did not open for me.

* * *

_Where there is light  
A shadow appears  
The cause and effect  
When life interferes_

* * *

After feeding Tuck and Fang, I slipped up to the dormitory and hastily gathered my materials for the day before heading down to breakfast. A dull headache was beginning behind my eyes, and I didn't feel like facing anyone. 

Professor McGonagall was arriving in the Great Hall the same time I was, and I remembered through my tired fog the ugly "T" that had been scrawled on my Potions essay.

"Professor?" I called. She turned around, and I noticed from the way her eyes softened that my long night was written all over my face. I chose to ignore the pity and pressed on. "Would it be alright if I met with you sometime today? There was an issue that arose for me yesterday, and I was hoping you could help me find a solution."

She nodded. "Of course. After dinner, my office?"

"I'll be there. Thank you, Professor."

She opened her mouth to say something else, but at that moment, I heard an explosive " _HARRY POTTER!_ " followed by shouts so loud I couldn't distinguish what she was saying from the echoes bouncing around the room.

I cringed. Angelina's wrath had been unleashed upon poor Harry.

Professor McGonagall was there first. 

"Miss Johnson, how _dare_ you make such a racket in the Great Hall! Five points from Gryffindor!"

I went to stand next to Harry, as something of a show of solidarity. Umbridge had overreacted first, now Angelina. I was still seething at the unfairness of it all.

"But Professor — he’s gone and landed himself in detention again!" Angelina protested.

Professor McGonagall turned to Harry with eyes flashing. "What’s this, Potter? Detention? From whom?"

"From Professor Umbridge," he said softly.

"Are you telling me that after the warning I gave you, you lost your temper in Professor Umbridge’s class again?"

"Yes."

"Potter, you must get a grip on yourself! You are heading for serious trouble! Another five points from Gryffindor!"

"But — what? Professor, no!"

"He wasn't quite so angry as last time, Professor," I piped up, desperate to defend Harry. "Professor Umbridge overreacted." I looked at Angelina. "Trust me, Harry doesn't want to miss practice, it would be loads better than detention with that- with Professor Umbridge," I amended, quite literally biting my lip so I didn't say what I _actually_ thought of that horrible woman.

"Besides, Professor," Harry said, "I’m already being punished by her, so why do you have to take points as well?"

"Because detentions do not appear to have any effect on you whatsoever. No, not another word of complaint, Potter! And as for you, Miss Johnson, you will confine your shouting matches to the Quidditch pitch in future or risk losing the team Captaincy!"

With that, Professor McGonagall marched up to the staff table and Angelina glared at Harry before going to sit at the opposite end of the table from us.

I slid in between the twins and immediately started aggressively spreading butter on a slice of toast to distract myself. 

"Easy does it, you don't want to cut a finger off," George said. "Shaky hands and all."

"Thanks for the concern, George, but I don't really care if I do," I muttered in response, though I did slow down ever so slightly. "Couldn't hurt any worse than Umbridge detentions. Might even help, quite frankly."

"She’s taken points off Gryffindor because I’m having my hand sliced open every night in Umbridge's detention!" Harry complained as he sat down across the table. "How is that fair, _how_?"

Ron sighed. "I know, mate, she’s bang out of order."

"Wait, wait, back up," Fred cut in, stopping me with one hand and looking across the table at Harry. "What is this about Umbridge detentions?"

I bit the inside of my cheek. Harry and I had both slipped up and said too much.

I set down the knife and the toast and unwound the bandage from my hand. Harry held his hand out across the table for them to see.

"I thought you said it was a cabbage bite," George muttered, snatching up my hand to see for himself.

"Yeah, well, I wish it was," I said, snatching my hand back and redoing the bandage that hid the still-red scar from the rest of the world. "Not worth the trouble. Nothing anyone can do anyway."

"Not worth- Cub, the woman's torturing you! Both of you!"

"Do you honestly think I don't know that?" I asked in a small voice. "It's fine. Don't worry about it."

"It's not fine!" Fred burst out. "If McGonagall knew about this-"

"She doesn't know, and I'm not about to tell her."

"Why not? She would go nuts if she knew."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, she probably would. And how long d'you reckon it’d take Umbridge to pass another Decree saying anyone who complains about the High Inquisitor gets sacked immediately?"

"Like I said," I muttered, spreading butter over my toast again. "Don't worry about it. Nothing you can do anyway."

A cacophony of owls announced the arrival of the mail. I didn't look up from my breakfast, and as such, didn't even realize an owl had landed in front of me.

Until Fred started laughing, that is. "Got a secret admirer, Cub?"

I glanced up, then felt fear wrap its cold hands around my throat.

The owl had a single red rose in its beak, with a scrap of paper tied to the end.

And just like that, all of the air disappeared from the room. 

"No, Lucy, wait, don't touch it," Harry said, his hand shooting forward to stop mine. "It might be cursed."

"I don't care," I replied, snatching the rose and the note from the owl's beak with my other hand. 

"Lu- no, don't let it get away!" Harry lunged forward and snagged it by the foot. It protested loudly, nipping at his fingers. 

I reached up to grab the other foot, and Harry and I pulled it back down to the table. I dropped what I was holding and reached into my pocket for my wand.

"Petrificus totalus!" 

But my shaking hands didn't cast the spell properly, so the owl kept struggling. 

"Bloody hell," I spat.

"I've got it," Harry said, drawing his own wand. "Petrificus totalus!"

The owl stopped struggling and went rigid. 

Harry's eyes were serious and calculating as he looked at me. "Why did you touch it?"

"It's not like it was cursed!"

"It might have been!"

"And?"

"And it could have cursed _you_!"

"And?"

He shook his head. "Fine. Dodge my concerns all you want. What does the note say?"

I flipped it over. _Your third detention is tonight at 5. I would have told you this face-to-face, but Professor Umbridge seemed concerned for my safety if I did considering the way you nearly attacked me again when I informed you of your second detention. How's the hand? From what I hear, your collection of scars is almost ten years in the making. Got another one on the way now?_

It wasn't signed, but it didn't matter. I knew that handwriting.

After sitting next to Draco Malfoy for two years in Ancient Runes, _I knew that handwriting._

"Can someone please explain what's going on _now_?" George asked, snapping me from my daze.

I blinked and crumpled the note into a ball, temper flaring again within me. "Just Malfoy trying to scare me."

Harry immediately rose to his feet, but I shot my legs out under the table and grabbed his calf. 

"Don't."

He tried to wrench himself away. "Lucy, I can't just sit here and let him-"

I grabbed my wand and pointed it at him. "I said _don't_." I kept the wand pointed at him and sighed, before explaining in a quiet voice to Ron, Hermione, and the twins. "The woman responsible for my family being betrayed is named Rose. That's why this-" I lifted the rose with my free hand. "-was such a cruel thing to do."

Harry reluctantly sat back down and reached forward to lower my wand. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I lied. I pointed the wand at the owl. "Finite incantatem." It didn't work the first time, or the second time, but finally, on the third time, the owl straightened up and glared at me. "I'm sorry, I thought you were from someone else." I handed the rose back to him. "Would you mind doing me a favor and returning this to the person who tasked you with bringing this to me?"

He took off and, surely enough, dropped the rose right into Malfoy's lap. I glared at his smirking face for a second before shaking my head and looking away again. I dropped my head into my hands, sighing as I tucked the crumpled-up note into my pocket.

"Well, what did it say?" Ron asked. "The note, I mean."

"Something about another detention tonight at 5. But it's fine-" I said quickly, noting the panic on everyone's faces — Harry's especially. I held up my hand for emphasis. "With my hands shaking like this, I can negotiate another time to do it. She only wants me to go back to detention to make the scar more legible than it is right now, which won't happen tonight."

"Lucy, last time you thought you'd get off without a problem..." Hermione started to say, but I shook my head. 

"Don't worry. I've been good lately. I'll convince her. I'll just head up there after classes today and put on a good show."

Nobody said anything else, so I let my eyes wander. I spied the Fat Friar at the Hufflepuff table talking to a group of second- and third-years, who were all laughing at something he had just said. 

I suddenly felt cold in comparison to the warmth in front of me, as if a cloud had passed over the sun right over where I was sitting and only where I was sitting. I even looked up to see if that was in fact what had happened — the enchanted ceiling was cloudless.

I shivered involuntarily, and Harry's foot found mine under the table. 

His eyes pulled me in like gravity.

"Are you sure you're okay, Lu?"

I didn't answer for a moment. I approached the invisible barrier. 

The war continued within me, anger and sadness and darkness and light all tangled up in one jumbled mess, one jumbled mess of anxiety and exhaustion and bitterness and resignation.

It was overwhelming. It was never-ending. 

The ache behind my eyes intensified.

"I don't know," I admitted finally.

* * *

I didn't end up having to wait for the end of classes to see Umbridge. She was inspecting Transfiguration.

Ron grinned as he and Hermione took the seats in front of Harry and me. “Excellent. Let’s see Umbridge get what she deserves.”

“That would be nice,” I whispered with a hesitant smile Harry's direction. 

His expression brightened a bit, and he smiled back. “Yeah, it would be.”

“That will do,” Professor McGonagall said as she entered the room. She didn't look twice at the Pink Venomous Tentacula who was just _itching_ to wrap her vines around something, anything. “Mr. Finnigan, kindly come here and hand back the homework — Miss Brown, please take this box of mice — don’t be silly, girl, they won’t hurt you — and hand one to each student.”

“Hem, hem,” came Umbridge's annoying cough. Professor McGonagall pointedly ignored her.

“Thank Merlin,” I muttered under my breath when I got back my essay with a very-clear O at the top. 

“She passed me too,” Harry whispered, showing me his A. “I think Snape's just a git.”

“You reckon?” I whispered back sarcastically. He pressed a knuckle to his mouth to stop himself from laughing as we tucked our essays away.

“Right then, everyone, listen closely — Dean Thomas, if you do that to the mouse again I shall put you in detention — most of you have now successfully vanished your snails and even those who were left with a certain amount of shell have the gist of the spell. Today we shall be-”

“Hem, _hem._ ”

“ _Yes_?”

“I was just wondering, Professor, whether you received my note telling you of the date and time of your inspec-” 

“Obviously I received it, or I would have asked you what you are doing in my classroom.”

Harry and I exchanged an excited glance.

“As I was saying, today we shall be practicing the altogether more difficult vanishment of mice. Now, the Vanishing Spell-”

“ _Hem, hem._ ”

Professor McGonagall whirled around. “I wonder how you expect to gain an idea of my usual teaching methods if you continue to interrupt me? You see, I do not generally permit people to talk when I am talking.”

Umbridge made no verbal reply, but she began writing something on the clipboard.

For half a second, I was worried for Professor McGonagall.

But then I realized that she would be fine. As far as I was concerned, Professor McGonagall was unstoppable. She'd be fine no matter what Umbridge wrote about her.

“As I was saying, the Vanishing Spell becomes more difficult with the complexity of the animal to be vanished. The snail, as an invertebrate, does not present much of a challenge; the mouse, as a mammal, offers a much greater one. This is not, therefore, magic you can accomplish with your mind on your dinner. So — you know the incantation, let me see what you can do.” 

“How she can lecture me about not losing my temper with Umbridge!” Harry hissed. Just the same, he was smiling.

I raised my eyebrows at him before turning to my mouse.

While I had done well enough on my essay, I was struggling with my magic. Part of it, I was sure, had to be caused by the shaking. Swift, confident wand movements were difficult to perform when I could barely even hold a quill between my fingers. But there was something else too, I felt, some deeper disturbance. Neville and Harry had seen me struggling the day before the full moon in Charms, which was the worst it had ever been, but I was still having a harder time than I'd ever had before in Transfiguration. 

I had been trying to vanish my mouse — very, _very_ unsuccessfully — for about ten minutes when I became aware of someone watching me. 

I glanced up to see Umbridge's eyes boring into me. My face immediately flushed with a combination of humiliation and fury — _What does she want from me?_ — and I looked back down at my mouse, hand shaking a bit more as I said the incantation (again) and bit back a frustrated sigh as nothing changed... again.

“She was looking at me too,” Harry whispered. He repeated the incantation, and I'll admit I (selfishly) felt a bit better when his mouse didn't change either. “What d'you reckon she wants with us?”

“Maybe she thinks 'Evanesco' would make a nice new scar, seeing as neither of us has managed it yet,” I replied dully. “Evanesco!”

“Am I allowed to glare at her, or do you think I'll get another week of detentions where I have to write 'I must not glare at old pink toads?' Evanesco!”

“Evanesco! Don't even bother. Not worth the risk.”

He sighed. “Another time, then. Evanesco!”

When Professor McGonagall told us to pack up, Harry and I had both managed to vanish most of our mice. As the class started filing out, I remained in place with my bag on my shoulder, figuring I might as well ask Umbridge about detention while she was there rather than making a separate trip later. Harry, Ron, and Hermione lingered too, though they were more interested in eavesdropping than anything.

“How long have you been teaching at Hogwarts?” Umbridge asked, approaching Professor McGonagall's desk.

“Thirty-nine years this December,” she replied.

“Very well. You will receive the results of your inspection in ten days’ time.”

“I can hardly wait. Hurry up, you four.” 

“Actually, Professor McGonagall, I was staying behind because I had a quick question for Professor Umbridge,” I said in a sickeningly sweet voice that didn't sound much like the way I normally talked as the other three left, catching onto what I was about to do. Just the same, I knew they'd be listening at the door. I turned to Umbridge with my best angelic expression. “Assuming that's alright, of course, Professor?” 

She had the presence of mind to look as if she'd been caught off-guard, just as I hoped she would be. “Er, yes, if you're sure it'll be quick, Miss Ever-” 

“Brilliant, thank you,” I interrupted before she could finish my last name. I adjusted my bag on my shoulder, making a display of wincing as the bandage rubbed the wrong way on my still-healing hand. “I received the note from Draco Malfoy this morning, Professor, the one you asked him to send.”

“Ah, yes. You will be joining Mr. Potter tonight. What about it?” 

Panic and anger and concern flashed across Professor McGonagall's face, but I shot her a pleading _Let me handle this, I promise it's not what it seems_ look before turning back to Umbridge. “Well, you would like the message to _sink in_ properly, yes?”

“Yes, of course.” Despite her light tone, I could see the tension creeping into her shoulders. I think she knew Professor McGonagall would go _ballistic_ if she knew about what these detentions entailed. And I liked making her uncomfortable.

I held up my uninjured hand to demonstrate how badly it was shaking. “I think the message failed to _sink in_ the past two times because of this shaking, Professor. I think the lesson would be more _clear_ if I waited for this to pass. I've been told it should get better soon, after which I would be more than happy to by all means write line after line until this lesson is one that will never go away.” 

I made a point of not looking at Professor McGonagall, who was eyeing the bandage on my other hand suspiciously.

Professor Umbridge seemed to be considering my proposal, but I could tell she was incredibly reluctant to give me my way.

“If I have more time to _heal_ ,” I added, emphasizing the word in an attempt to pierce through her stubborn thick-headedness, “it would likely make the detention more worthwhile. Don't you think?” 

She nodded once. “Very well.”

I could tell from the look on Professor McGonagall's face that I could expect a number of questions about this later, but for the moment, the battle was won. There was a war ahead, but I had scored a small victory.

* * *

Umbridge was observing Care of Magical Creatures that day, too. We were still working with bowtruckles, so it was easy to eavesdrop.

“You do not usually take this class, is that correct?” Professor Umbridge asked.

“Quite correct. I am a substitute teacher standing in for Professor Hagrid,” she replied.

I bit my lip. _If one single person says something bad about Hagrid..._

“Hmm... I wonder — the headmaster seems strangely reluctant to give me any information on the matter — can _you_ tell me what is causing Professor Hagrid’s very extended leave of absence?” 

“’Fraid I can’t. Don’t know anything more about it than you do. Got an owl from Dumbledore, would I like a couple of weeks teaching work, accepted — that’s as much as I know. Well... shall I get started then?”

“Yes, please do.”

“If Malfoy says something about Hagrid, I'll speak up, let me take the hit this time,” I whispered to Harry in a voice I hoped Hermione and Ron couldn't hear.

“What?” he whispered back.

“Look, I know neither of us will be happy if — or, let's be honest, _when_ — that happens, so just let me handle it. With the delay I've got now, just let her add it onto my sentence and not yours, you've already got the rest of the week.”

“No, Lu, I'm not just going to let someone insult Hagrid-”

“Neither am I.”

He shook his head. “You've got enough to try to deal with at the moment.”

“Please,” I retorted, rolling my eyes. “As if you _don't_?”

“Stupid self-sacrificing Gryffindor,” he muttered. “We all know I've got the worse temper and worse reputation, just let me handle it.”

“How about whoever says something first handles it?” I suggested, glancing at him out of the corner of my eye. “The other person keeps their mouth shut.”

“Fine. But it'll be me, I'll make sure of it.”

I smirked at Harry. “Stupid self-sacrificing Gryffindor.”

Our chance presented itself at the end of class when Umbridge approached Professor Grubbly-Plank. “Overall, how do you, as a temporary member of staff — an objective outsider, I suppose you might say — how do you find Hogwarts? Do you feel you receive enough support from the school management?”

“Oh, yes, Dumbledore’s excellent! No, I’m very happy with the way things are run, very happy indeed.” 

“Ah... and what are you planning to cover with this class this year — assuming, of course, that Professor Hagrid does not return?”

My fists clenched. _He will. He will return. I don't know what I'll do if he doesn't._

“Oh, I’ll take them through the creatures that most often come up in O.W.L. Not much left to do — they’ve studied unicorns and nifflers, I thought we’d cover porlocks and kneazles, make sure they can recognize crups and knarls, you know.”

“Well, _you_ seem to know what you’re doing, at any rate. Now, I hear there have been injuries in this class?”

“Bloody hell, here we go,” I whispered, feeling familiar flames of anger licking up the sides of my neck. I clenched my fists even harder, everything within me tensing like I was an animal waiting to strike.

“That was me, I was slashed by a hippogriff,” Malfoy announced.

“There's more to the story than that, Professor,” I said, leveling Draco with my iciest glare.

Umbridge's quill froze, hovering over the page. She glanced at me curiously.

I lifted my chin. “Professor Hagrid gave very clear instructions not to insult the hippogriffs. If my memory serves me, the introduction to the lesson was along the lines of 'Don't ever insult a hippogriff, because it might be the last thing you do.' However, Mr. Malfoy here seemed to have not been paying very close attention to this critical part of the lesson, because he insulted Buckbeak and was very fortunate to escape with such a minor injury.” I crossed my arms, making sure my bandaged hand was on display. “To tell you the truth, I've received worse injuries at the hands of professors than he did from the creature.” I paused for a second. Just to watch her squirm. Then I added, “That was Professor Lockhart. He blinded me when he tried and failed to heal a broken nose sustained in a Quidditch match.” I looked at Draco again. “That's the full story, Professor. Did I _lie_ , Draco?”

“You know, funny enough, I don't recall you being around when I was interacting with Buckbeak,” he said after a long moment. “If I recall correctly, which I'm sure I do, you were helping someone else when maybe you should have been reminding me not to insult the hippogriff.”

“Now that's just not fair,” Archie said with a snort and a roll of his eyes. “You were the only one who seemed to have trouble remembering not to be a tosspot to hippogriffs, Malfoy. Besides, even if Lucy wasn't standing right there when you were hurt, I was, and I heard you insult him. What did you think was going to happen, honestly? Nobody likes being insulted, creatures included. I'm with Lucy, you were lucky to get off with just a scratch.”

I shot Archie a grateful look before looking back at Professor Umbridge. I pasted on a smile. “Does that answer your question, Professor?”

“Well,” she said, clearly flustered but trying not to show it, “a student should never have been in so much danger-”

“To tell you the truth, it seems to me Mr. Malfoy here endangered himself, Professor Umbridge,” Professor Grubbly-Plank piped up. “Insulting a hippogriff is a one-way ticket to catastrophic injury. Miss Diggory's right, that could have gone much worse than it did.”

Umbridge lowered her quill, stiffening. “Well, thank you very much, Professor Grubbly-Plank, I think that’s all I need here. You will be receiving the results of your inspection within ten days.”

“Jolly good,” Professor Grubbly-Plank replied, and with that, the lesson was over.

I unclenched my fists and hissed in pain. I hadn't realized how hard I was pulling on the skin of my wounded hand until my adrenaline started to drop.

Ron whistled lowly. “That was bloody impressive, Lucy.”

I felt my face heat. “I didn't do anything. Archie and Professor Grubbly-Plank were the ones who saved the day. I doubt Umbridge would have listened to only me.”

“Hey, you started it,” Archie said, coming over and patting my shoulder. “I only jumped in since I know Umbridge is out for your blood.”

“Well, thanks for jumping in,” I replied. I shot an amused glance at Harry because of the unintentional accuracy of Archie's word choice — Umbridge was _literally_ and not just metaphorically out for my blood — but he didn't return it. He was looking at me in an odd way, so I waved my hand in front of his face. “Anybody home? Class is over.”

“Right,” he said slowly. 

I shook my head. Something was on his mind. “Come on, you should eat dinner before detention, Merlin knows when the Pink Venomous Tentacula will let you go tonight.”

Archie busted up laughing. “Henry called her that last night! Was it your idea?”

“I wish I could take the credit, but it was George Weasley's idea,” I said. 

Archie laughed harder, and we started heading up to the castle. I fell into step with Harry. 

“Are you alright?” I asked.

“Oh, yeah, I am,” he replied. “Just impressed is all.”

“Yeah, well,” I mumbled, feeling my face heat. “No one tries to make Hagrid look bad on my watch and gets away with it. You can fight everyone else's battles if you want, but I want Hagrid's.”

Harry half-smiled. “That's fair.”

“What is it, Harry?” I pressed gently. “Obviously something's bothering you.”

His smile faded. “Lucy, there are a great number of things bothering me right now, and to list them all would just be depressing for both of us.” 

“I wouldn't mind. I understand.”

“I know you do,” he said. “That's the problem.”

He fell silent, and I fell silent, and with that, the conversation was over.

* * *

I tapped lightly on Professor McGonagall's office door with my non-injured hand. She called for me to come in, so I did, careful to shut the door.

"Thanks for saying you'd meet with me, Professor," I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Of course, Lucy. Go ahead, take a seat."

I obliged and started rifling through my bag for my essay as she stacked her work with a flick of her wand to clear her desk.

"Is this about Professor Umbridge?" she asked.

"Er, not quite," I replied, digging a bit deeper into my bag.

"Something relating to what happened in the graveyard, or the return of You-Know-Who?"

I shook my head. "Not directly about that, either."

"Your conversation with the Fat Friar, perhaps?"

I stopped and lifted my head, half a smile on my face. "Alright, I'll bite, Professor. How did you hear about that?"

She offered half a smile back to me. "There are many people who care about your well-being, Lucy, even if you're not always aware of them."

I felt the tips of my ears turn red, and I plunged back into my bag. Finally, I found the ridiculously-graded essay. 

I placed it on her desk and sighed. "It's about Professor Snape. You and Professor Sinistra seemed to be able to read my essays reasonably well, seeing as I received Os on both assignments, but I'm not sure what to do for Potions. Do you have any suggestions?"

"Ah, I see," she said, pushing her glasses up on her nose and skimming my essay. "I won't pretend that it is easy to decipher your handwriting, but I know you are trying your best given the circumstances. And your handwriting, believe it or not, it better than some at this school."

I cringed. "In that case, I'm sorry. I thought mine was the worst."

"Hardly," she replied. She set the essay down. "I am no expert in Potions, but it seems a solid essay to me. I had an idea about your essays, actually, if you'd be open to something different for the time being. I can't imagine doing homework has been particularly enjoyable lately."

I shook my head. "Lots of late nights. I really do try to write neatly, the quill just escapes me sometimes. What was your idea?"

"Well, until you can write again, I was thinking you could do a verbal essay of sorts. For instance, what have you learned about Vanishing Spells?"

"Vanishing Spells can vanish both animate and inanimate objects into non-being, which is to say, everything," I recited as if from a textbook. "The complexity of the object adds to the difficulty of the spell. Furthermore, some objects can be enchanted to resist or even actively sabotage attempts to vanish them."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "You certainly know the material. I will bring this up with your professors at our next meeting, but would you prefer this approach to a more traditional one for the time being?"

"That would be great, thank you," I said, feeling a bit of tension release from my shoulders. "I really have been trying my best, Professor," I added in a small voice, "even though I know it's not truly showing at the moment."

"I know," she said gently. She paused for a moment, studying me before speaking again. "Lucy, dear, what happened to your hand?"

I froze, biting my lip. "I-I would say it's nothing, b-but the advice on my hand wouldn't want me to lie," I replied almost inaudibly as I began to unwrap it. I held it out. "It's Professor Umbridge. Harry and I write lines with a cursed quill. The reason I was able to delay my next detention is because of how illegible my handwriting is right now. The message was clearer the first time because I was shaking less, but the second time was closer to the full moon, so the quill was unsteady, s-so it looks like this."

Professor McGonagall was as still as a statue, her mouth pressed into a firm line, her eyes steely as she stared at my hand. I wondered for a second if I had made a grave mistake in telling her. 

"Why was there a second detention?" she asked after a moment, her voice deathly calm.

"On the train, I... well, Draco Malfoy came in, and, well, I lost my temper a bit with him. He tried to get me in trouble for having Tuck with me, and I taunted him because... well, b-because I realized that his dad was one of the people who... who..." I bit my lip. "He told Professor Umbridge I attacked him, which I didn't, but when I tried to tell her I hadn't attacked him, she said she believed Draco over me because of his dad's position in the Ministry, and..." I shook my head. "It was my fault, I shouldn't have provoked him, I was just so eager to fight back for once in my life, not that I even did, really..."

I glanced down at my hand, my face reddening again as tears filled my eyes, hanging my head as I waited for a reprimand that didn't come.

"It's not your fault, Lucy," Professor McGonagall said. I glanced up, surprised. She shook her head. "No, this is much bigger than just Draco Malfoy being a bully, I'm afraid. _Much_ bigger."

"Harry and I don't want these detentions," I said, finding it hard to stop talking now that I had finally started. "W-We're both just so angry. Or, well, he is. I-I go back and forth between angry and sad, which is how I keep my temper in check, really, because every time I get angry about the way the world is right now, I remember why..." I swallowed hard. "I don't think I would have been able to cast a spell anyway, truthfully, because something's gone wrong with my magic. Have you noticed?"

"I have, and I'm not the only one."

Hopelessness was pulling me down, as if gravity were growing stronger by the second, tethering me to the ground.

"Will it be like this forever?" I asked for a second time that day.

"Oh, Lucy, no," she replied immediately. "It will get better. As you said to Professor Umbridge earlier, the shaking will stop as the last of the Dark magic from the Cruciatus Curse leaves your body. I'm sure your magic will right itself shortly thereafter. It _will_ get better. You know that, don't you?"

I nodded. 

It was easier to lie when I didn't have to lie out loud. 

"The world just seems so much scarier without Cedric in it," I whispered, looking down at my feet. "I've followed him for as long as I can remember. He's always been there. I could always run to him when something went wrong. A-And now I can't. I can't, ever again. And my parents, I..." I shook my head. "It's like I've forgotten how to _be_ , Professor. I don't have Quidditch anymore, I don't have my family anymore, I don't even have magic anymore."

Professor McGonagall rose from her chair and came around the front. I glanced up and accepted the hug she was offering, and for just a moment, the storm quieted.

Just a moment.

When I left the office after talking a couple minutes longer with Professor McGonagall, the winds grew stronger again, and the rain poured harder again, and the ground beneath my feet trembled again.

I was walking in a storm, no, I _was_ the storm, no, it was something else entirely, I didn't know where the storm ended and where I began, the storm and I were one and the same, the way Lucy Everlin and Lucy Diggory were one and the same, so vastly juxtapositional yet both somehow true, the way Lucy the werewolf and Lucy the human were one and the same, so strikingly contradictory in nature yet both present in the same bones, and I was tired, I was so tired, I didn't want to fight anymore, I just wanted the world to stand still, but it didn't, it never did, not even when _my_ world fell apart, the way it had too many times at that point, I didn't want to _fight_ anymore, I wanted everything to just... stop.

* * *

_I don't want to fight, I don't want to fight it  
I don't want to fight, I don't want to fight it  
I don't want to fight, I don't want to fight it_

* * *

When I got back to the common room, Hermione was sitting in a corner by herself, two bowls of essence of murtlap in front of her as she read from the book in her lap. I made my way over to her and set my bag down.

“Oh, hello!” she said a little too brightly. “What did Professor McGonagall have to say?”

“She had an idea for an easier way for me to get my homework done,” I replied with a shrug. “She asked about my hand directly, so I told her about the detentions.”

“Well, that sounds productive. Here.” She slid one of the bowls over to me. “I didn't realize your hand was still so bad.”

I dipped my hand in reluctantly, and sweet relief took away some of the sting.

“This is helping a bit. Thank you. The quills are cursed,” I added quietly, “not to mention the Dark magic still in my system. It probably doesn't help. It will be bad for a while.”

“You mean there's residual Dark magic _in_ \- Lucy, what?”

“Something else we talked about,” I muttered.

“But what do you mean?”

“Well, I'm sure you've noticed by now that my magic has been... not as strong.”

“Yes, of course, but I never thought... I mean... how?”

I shook my head. “I don't really want to talk about it more tonight, if that's okay.”

I could tell from the frustration on her face that she was dying to know more, but she nodded after a moment's hesitation.

“Where's Ron?” I asked.

“Quidditch practice,” she answered slowly, as if I should have known this already. “The twins, too. Lucy, are you feeling alright? You look a bit...”

“I didn't sleep well. That's all it is, really.”

Hermione nodded, still studying me like I was a puzzle she was trying to solve. She returned to her reading after a moment, and I got a textbook out, too. I lost myself in the runes, noticing offhandedly that one vaguely resembled an osprey.

To my surprise, it was four Weasleys, not three, that tumbled through the portrait hole.

“Merlin's bloody beard, Cub, that hand looks horrible,” Fred commented, staring at the bowl in my lap.

“Hurts like hell, I tell you,” I muttered, setting my book aside. “How was practice?”

“It was great!” Ginny gushed. “I filled in for Harry as Seeker! Don't tell him I told you, though, I don't want him to feel bad.”

I managed a small smile and high-fived her with my good hand. “Hell yeah! What did Angelina have to say?”

“She said the balance of gender was a nice change of pace,” Ginny reported giddily. 

I laughed a bit at that. “I'm sure she did. Nicely done, Gin.”

The Weasleys all headed off to shower, and only Ron returned to the corner.

“How d'you reckon Harry's doing?” he asked once he was settled in with his essay.

“I don't know,” I admitted. “But this essence of murtlap really is helping, so at least we'll have relief to offer him when he's back.”

“What book did you find this in again?” Hermione inquired. “I started reading the library's medical books as soon as we found out what really happened in these detentions, and I couldn't find anything for cursed flesh wounds.”

“It was in one of Cedric's healing books.” I swallowed hard. “He read anything he could get his hands on that even vaguely alluded to anything with healing properties. Spells, potions, creature fluids, you name it.”

She nodded thoughtfully and returned to her reading. 

As the common room emptied with still no sign of Harry, we relocated to a more comfortable spot. I lost myself in the ancient runes again, and they started swirling together on the page...

“Oh, there he is,” a soft voice said.

I awoke with a start, unaware I had even fallen asleep. It was apparently Ron's shoulder I had landed on, because we were on the couch and Hermione was sitting in an armchair across the way. 

She pushed the bowl toward Harry as he landed heavily on the couch next to me.

“Here, soak your hand in that, it’s a solution of strained and pickled murtlap tentacles, it should help.” 

I felt my chest tighten at the sight of his mangled hand, but I knew the solution would help as he dipped his hand in.

“Thanks,” he said with a relieved sigh. 

“She’s an awful woman. _Awful._ You know, I was just saying to Ron when you came in, and Lucy, too, I guess, but I think she was asleep... we’ve got to do something about her.” 

“I suggested poison,” Ron said.

I almost laughed, but then I realized he was completely serious.

Hermione shook her head. “No, I meant... I mean, something about what a dreadful teacher she is, and how we’re not going to learn any defense from her at all.”

Ron shrugged. “Well, what can we do about that? It's too late, isn’t it? She got the job, she’s here to stay, Fudge’ll make sure of that.”

“Well, you know, I was thinking today... I was thinking that — maybe the time’s come when we should just... just do it ourselves.” 

“Do what ourselves?” Harry inquired, sounding suspicious. 

“Well... learn Defense Against the Dark Arts ourselves.”

“Come off it! You want us to do extra work? D’you realize Harry and I are behind on homework _again_?” Ron asked incredulously.

“But this is much more important than homework!” Hermione declared.

“I didn’t think there was anything in the universe more important than homework,” Ron replied with a smirk.

“Don’t be silly, of course there is! It’s about preparing ourselves, like Harry said in Umbridge’s first lesson, for what’s waiting out there. It’s about making sure we really can defend ourselves. If we don’t learn anything for a whole year-”

“We can’t do much by ourselves. I mean, alright, we can go and look jinxes up in the library and try and practice them, I suppose-” 

“No, I agree, we’ve gone past the stage where we can just learn things out of books. We need a teacher, a proper one, who can show us how to use the spells and correct us if we’re going wrong.”

Harry glanced at me out of the corner of his eye before saying, “If you’re talking about Lupin...”

“No, no, I’m not talking about Lupin. He’s too busy with the Order and anyway, the most we could see him is during Hogsmeade weekends and that’s not nearly often enough.”

“Who, then?”

Hermione sighed and leaned forward, looking back and forth between me and Harry.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m talking about _you_.”

Harry glanced at me again, and I offered a confused look. _I don't know what she means any more than you do._

“About us what?” he asked.

“I’m talking about _you two_ teaching us Defense Against the Dark Arts.” 

I looked at Harry, torn between bafflement and amusement. We both looked to Ron for confirmation that Hermione was batty, but he was nodding slowly. 

“That’s an idea,” he said.

Harry blinked. “ _What’s_ an idea?”

“You two. Teaching us to do it.” 

I shook my head. “How am I supposed to teach you something I can't do myself at the moment? Hermione, we were just talking about how much my magic is damaged right now, I couldn't possibly-”

“You could still teach us how to do it, I know you know _how_ ,” she said, talking very quickly at this point. “Listen, you two are the best in the year at Defense Against the Dark Arts, curse damage or no curse damage.” 

Harry grinned, looking as if he found this all quite hilarious. “Lucy, sure, but _me_? No, I’m not, you’ve beaten me in every test, Hermione-”

“Actually, I haven’t. You beat me in our third year — the only year we both sat the test and had a teacher who actually knew the subject. But I’m not talking about test results, Harry. Look what you’ve _done_!” 

“What do you mean?”

Ron rolled his eyes. “You know what, I’m not sure I want someone this stupid teaching me. Let’s think. Uh... first year, you saved the Stone from You-Know-Who.”

“But that was luck, that wasn’t skill-”

“Second year, you killed the basilisk and destroyed Riddle.”

“Yeah, but if Fawkes hadn’t turned up I-”

“Third year, you fought off about a hundred dementors at once-” 

“You know that was a fluke, if the Time-Turner hadn’t-”

“Last year, you fought off You-Know-Who again-”

Harry shook his head, his eyes flashing dangerously. “Listen to me! Just _listen_ to me, alright? It sounds great when you say it like that, but all that stuff was luck, I didn’t know what I was doing half the time, I didn’t plan any of it, I just did whatever I could think of, and I nearly always had help-”

But Ron and Hermione kept smirking. They were right, but so was Harry. 

“Don’t sit there grinning like you know better than I do, I was there, wasn’t I? I know what went on, alright? And I didn’t get through any of that because I was brilliant at Defense Against the Dark Arts, I got through it all because — because help came at the right time, or because I guessed right — but I just blundered through it all, I didn’t have a clue what I was doing — STOP LAUGHING!” He jumped to his feet, but I had seen it coming, so I was able to save the bowl of murtlap essence before it smashed to the floor. “ _You don’t know what it’s like_! You — neither of you — you’ve never had to face him, have you? You think it’s just memorizing a bunch of spells and throwing them at him, like you’re in class or something? The whole time you know there’s nothing between you and dying except your own — your own brain or guts or whatever — like you can think straight when you know you’re about a second from being murdered, or tortured, or watching your friends die — they’ve never taught us that in their classes, what it’s like to deal with things like that — and you two sit there acting like I’m a clever little boy to be standing here, alive, like Cedric was stupid, like he messed up — you just don’t get it, that could just as easily have been me, it would have been if Voldemort hadn’t needed me-”

Ron cut him off, his smirk completely gone. “We weren’t saying anything like that, mate. We weren’t having a go at Cedric, you know we wouldn't, we didn’t — you’ve got the wrong end of the-”

“Harry, don’t you see? This... this is exactly why we need you. We need to know what it’s r-really like... facing him... facing V-Voldemort,” Hermione said. 

Harry collapsed back onto the couch, breathing heavily.

I wordlessly started drawing small circles on his shoulder with my thumb, the way he so often did to calm me down, and he blinked as if he'd forgotten I was there. His eyes were wide when he faced me.

“Lu, are you okay? I-I didn't mean to... blow up like that, it just happened.”

Ron and Hermione turned to face me too. As if they'd also forgotten I was there.

I dropped my hands from Harry's shoulder and hugged my left knee to my chest, letting my chin land on top.

“I'm fine, but... what would you have said about me?” I asked without looking at anyone. “Harry's done all of that, yeah, but what have _I_ done?”

“Lu, you've done the _most_ ,” Harry said without missing a beat. “You've been learning loads of extra spells with the twins since first year, you conjured a fully corporeal patronus before I did, and, over summer, you got out all by yourself, without any help.”

“Yeah, with jokes spells and a stolen wand,” I spat. I looked up at Ron and Hermione. “I'm no hero. I woke up one day, realized the Death Eater guarding me had fallen asleep and dropped his wand, so I grabbed it and filled the tunnel with the most _ridiculous-_ ” I shook my head, a panicky, frenzied, anxious feeling swirling around my head and making me dizzy. “Anyway, that's what happened. I got lucky. I mean, look at me, I couldn't do any of those spells if I tried right now, because after being tortured for only a week a month and a half ago, I can't even do so much as write an essay or cast a spell I mastered as a first-year.” This all poured out of me so quickly I didn't have time to really stop the flow of words before they had all escaped. I shook my head again. “Cedric would have been the perfect person to do this. N-Not me.”

A heavy silence fell over the four of us.

Nobody spoke for more than a minute. 

In that minute, I found that my emotions were a pendulum, swinging wildly back and forth, more akin to a piece of rope in a tempest than a pendulum, really.

Angry. _Voldemort killed Cedric._

Sadness. _Cedric is gone._

Sadness. _My parents are gone too._

Sadness. _I'm alone._

Anger. _I was alone in the caves, too._

Anger. _I fought my way out._

Anger. _I never should have had to fight my way out._

Anger. _Betrayal._

Sadness. _Betrayal._

Sadness. _Harry's parents had been betrayed, too._

Sadness. _It doesn't matter if I fight or not._

Anger. _So I might as well fight anyway._

A moment of clarity. _Fighting for what's right is what matters right now._

Finally, I broke the silence.

“I'll do it.”

All three of their heads snapped toward me.

“You will?” Hermione asked.

I nodded before I could back down. “Cedric would have been the perfect person for this, b-but he can't. And maybe I can't either, but I... I want to try. B-But I'll need help, b-because I... I couldn't possibly do this all by myself-”

“I'll do it too,” Harry said. He turned to look at me, his eyes clear and no longer angry. “A lot of it was a load of luck, but... a lot of it was because you were there, too. All of the training for the Triwizard, all of the patronus lessons. If you're doing it, I'll do it, too.”

Ron and Hermione smiled reluctantly. I couldn't find one to offer, and neither could Harry. This fight meant much more to us than it did to anyone else in the whole wizarding world. 

But we were in it together.

“So we fight?” I asked, looking around at the three of us.

“So we fight,” Harry agreed. 

* * *

_But I will learn to fight, I will learn to fight  
'Til this pendulum finds equilibrium_

_"Sorrow"  
Sleeping At Last_


	115. Dear Cedric,

_September 13, 1995_

_Dear Cedric,_

_I had a dream about you that woke me up really early this morning. I dream about you every night, sometimes more than others, but I hate the falling dreams the most. This one was the worst because of how happy it was. If dreams are sad, or scary, it's easier for me to call it a nightmare and try to forget about it, but I don't want to forget this one. I don't ever want to forget how it felt to hug you, how it felt when you hugged me. I already feel myself forgetting just how safe I felt whenever you were around. I feel safe with Harry, too, because I know he won't let anything hurt me if he can help it, and I felt safe at Grimmauld Place knowing the Order would protect me if someone tried to take me away again, but you were the only one who ever kept me safe from myself._

_Do you remember the time you told me that you were always afraid of falling from the pedestal everyone else built for you? And do you remember me saying that I always felt like I was starting on the bottom? I think I was wrong. I don't think I was on the bottom. You made sure of it. Without you, I feel like I've been pushed off of a high place, and I feel like I'm falling._

_Do you think that could be why I'm so scared to get on a broom again?_

_When I woke up, I was so emotional, I just had to get out of bed, I couldn't stand it. I wandered around the castle until I reached the Room of Requirement, but the Fat Friar told me that I wouldn't find you there. We talked for a bit, and when he left, the door was gone._

_Were you in there somehow? Was he wrong? Did I miss you?_

_~~Where are you now, Cedric? Where did you go?~~_

_I waited there for the door to appear again, I waited until morning, but it didn't. I don't understand why. I wasn't alright. I still needed something. I still needed you. _

_I'm writing this in the common room, not my dormitory. Harry and Ron and Hermione all went to bed, since it's well past midnight now, but I wanted to tell you about what happened tonight._

_Basically, the new DADA teacher isn't teaching us anything. We copy notes out of a textbook written by an ignorant, idealistic idiot who discourages the use of any kind of defensive magic under any circumstance, including defense. It's ridiculous, and it's dangerous. But we're going to do something about it. Harry and I are going to teach Ron and Hermione what we can about defensive spells, and maybe a couple of other people, too, like Luna and Ginny and Neville, if they want to know. _

_I think you'd be proud of me. At least I hope you'd be. I'm doing this for you, after all. I know you wouldn't want anyone else to die, not the way you did._

_Merlin. I still can't believe it sometimes. And when I can believe that you're gone... I don't even know how to put into words the horrible sinking feeling that fills my stomach at the thought of it all. I miss you, I miss you, I miss you, I miss you, I miss you._

_~~Do you miss me?~~_

_I should probably go to bed. The shaking is getting worse the longer I write. I miss talking to you. This is as close as I can get, and even though I know I'll never get a reply, I don't want to stop writing. If I stop, I'll be reminded once again that you're gone._

_So do you want to hear more about my day? It was rather eventful, come to think of it._

_Well, after the sun rose and the door didn't open, I went down to feed Tuck and Fang. Did I tell you Tuck lives at Hogwarts now? He and Fang keep each other company since Hagrid isn't here. I worry for Hagrid. He was apparently supposed to be back by now. I hope he's alright._

_Anyway, after I fed the dogs, I came back to the castle and went to breakfast. I got a T on my Potions essay — Snape didn't even want to try to read my handwriting — so I asked Professor McGonagall if she'd meet me to talk about finding a solution. She agreed, but before we could talk any more about it, Angelina started yelling at Harry for getting Umbridge detention again._

_Oh Merlin, Umbridge detention. I had another one last week, for something I didn't even do. I hate Draco Malfoy, I hate him so much. I hate Umbridge more, though._

_Did you ever hate anyone? Is it wrong for me to hate someone, even people like Draco and Umbridge?_

_Maybe it is. Maybe monsters shouldn't hate people. It's too easy for us to hurt even the people we love — maybe hatred is even more dangerous._

_Anyway... Harry and I went back to the breakfast table and complained about the detentions and accidentally said more than we meant to, so Fred and George know about the quill now. They were furious, but the arrival of the mail stopped the twins from going into a total fit of rage, because Draco sent me a note with an owl who had a rose in its mouth._

_Oh Merlin. Cedric. I just realized. That proves Draco knows._

_I don't think he would just spontaneously decide to send me a rose, especially not with that note._

_What if he knows everything?_

__


	116. Trust is Quicksand

_There are wires in between  
Human heart and machine  
I will wait for mountains  
To tell me you're okay_

_On paper my future will lay  
I'll fold every failure into a crane_

* * *

LUCY:

_Oh Merlin, oh Merlin, oh Merlin, oh Merlin._

The ink crept over the paper.

_This can't be happening._

I crumpled up the unfinished letter and sent it flying into the fire. 

_I want Cedric. I want Cedric. I want Cedric. I want Cedric._

I watched the flames lick up the sides of the ink-soaked parchment ball.

_I can't believe it's taken me this long to realize what Draco meant._

The blackened edges collapsed in on themselves.

_Draco knows I'm a werewolf and that I was bitten almost exactly ten years ago._

The ball of parchment went up in flames.

_If he knows I'm a werewolf, he knows I'm a Muggle-born too._

The fireball sank into the rest of the fire with a small sigh.

_Rose told Voldemort and Voldemort told Lucius and Lucius told Draco._

I shuddered and stared into the fire.

_I'm not safe. I'm not safe. I'm not safe. I'm not safe._

The world around me was spiraling out of control.

"Lucy?"

I turned just as Harry closed the door behind him.

"I, er, heard something down here. Figured I'd come check it out." He rubbed his neck, glasses crooked on his nose and the collar of his pajama shirt lopsided around his neck, higher on the right than the left. "Are you alright? You... don't look like it."

I gnawed on my lower lip.

I approached the invisible barrier.

_I shouldn't tell him._

_He would want to know that Draco Malfoy knows._

_I shouldn't tell him._

_He's the person I've ever willingly told the whole truth._

_I shouldn't tell him._

_He would want to protect me from Draco Malfoy however possible._

_I shouldn't tell him._

_I trust Harry with my life. More importantly, I trust him with the truth._

I punched a hole through the barrier, and it shattered.

* * *

_Trust is quicksand  
Claiming everything I have  
All to give me life, all to give me life_

* * *

I jumped up from the couch and flung myself at Harry, burying my face against his neck as the panic surged, hot and fast, and tore through my chest.

He wrapped his arms around me, and he didn't even stumble when I collided with him. "Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong, Lu? What's wrong?"

"Malfoy knows," I choked out.

He stiffened. "What do you mean?"

I held tighter for half a second before reluctantly pulling away. "Th-The note. From this m-morning." I hurried over to the couch where my bookbag was still sitting and rifled through it with shaking hands until I found it. Harry dropped onto the couch next to me and read it for himself in a hushed whisper.

"'Your third detention is tonight at 5. I would have told you this face-to-face, but Professor Umbridge seemed concerned for my safety if I did considering the way you nearly attacked me again when I informed you of your second detention. How's the hand? From what I hear, your collection of scars is almost ten years in the making. Got another one on the way now?'" He looked up at me, eyes wide, mouth moving but no more words coming out.

I managed the slightest nod. My heart was about to pound out of my chest.

"Th-This c-c-can't be ha-happening," I stammered. "H-H-He knows, a-and he's g-g-going to tell everybody, a-and Umbridge will- will-" I jumped to my feet and slammed my fist into the stone surrounding the fireplace. "A-And everyone's going t-t-to hate me, and-" I wound up for another swing, but Harry caught me by the wrist.

"Stop!"

"No!" I wrenched myself free and yanked a book off the bookshelf. I sent it flying across the room. It landed on a window seat with a soft thud. "A-After everything, after how c-c-careful I've been for so many _bloody_ years-" I grabbed another book and sent it flying to a window seat on the opposite side of the room. "He knows everything, he knows about Rose and me and my family, my families, whatever the bloody hell it is!" 

I grabbed another book, but I just held it in my hands, everything within me trembling. Hot tears, furious tears, burned the backs of my eyes. The book suddenly seemed heavy, too heavy, and I would have dropped it on my feet if Harry hadn't taken it from me just in time.

"Lucy?"

His voice was far gentler than I deserved. I couldn't look at him.

Harry put the book back on the shelf, walked so he was in front of me, and tipped my chin up. His hand was shaking.

"Lu, where's your broom? Your trunk or your locker?"

"Locker," I managed after half a second.

He nodded and dropped his hand. "Okay. Give me... twenty-three seconds. Can you count to twenty-three for me?"

"Harry, wh-what-"

"Please? I promise I'll be back by the time you get to twenty-three, and if I'm not, you can, er, throw the book at me. Okay?"

* * *

_Slow down, hide your eyes  
The sun is setting fire  
Through glass, branches deep  
I cough only to breathe_

* * *

The earnest look in his eyes made me start counting. 

"One."

Harry looked relieved and started running in the direction of the boys' dormitory door.

"Two."

_What is he doing?_

"Three." 

He disappeared, leaving the door slightly ajar as he raced up the stairs.

"Four." 

_I can't breathe._

"Five."

The room was spinning.

"Six."

_That was Cedric's Quidditch number, six._

"Seven."

My fingers were tingling.

"Eight."

_I'm not safe here._

"Nine."

The walls started to close in.

"Ten."

_I need Cedric._

"Eleven."

My eyes landed on the now-empty ink bottle.

"Twelve."

_If I hadn't knocked it over, Harry would never have come down._

"Thirteen."

I realized I was glad Harry had come down.

"Fourteen."

_What if he thinks I'm a monster for the way I started throwing those books?_

"Fifteen."

My arms were shaking from the effort after so many months without Quidditch practice.

"Sixteen."

_I think that's how old Claire is now._

"Seventeen."

I wrapped my arms around my waist.

"Eighteen."

_Cedric never got to turn eighteen._

"Nineteen."

I released my arms.

"Twenty."

_At least I'm not alone in the caves right now._

"Twenty-one."

I realized my fingers weren't quite so tingly.

"Twenty-two."

_I can breathe again._

"Twenty-three."

Harry appeared, the Invisibility Cloak over his arm and wand in his hand.

"Perfect. Good job, Lu, that worked out perfectly," he said, crossing the room in a few long strides as he talked. His words were clipped from barely-restrained emotion. "We're going to the Quidditch Pitch. I'm too angry to think straight, but I want to help, and I think we could both benefit from a bit of Quaffle work."

"H-Harry, I can't, I c-can't throw a-"

"Lucy, those books are infinitely more difficult to throw than any Quaffle." Harry leveled me with a serious look before throwing the cloak over our heads. Under the cloak, eye to eye, we were so close I could see the way the enraged flush in his cheeks was deepening bit by bit. He clenched his jaw and grabbed my hand. "I promised Cedric I would take care of you. This is me keeping that promise. Now let's go figure this out."

* * *

_Trust is quicksand  
Claiming everything I have  
All to give me life, all to give me life  
One thousand more to go  
I'll send every prayer from below_

* * *

We stole silently through the halls of Hogwarts, our footsteps light against the stone as we made our way to the Quidditch Pitch, still hand-in-hand. When we reached the changing tent, we ducked in and shed the cloak. He tossed it into his locker and yanked out his broom. My hands acted of their own accord as I pulled my broom out of my own locker. 

"You go, I'll get the Quaffle," he said.

I didn't need to be told twice.

As soon as my feet hit the grass, I climbed onto my broom and kicked off. I shot straight up into the sky.

_If I go high enough, Cedric, can I find you?_

Before I could find an answer for myself, Harry was beside me, Quaffle under his arm.

"I doubt anyone will see us, but we should probably try to stay low," he said softly.

"Right," I replied, a sense of resigned disappointment creeping into the pit of my stomach. 

It was instantly replaced by anger when I remembered why Harry and I were out on the Quidditch Pitch in the middle of the Merlin-forsaken night.

Harry flew backwards a few feet and tossed the Quaffle at me. "How does he know?"

I tossed it back. "His father. I'm sure of it."

He tossed it back. "Was he one of the people in the caves?"

I tossed it back. "Yes."

We fell into an easy rhythm, back and forth, with nothing but empty space between us. No more invisible barrier. No more unnecessary shield charm. Just us.

"So he knows when you were attacked?"

"Yes."

"Do you think his dad might have been involved ten years ago, too?"

"I doubt it. I've always thought it seems like more of an accident than anything."

"Are you sure?"

"As sure as I can be, Harry, I don't know."

"Alright. Do you think he's told Umbridge?"

"Merlin, I hope not."

"I hope not either, but do you think so?"

"I don't think so."

"Are you sure?"

I held onto the Quaffle for a bit, turning it over in my hands. "I'm not about to ask her and find out, but I think we would know by now if she knew."

"What makes you say that?"

I tossed the Quaffle back to him. "She wouldn't have let me off detentions for a while. I feel like she'd give me detentions every day just to try to keep my temper in check."

"But that's ridiculous, you're not dangerous!"

"I could be."

"No." Harry held onto the Quaffle. "Lucy, don't tell me you honestly believe that."

I bit the inside of my cheek.

* * *

_Slow down, you're all words  
And love is made of yarn, scissors  
A slip of the hand, a slip of the tongue  
God knows I meant no harm, I meant no harm_

* * *

His knuckles turned white as he gripped the ball tighter. "Lucy, I... you're not."

The image of ropes in the Room of Requirement rose to the surface of my mind. The way I'd tried to kill Sirius on Halloween our third year. The way the healers at St. Mungo's always kept a wide radius around me after I'd stayed overnight on full moons for observations or training exercises. 

I shook my head and held my hand out for the Quaffle. "Just pass it back."

He did so reluctantly, his expression unreadable.

I tossed the Quaffle back to him. "But why hasn't he said anything to Umbridge? To anyone, as far as we know?"

"I don't know. Maybe he just found out."

"I find that hard to believe. This happened more than a month ago, and if what happened to my family was a premeditated attack... he's probably known a while."

"So why wait until now to bring it up?"

"I don't know. What do you think?"

"I don't know either."

I sighed and tossed the Quaffle back and forth between my hands. "I suppose I could just ask him tomorrow."

"Ask him? As in, just walk up to him and ask why he hasn't told the entire school?"

"Well, I'd be a bit more tactful than _that_ , Harry," I replied with a tiny smile as I passed the ball back to him. "I just... I don't know. Do you have a better idea?"

He waited a moment for an idea to come before sighing. "No, I guess not."

I glanced up at the stars for half a second. Part of me was hoping to see another osprey, but the night was still and quiet. 

_Cedric would probably have the perfect solution._

I made the mistake of glancing down at the ground.

Then just like that, something changed. 

My breath hitched in my throat, and I couldn't look away from the grass so far below.

"What is it?" Harry asked. His voice sounded distant, much farther away than the ten feet or so he actually was. "Lucy, what is it? Do you see something I can't?"

"We're so high," I managed, dizzy, lightheaded. 

"Lucy, we... we're only half as high as we normally are when we're playing Quidditch. Maybe even less than half."

I didn't reply, my hands growing ever tighter around my broom.

_I can wrap my hands around the object holding me up._

One of my hands slipped, and I gasped as the broom pitched beneath me. 

Harry dropped the Quaffle and sped over, stabilizing my broom with his.

"What is it?"

"We're so high," I said again.

"We're going down," he replied. He swung his leg over the back of my broom and wrapped an arm around my midsection, holding his broom with his other hand as he guided us downward. As soon as our feet hit the grass again, Harry's arm tightened around me as he dropped his broom and kicked mine down. "Are you okay? What just happened?"

I blinked, head spinning still. "I-I don't know what happened. Sorry, I-I don't know why I just... why I..."

"Lucy, you missed my first question." Harry dropped his arm and stepped around so we were eye-to-eye again. "Are you okay?"

My lower lip trembled, and he understood. He grabbed our brooms and gestured for me to follow him. I did, wiping away the rogue tears slipping down my cheeks.

"I-I can put my broom away-"

"I got it," he replied gently, placing it in my locker before heading to his. He tossed the cloak over our heads a minute later and wiped a tear from my cheek with his thumb in the same motion. "Where do you want to go?"

"Back in time," I admitted in a whisper.

I could have sworn I saw his heart breaking. 

The storm within me surged anew, and before I knew it, I was crying again and Harry had his arms wrapped around me again.

We made our way back up to the castle once I managed to stop crying. I had been awake for more than 24 hours at that point, and I was shaking, and my eyes were burning, and everything was wrong. Once we were back through the portrait hole, Harry peeled the cloak off of us, and I half-walked, half-stumbled to the couch, where I sat down heavily and stared into the fire.

Harry sat down beside me, and I buried my face against his chest.

"I don't want to leave," I said after a moment.

"Leave? Lucy, who said anything about leaving?"

"H-Harry, you saw what happened to Professor Lupin when everyone found out about _him_. Once Draco tells everyone about me-"

"You're not leaving."

"B-But Harry, I'm-"

"You're not dangerous."

I wanted to protest. I wanted to tell him exactly how dangerous I was. But I... I couldn't. Harry was the only friend I had who knew everything about me and stayed my friend anyway. Selfishly, I didn't want to lose him.

So instead of protesting, I tried to focus on Harry instead. The gentle weight of his hand on my shoulder. The warmth of his chest against my cheek. 

He was there. He was right there.

* * *

_Anchors in reverse  
Lead us back to birth  
_

_"Quicksand"  
Sleeping At Last_

* * *

HARRY:

Thankfully, she didn't protest. I watched her eyes sink shut, and after a couple of minutes, her shaking slowed a bit. 

"You're the furthest thing from dangerous," I whispered, "and you're not leaving. I promise."

I wasn't sure if she was awake or asleep, because she made no reply, but I was glad I had said something anyway. I held her a little tighter and rested my cheek against the top of her head.

It was late, but I wasn't tired. I was furious.

I had been trying to hold it together for her, trying to keep myself steady so she could feel whatever she needed to feel without holding back on my behalf, trying to do what needed to be done to keep her calm before she exploded from the emotion of it all.

But as soon as I didn't have to put up a strong front anymore, my own emotions started tumbling down like the collapse of a brick wall. 

_Why is Malfoy so determined to make Lucy's life a living hell?_

First the incident on the train, then the completely unmerited detention, then the threatening note and the promise of more horrific detentions. 

_Is it just because he knows she's Muggle-born now?_

I thought back further. He had always gone out of his way to mean to her, come to think of it.

Maxence. Buckbeak. His obsession with comparing her to Cedric.

_Why is Malfoy so determined to make Lucy's life a living hell? Hasn't she been through enough?_

It was late, but I wasn't tired. I was furious.

It wasn't fair that someone so good had to suffer so much. 

My mind wandered, and I found myself fantasizing about all of the new hexes I could use to keep Malfoy quiet. I remembered with a rush that just a couple hours ago, Lucy and I had agreed to teach Ron and Hermione some of that same type of defensive magic, and I then fantasized about all four of us teaming up to keep him quiet.

I was jolted from my wishful thinking by the creaking of a door. I turned my head carefully so I didn't bother Lucy.

"Oh, I'm glad you were here with her," Hermione said, shuffling across the floor in her slippers. "I was worried she'd wandered off alone again."

"Alone? Again? You know she's not supposed to-"

"I know," she interrupted in a whisper, settling in the armchair perpendicular to the couch. "She slipped out last night without waking Lavender or Parvati up, and Ron and I were on patrol, but we didn't see her. I didn't know about it until the Fat Friar found us at the end of our shift. He said he hadn't seen her head back up to the common room, but I correctly assumed she'd just gone down to Hagrid's."

I didn't have a reply, so I just moved my thumb in circles against Lucy's shoulder.

"What happened this time?"

I sighed. "Malfoy knows. Said something in the note this morning — well, yesterday morning, probably, at this time of night — that makes it obvious he knows when she was bitten, which is..."

Hermione's hands flew to her mouth. "And she didn't tell any of us all day?"

"I don't think she realized until after we all went to bed," I said. "I heard what sounded like an ink bottle being knocked over, so I came down to make sure she was okay, and she stared at me for about three seconds before launching herself at me. I grabbed the cloak, and we went down to the Quidditch Pitch for a bit to calm down, we were both bloody pissed about this..."

I remembered how suddenly Lucy had gone from alright to terrified. I had never seen her look like that on a broom. Never.

She had looked... afraid.

Lucy was never afraid on a broom.

_Why is she suddenly so terrified of heights?_

I pushed that thought away, seeing as there was nothing I could do about it at that very moment, and continued on.

"She wants to ask him tomorrow why he hasn't said anything yet, because she reckons he's known for longer than he's let on."

"It wouldn't surprise me... he sat next to her for two years, and he's not dumb- no offense, Harry, I didn't mean-"

"It's fine," I said dismissively, though I'll admit I felt a bit attacked. 

Should I have realized sooner that Lucy was a werewolf? Well, yeah. But, well, I hadn't because, well, I'd never questioned her. She told me she was sick, so I believed her, and that was all there was to it. I wasn't sure if everyone who already knew thought I was stupid, or didn't care, or both, but it wasn't that. I did care, a lot. And yeah, maybe I could have pieced it together like everyone else did, but... well, I hadn't. But I was determined to do as much as I could to help from then on.

"She seems to think she'll have to leave if Malfoy tells anyone," I said after a moment with half of a laugh, expecting Hermione to have the same reaction to something so ridiculous.

But, to the contrary, she bit her lip and nodded.

A fiery mixture of anger and panic immediately flared in my chest. "She's not leaving. She can't."

"Harry... with Umbridge here, it might be safest for her to leave." She saw the look on my face and immediately backtracked. "I don't _want_ her to leave, trust me, it would kill me, but it might be safest-"

"It would be safest for Malfoy to keep his mouth shut," I snapped. "Safest for him, safest for us, safest for her. We wouldn't last a second without her. Do you remember how miserable we all were for those couple of days where we thought she-" The memory was too horrible to even verbalize again. I faltered, fell silent, and tightened my arm around Lucy's shoulders. 

"I remember." Hermione studied Lucy, tears suddenly filling her eyes. "You're right. We'll focus on keeping Malfoy quiet. Then... well, if that fails-"

"It won't. I won't let it. We can't risk losing her again, Hermione, not for real."

She nodded, and a moment passed in silence. 

"I'll stand on the stairs so you can bring her up," she said after a moment. "Her bed would be more comfortable, no offense."

I snorted quietly. "None taken."

I carefully, gently, _carefully_ scooped Lucy up, one arm under her knees and the other behind her shoulders, and crept up the stairs to her dorm. To my surprise, Parvati and Lavender were awake and whispering when I walked in, and I felt my cheeks flush a bit.

"Just thought her bed would be more comfortable than the common room couch," I said awkwardly as I rested Lucy's sleeping form on the bed.

Parvati nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Hermione woke us up in her panicked rush to the common room... is Lucy alright?"

There was a snarky reply on the tip of my tongue as I looked at Lavender and remembered she didn't believe me, just like Seamus. Something along the lines of "Oh yeah, she's swell, her brother being murdered by Voldemort is definitely on her list of top five best life experiences." But I didn't say any of that.

I could see from the look on her face as she stared at Lucy that even though Lavender might not believe me, she sure cared a lot about Lucy. Parvati, too.

Everyone did, really, or... well, almost everyone. Everyone worth being loved _by_ loved Lucy.

_How can Lucy possibly think she's dangerous when there are so many people who love her so much?_

"She will be," I replied in complete confidence. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey everyone! I'm so so so sorry this is late. I 100% intended for this chapter to be posted on Wednesday, but my mental health said "Nope" and peaced out for the week. Just the same, thank you for reading and sticking with me through everything! I hope you still enjoyed this chapter. :)


	117. Shadows Stretch Behind the Truth

_God knows that I've been naïve  
But I think it makes Him proud of me  
Now it's so hard to separate  
My disappointments from His name_

_Because shadows stretch behind the truth  
Where stained glass offers broken clues  
And fear ties knots and pulls them tight  
It leaves us paralyzed_

* * *

LUCY:

When I opened my eyes again, the sun was in the sky and I was in my dormitory.

"Oh, good, you're awake. Harry was about to run up here and make sure you were still alive."

"What?" I sat up groggily and turned toward the source of the voice. Lavender and Parvati were giggling as they tightened each other's ties.

"Yeah, he's down there with Hermione now," Lavender said, checking her hair in the mirror one last time. "Anyway, we were just about to wake you ourselves, you should probably get dressed for class."

"Are you feeling alright?" Parvati asked. "Sounds like you had a rough night."

"I, er, I'm fine," I replied as I scrambled out of bed and reached for my school uniform. "When did I, er, get up here? I fell asleep in the common room, I-I think."

"You did. Hermione realized in the middle of the night you never went to bed and ran down to the common room, then a couple of minutes later, Harry carried you up while Hermione stood on the stairs to make sure he didn't tumble down with you in his arms."

I froze. "Wait, you mean he- Harry- he _what_?"

Lavender smiled impishly. "Yeah, well, we thought it was adorable. After we knew you were okay, of course. Hermione just said you had fallen asleep in the common room and Harry was waiting for a girl to come downstairs to let him bring you up."

"Sounds about right," I mumbled, feeling my cheeks flush. _Thank Merlin for Hermione and the lies she can generate on the spot._ "Merlin, I am _never_ going to live this down, am I?"

"It was adorable," Parvati reiterated with a smile. "Now go, change, we'll go tell Harry you are in fact alive and on your way."

"Thanks!" I squeaked, ducking into the bathroom to change. 

I studied myself in the mirror as I tightened my tie. My face was still bright red.

"You can't just fall asleep on Harry's shoulder," I whispered harshly to myself. "Y-You just can't, it's not fair to him, he's been through even more than you have, you-you have to hold it together for him."

Even as I said it, I was struck with how ridiculous that was. Harry might have shut himself off from me, but as I had proven the night before, I could never do that to him. I had only lasted a couple of days with the barrier in place before something catastrophic happened that made me tear it down and go running back into his arms, which were still open for me. I hoped they always would be.

_But what would I have done if he hadn't come down?_

I shook my head as I tied off my ponytail.

_To try to keep him out is undeniably self-destructive. He knows more about me than anyone else in the world._

I studied myself in the mirror for a second longer. "Why can't you just let him love you?"

I didn't wait for an answer. I knew I didn't have one. Well... not a good one, anyway.

I hurried down to the common room with my bookbag thrown over my shoulder. It was full of fellow Gryffindors heading down to breakfast, but I spotted Harry immediately.

"Sleep well?" he asked with a sincere tone and teasing grin. 

"I was rather disoriented waking up this morning," I replied as my cheeks heated, "but yeah, actually, I did."

He grew more serious as we headed down to the Great Hall. "Wait, really?"

I realized that he had kept the nightmares at bay. 

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm surprised too."

He half-laughed. "Er, well, brilliant."

"Yeah." Up ahead through the crowd of people filtering into the Great Hall, I spotted platinum blond hair. I recalled with a rush the whole reason the night before had gone so horribly wrong. "Bloody hell, there he is."

Harry followed my gaze and nodded. "Now is as good a time as any, if you're up for it." When I didn't answer, he glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. "You alright?"

"No," I replied with an honesty that surprised even myself. Just the same, I tightened my ponytail and squared my shoulders. "But I'd rather know than spend another minute wondering about it, because I've been operating on a worst-case scenario basis for almost three months now and- and-" I faltered, throat constricting at the thought of everything that had gone so horribly wrong in those three months, but I swallowed past the bitterness and sorrow and lifted my chin. "And I'm going to find out what exactly I'm up against."

"You know I- well, _we_ wouldn't let you leave, right?" Harry asked, turning to face me fully.

I bit my lip. "I'd rather it not come to that-"

"But you know we wouldn't let you go anywhere, right?" he asked more urgently. When I hesitated a second longer, he rubbed his jaw. "We wouldn't. Trust me." He held my eyes for another moment, expression unreadable, before glancing over my shoulder. "You'd better catch him now. Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, no, if he knows that you know-" I shook my head vehemently. "I'm not going to tell him that anyone knows. It could put you all in danger too."

Without waiting for a protest, I turned on my heel and wove through the crowd.

"Draco!" I called. When he didn't acknowledge me, I gritted my teeth and switched tactics. "Malfoy!"

That got his attention, and he turned around as if he'd been expecting me. 

"Can we talk? Alone? It's about, er, detention."

He smirked and shrugged. "Why not? Let's go."

He peeled himself away from Pansy Parkinson and the other Slytherins and gestured for me to follow him into an empty hallway. I felt my heartbeat quicken with each passing moment, but it was too late for me to back down. I needed answers.

Once I confirmed that we were in fact alone, I fixed him with my most intense gaze. "About the note you sent me yesterday... you know, don't you?"

"Know what?"

I bit back a frustrated huff. "I know you know. So why haven't you told everyone yet?"

He leaned up against the wall. "What a fascinating question you've asked. Do you really not have a clue?"

"Please, I don't want to play your games right now, Draco. Why haven't you completely ruined my life yet?"

"I haven't needed to. You've done an excellent job ruining it yourself without my help."

I froze. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Merlin, Diggory, Everlin, Scars, _whatever_ , you should have seen the way everyone looked at you when you threatened me on the train. Poor Longbottom was terrified of you!"

My stomach dropped. I hadn't meant to scare Neville.

"And then within 24 hours, you'd shouted at a teacher and landed yourself in detention," he continued. "You've made it exceptionally easy."

"If I've done such a great job of ruining my own life, why'd you get me another detention?"

He smiled. "If _that's_ your biggest concern, I can go tell Umbridge right now-"

"No!" I swallowed my panic back. "No, no, don't, it-it's fine."

His smile widened. "I haven't needed to ruin your life yet. Try not to give me a reason. For now, I'm satisfied with the detentions to remind you what you are: a monster and a liar." He puffed his chest a bit. "I, on the other hand, am a prefect and the son of one of the most respected members of the Ministry. It's not like we've ever been on equal footing, now, has it?"

I shook my head, unable to find the words to reply properly.

"As long as you remember that, I think this could stay our little secret, don't you think?"

"Sure," I managed after a moment. 

Malfoy raised his eyebrows at me. "I will say, Diggory, Everlin, Scars, whatever... you're a hell of a good liar. Better than I would have thought possible for someone like you."

I huffed a humorless laugh. "I don't know if you mean that as a compliment, but considering my life literally depends on my ability to keep a secret-" I laughed again, shaking my head. I trembled with the rage I was barely holding back. "For what it's worth, you're a great liar, too, landing me in detention for something I didn't even do."

"Would you have done it, though?" Oddly enough, I didn't see malice in his eyes in that moment. Just genuine curiosity and amusement. "Would you actually have attacked me?"

"No." I shook my head. "No, I wouldn't have. I was plenty angry, sure, but contrary to popular belief, I'd rather not hurt anyone else if I can help it, since sometimes I physically _can't_ help it."

"Have you ever hurt anyone?"

Again. Curiosity. No more amusement. 

I shook my head. "Of course not. I'm too careful for that." I adjusted my bag on my shoulder. "Just so we're clear... I don't give you a reason to ruin my life, you keep the secret to yourself?"

Malfoy smirked. "Works for me."

"And I know you'll keep your word because...?"

"Because my father wants me to. You never know when you'll need a favor from someone. Besides, I won't be able to properly compare you to Cedric after another two years have gone by-"

I sucked in a sharp breath, glaring as his smirk deepened, and turned on my heel before he could see the tears in my eyes.

* * *

HARRY:

Malfoy appeared first, alone, and a familiar flicker of fear sparked to life in the pit of my stomach. I was about to jump up and find Lucy when she appeared, her face discolored. I couldn't say she was pale or she was flushed, because she was somehow both simultaneously — I could just tell from a single glance that she felt terrible and not in the slightest bit relieved, the way I hoped she'd be. 

My optimism had not been rewarded. But then again, had my optimism _ever_ been rewarded?

"She looks horrible," Ginny commented, earning herself a swat on the arm from Hermione. "What? Leaving it unsaid doesn't make it untrue."

"Merlin, remind me what day it is?" Lucy asked with a sigh as she slid in between the twins. 

"Thursday," George answered. He looked concerned as he turned to her. "Are you feeling alright?"

She nodded, reaching for a piece of toast for the first time at breakfast since before the full moon. "I'm alright. I just didn't sleep well two nights ago then slept surprisingly well last night, so the past few days have been a blur." She sighed. "Bloody hell, Saturday is really two whole days away?"

"Yeah, sorry, Cub," Fred replied. 

I caught Lucy's eye, asking an unspoken question, but she shook her head subtly. I understood it to mean _I'll tell you later_.

Fortunately, our first class of the day was History of Magic, so the two of us had plenty of time to talk in hushed whispers — we weren't terribly interested in the Medieval Assembly of European Wizards, no offense to Professor Binns. Come to think of it, Lucy wasn't even European, technically speaking.

_Merlin, this will certainly take a while to truly grasp. How did Lucy manage without falling apart two years ago, when she was figuring this all out for herself?_

I almost asked her, but then I remembered Malfoy.

"So why has he kept it a secret?" I asked under my breath.

"A couple of reasons," she replied after a moment. "First he told me it's because I've done a decent job ruining my life without his help-" Anger surged in me. What happened to Lucy wasn't her fault. "-but toward the end, when I asked how I could trust him to actually keep my secret, he mentioned that his father wanted him to keep it secret for now because, and I quote, 'you never know when you'll need a favor from someone.'"

"What favor could Malfoy possibly need from you? And, even more importantly, why does he think you would owe him one? And, wait, why does he think you'd actually do him a favor in the first place?"

Lucy winced.

"Sorry," I said quickly, "that was a lot all at once. I'm just trying to understand."

"I know." Lucy nodded and sighed. "I don't know what he could want from me. He thinks I owe him one because he's currently keeping my secret, one that could ruin my life if it got out."

"Why does he think you'd do him a favor after all of the times he's gone out of his way to hurt you?"

She cocked her head, as if it should be obvious. "Because he's keeping my secret."

"So? You don't owe him anything, Lucy, not after everything he's done to you."

"He's keeping my secret," she said again, slowly, deliberately.

"I know," I replied in the same tone. "You don't owe him anything."

"You don't understand," she muttered, looking back up toward the front of the room, as if the conversation was over.

"No, Lu, I think you're the one who doesn't understand," I pressed in an urgent whisper. "You were the same way this morning when I mentioned the way we wouldn't let you leave. What is it that you don't understand about just how much you're worth to the people who care about you?"

Lucy stiffened. 

_Did I finally get through to her?_ I wondered to myself. I bit my lip. _Or did I make it worse? Was I too harsh? I didn't mean to be, I just don't understand how she can't see-_

"I don't _want_ to leave," she whispered after a moment, her voice strained. She still didn't look at me. "But I don't want to put anyone in danger either."

"You're not dangerous, Lu," I said, intentionally making my voice more gentle. I found her knee with mine under the table. "Did Malfoy say you were? Because if he did-"

"Can we talk about this later?" she asked, turning to me just long enough to let me see the tears.

"Of course," I whispered right away. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"It's not you," she interrupted. "It's not your fault. I-I'm just..." She leaned back against her chair and rubbed the back of her neck. "It's not your fault." She reached for her quill and started scribbling down the notes on the blackboard.

That, I realized, was the true end of the conversation.

* * *

_But in the end, such tired words will rest  
The truth will reroute the narrow things they've said  
The marionette strings will lower and untie  
And out of the ashes, love will be realized_

* * *

LUCY: 

Harry and I didn't get another chance to talk uninterrupted and alone until after his detention that night. The one good night of sleep had finally reset my sleep schedule, so I wasn't as tired as I had been the night before. The common room slowly emptied as I held a textbook with my uninjured hand and soaked my injured one in the essence of murtlap. When Harry finally came through the portrait hole and collapsed into the chair perpendicular to mine, I pushed the other bowl in his direction, closed my book, and laid my head on top of it.

"Are you doing alright?" I asked, knowing the answer but wanting to ask anyway.

He dipped his bleeding hand into the bowl and nodded. "Better now."

I nodded in response.

He cracked a smile as the book moved along with my head. "Tired?"

"Mmm." I considered my answer for a moment. "Yes, but not really in a way sleep can fix."

His smile faded slowly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean..." I lifted my head and glanced at my hand, still in the bowl it had been in for hours. I pulled it out and flexed my fingers a couple of times. "No matter how long I soak this, it still hurts when I pull it out."

"But it will heal eventually," Harry said.

I nodded, looking down. "And when it does, I'll have to go back and carve it in again."

"And it will heal again."

"I know it will, but..."

"But what?"

I didn't answer. I just stared at my mess of a hand, a couple of thoughts lurking in the darkest corners of my mind. 

"But what, Lu?"

I inhaled slowly, exhaling even more slowly. "Wouldn't it just be easier if it all stopped? If I could just push it all down and pick it all back up again when I'm ready?" I hazarded a glance at Harry. I don't know what I hoped to see, but what I saw was a gentle, if fearful, curiosity. He didn't speak, leaving room in the silence for me to go on. So I did. "I don't think I'm ready to heal yet."

A flash of alarm. Still he didn't speak. He left room for me in the silence.

I had always confined myself to corners and window seats, hidden behind closed doors and in darkness. I hated taking up more space than I thought I was worth. 

But there he was, creating silence he intended for me to fill.

Like I was worth that space.

I drew a shaky breath. "I'm sorry."

"Why?"

"Because I know everyone's just waiting for me to feel better again," I whispered. "I know everything would be so much easier for everyone if I could just stop shaking and act like everything's fine, because it's not like there's anything I can do to change what's already happened, the damage is done-"

"Hey," he interrupted gently, nudging my foot with his under the table. His voice shook the slightest bit. His face was pale. He was shaken by my confession. He was trying to stay steady for me. Part of me appreciated that because I knew he meant well; part of me wanted him to let me see exactly how he was feeling so I didn't have to sit here wondering if I had hurt him more than he wanted to let on. "Of course we want you to feel better again, but none of us want you to feel like you have to pretend for our sakes. I mean, _Merlin_ , Lu, after everything, it's okay. More than okay. As long as you don't give up," he added with a searching look.

I nodded, glancing down as I felt tears once again shoot to my eyes. "I-I'm just tired."

"I know." He nudged my foot again, and I looked back up at him. His expression somehow grew even more sorrowful, which made me feel even worse, and I couldn't blink back the tears fast enough. He looked like he was searching for something to say but coming up empty.

I couldn't blame him. I wouldn't have known what to say to me either. 

I crossed my arms on the table and laid my head in the crook of my elbow. The storm raged. Each raindrop that fell carried with it something more threatening. Whispers of the darkest corners of my soul, the parts that had become bitter, the parts that had become cynical, the parts that he become nihilistic, the parts that seemed to say "You are nothing, nothing but a monster," the parts that seemed to say "You deserve nothing and no one," the parts that wanted me to let it hurt and never heal, the parts that wanted me to give up.

Harry's chair scraped a bit against the hardwood floor, and half a second later, his hand was on my shoulder, his thumb drawing small circles over the thin white stripes of scars that hid just beneath my robes. 

Just like that, it was like he had stepped up next to me with an umbrella.

For a moment, the thoughts couldn't touch me.

Still the storm raged. But just like that, for a moment, I was safe anyway.

* * *

_God knows that we've been naïve  
And a bit nearsighted to say the least  
It's broken glass at children's feet  
That gets swept aside unexpectedly_

_"Naïve"  
Sleeping At Last_


	118. Truth or Dare

HARRY:

To our continued surprise, Malfoy didn't ruin her life.

I finished out my week of detention, then Hermione's birthday was upon us.

I had been trying to keep a closer eye on Lucy without her noticing. I didn't like the sound of "I don't think I'm ready to heal yet." I hadn't told anybody else what she said, though, not yet. 

So, when the sound of an Exploding Snap game made her knuckles whiten against her glass of butterbeer in the common room that night, I noticed immediately. I didn't say anything, not wanting to draw attention to it since no one else had seen anything amiss, but I did jump up and wedge myself between her and George to remind her I was there and always would be.

I then offered the wildest distraction I could possibly imagine, before she could spiral into memories of the caves, or of Cedric, or of anything else. It was Hermione's birthday, it was a party, and she was going to enjoy it as far as I could help it.

"Who wants to play truth or dare?"

Six heads snapped in my direction.

"I mean," Hermione said slowly with a glance in Lucy's direction, "I would be up for it if everyone else is."

"Yeah," Ginny echoed with a glance at Lucy as well, "me too."

Beside me, Lucy chugged the rest of her butterbeer, tightened her ponytail, and grinned. "I'm in."

Her announcement sent Fred scrambling up to their dormitory for the gummies, and when he returned approximately ten seconds later, the game was underway.

"You first, birthday girl!" George announced, holding both bags out to Hermione. Unsurprisingly, she reached for the truth candy and popped it in her mouth.

"I've got a question!" Ginny said. She leaned forward and asked in a stage whisper, "Have you ever cheated on an exam?"

"No, of course not!"

Ginny looked distinctly put out. "Not even once?"

Hermione shook her head. "Of course not. I don't need to."

"Very true, Granger, very true!" George held the bags out to Ginny next. "Your turn."

"Dare, obviously," she said with a roll of her eyes. 

Ginny had to do a backflip over Angelina. Angelina confessed that if she and Fred weren't together, she'd be dating a Ravenclaw named Matthew. Ron had to do his best Irish jig in front of Lavender and Parvati. Fred had to sing a duet with the Fat Lady. George, not about to be outdone, had to sing a duet with Sir Cadogan. 

After that performance, I opted for truth. I didn't want to have to sing with a portrait, funny enough.

The second the candy was in my mouth, Ginny fixed me with an intense yet amused look. "Tell us, Harry, who do you fancy?"

"Cho Chang," I replied automatically. I felt my face flame in response to the variety of reactions around me. Ginny looked disappointed. Angelina laughed. Ron looked surprised for half a second then shrugged. Fred grimaced. George rolled his eyes. Hermione bit her lip. Lucy's face was a perfect blank. I chuckled uncomfortably. "I thought that was common knowledge, though, Ginny. Why d'you ask?"

"Interesting," she said in response, avoiding my question entirely as she turned to Lucy. "You're next. Truth or dare?"

Lucy shrugged. "Truth, I guess." She reached into the bag, tossed the gummy candy into her mouth, and started chewing.

"Alright, your turn! Who do you fancy, Lucy?"

"No one at the moment," she said without a moment's hesitation. 

Ginny's eyebrows shot up, and Hermione choked on the butterbeer she had just tried to drink.

Fred reached for the bag and inspected the contents with George. "There's got to be something wrong! Cub, what the hell did you do to these?"

Lucy laughed. "I didn't do anything. I told the truth." 

Ginny snatched the bag back from the twins and wrestled out another candy. "I don't believe you. You did something. Do it again. Maybe the double dosage will get it out of you."

"I didn't do anything," Lucy said again, but she obliged and made quite the show of chewing and swallowing the candy.

"Who do you fancy, Lucy?"

"No one at the moment," she repeated in the same voice as the first time. She shrugged and looked around with an amused smile. "Why are you all looking at me like that?"

I glanced around. Surely enough, everyone in the circle was looking at Lucy with undeniable confusion. Everyone, that is, except me. I wasn't confused at all, seeing she'd never seemed to fancy anybody before. Just the same, I had the distinct feeling I was missing something based on everyone else's apparent surprise. 

George was the first to answer, an uneasy smile on his face. "That's a new answer."

Lucy raised her eyebrows at him. "Meaning?"

"Nobody's ever given that answer before," he said with a shrug. "Not even you. Anyway, Hermione, it's your turn again. Truth or dare?"

The feeling I had missed something grew more intense, but I didn't have time to dwell on it. Round two was even more wild than the first, including a joint dare where Fred and Angelina had to switch clothes for the rest of the round and a dare that involved Ron attempting to apply his own lipstick with his feet. 

Lucy and I both wised up and chose dare on the second round. My dare was to hold a handstand long enough for Ron to take a picture — he took his sweet time with the camera, of course — and Lucy's was to talk in a high-pitched voice until her next turn. She kept doing it through the third, fourth, and fifth rounds too, because it was hilarious. She was laughing just as hard as the rest of us, and it was honestly so great to see. 

We played until we exhausted the supply of candies and we realized just how late it was. The common room started to empty bit by bit, but I still had an Astronomy essay to finish, so once Hermione and Lucy headed up to their dormitory, I headed up to mine to get my book and charts.

* * *

LUCY:

I would have liked to stay up with Harry and maybe helping with his essay, but Hermione seemed like she wanted to talk to me, so I followed her up to the dormitory. She wasted no time before beginning the interrogation, half-laughing as she shook her head at me.

"How did you do that? I know there's veritaserum in those. Are you immune to veritaserum? Is that it? Even if you didn't want to say Harry, you could have at least thrown out a name to make it more believable!"

"I'm not immune to veritaserum," I said. 

"What did you do, then?"

"Nothing." 

Hermione's smile faded as she stared at me. "Did Harry do something?"

I shook my head emphatically. "He didn't do anything."

"So what changed between you two?"

"Nothing."

"Lucy-"

"Hermione, I mean it, nothing changed between us."

"Obviously something did, you wouldn't have hesitated six months ago-"

"I can think of a couple of things that have changed in the past six months, Hermione," I said in a strained voice.

She bit her lip. "Lucy, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"It's okay," I interrupted, shaking my head. "Don't worry about it. Harry and I are just fine, though, really."

"Are you sure, Lucy?"

"Positive." I smiled and held out my wrist with the charm bracelet. "See? We're fine."

Hermione nodded reluctantly. "I-I will say, Lucy... when George pulled that out of his pocket, we — Harry — we all..." Sudden tears appeared in her eyes, and I rushed forward to hug her. She clung to me, trembling under the weight of the memory. "S-Sorry, I-I really try not to think about it too much, but sometimes I-I just-"

"It's okay," I whispered. "I'm okay. It's okay. I'm okay."

"No, you're not. Don't try to tell me you're- you're- Lucy, you're not."

I held her tighter. "Mione, please listen to me. I had so much fun tonight playing truth or dare. This is the happiest I've felt in... I don't know exactly. For now at least, I'm okay."

"Really?" she asked, pulling away and hurriedly scrubbing at her cheeks.

"Really." 

Hermione gnawed on her lower lip for a second as if she were debating whether or not to say something. When she hesitated a moment too long for it to be comfortable, I filled the silence as best I could.

"Besides, you heard Harry. He fancies Cho, not me."

"I was just about to tell you I'm not quite so sure about that," she burst out, speaking quickly and excitedly. "I think maybe in such small doses, veritaserum only reveals what the person thinks is true."

"What do you mean?"

"Lucy, you didn't see how Harry was for those couple of days we thought you might be dead or dying." She nodded to the bracelet. "That never left his pocket after George gave it to him. And when we all found out about it, well, Harry went off a bit, shouting about how it wasn't fair that it was you of all people and that type of thing."

"And how was he for, you know, the days between that and me coming back?" I asked shyly. 

"Lucy, I've never seen him act like that, ever."

"Like what?"

She pursed her lips, searching for the right description. "It was like someone had sucked the light out of him, when you were taken away."

* * *

HARRY:

When I came back down to the common room, Ginny was staring into the fire with her arms crossed and lips pursed.

"Everything alright, Ginny?" I asked as I set my books down and settling into a chair, seeing as it was just the two of us in the common room.

"I'm not sure. I don't think so." She turned on her heel and flopped down into the chair across from me. She put her feet up on the table and dragged a hand down her face. "Lucy talks to you, right?"

I blinked. "Yeah, of course she does."

"She _actually_ talks to you? About something other than school and the weather and whatnot?"

"Er, yeah. Yeah, we talk." 

"Hrmph."

She fell silent for a while, lost in her own thoughts, so I reached for a quill and started working on the essay. I had just started my second paragraph when she spoke again.

"Cho Chang, huh?"

I glanced up, stretching my fingers after writing for so long. "Yeah, Cho Chang. Why?"

Ginny shook her head and pushed herself to her feet. "Something's wrong with those candies. Good night, Harry."

"Night," I called as she disappeared, but I was thoroughly baffled by the conversation I'd just had, if one could even call it a conversation.

I returned to my essay after a moment. As I started writing again, I realized Lucy had been happier playing truth or dare than she had been in a long time. The thought made me smile.

* * *

LUCY:

Even after I had showered and climbed into bed and wished Hermione one last "Happy birthday," I couldn't sleep. My mind was racing.

I had known in the back of my mind I didn't feel quite the same way about Harry. But, well, if I was being honest with myself, I didn't feel quite the same way about anything anymore.

It wasn't like the way Harry apparently felt for those days I was gone. It wasn't like a dementor, which sucked everything out of me and left me feeling empty. I could still feel emotions, in an all-consuming way that swept over me like a sudden storm, but those emotions were... only anger or sadness, it seemed.

It was like the anger and sadness were all I knew anymore. My emotions were such a constant back-and-forth war, from one extreme to the other and back again without the slightest warning, that I didn't have the capacity to feel anything else.

That was why I was so surprised by how happy I was at Hermione's party, really. It was like I had somehow found the tiniest ray of sun peeking through the clouds even as the storm whipped me back and forth and back and forth and back and forth. I couldn't feel it, but I could see it. I believed that one day, maybe I _would_ feel it. Maybe one day, it would find me.

But for that night, I could see it. And that was alright.

I wanted to cling to it, that tiny ray of sun, but even as I lay there, I could see the clouds converging again. I could feel it. I closed my eyes, bracing for the storm to surge again, and before I knew it, I was asleep.

* * *

HARRY:

Eventually, I wrapped up my Astronomy essay. I made my way back up to the dormitory, and to my surprise, I wasn't the only one awake.

Neville glanced up from his book and waved cheerfully. I waved back and shoved my materials into my trunk. I disappeared into the bathroom to change into pajamas, and Neville joined me a couple minutes later.

"Realized I forgot to brush my teeth," he admitted with a somewhat sheepish grin.

"Happens to the best of us," I said as I reached for my own toothbrush.

Neville glanced at me in the mirror. "Lucy seemed happy tonight."

I nodded as I squeezed the peppermint toothpaste from the tube. "I noticed the same thing."

"Did you notice that she was shaking less?"

"Come to think of it, you're right. She was."

He smiled and nodded. "She's getting better, I think."

"I hope so," I replied. "Merlin, I sure hope so."

* * *

LUCY:

Falling.

In rapid succession, all of Cedric's birthdays, at least the ones to which I had borne witness.

Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven. Twelve.

The screaming wind whistled around me, growing louder and louder by the second.

Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifteen. Sixteen. Seventeen.

The searing wind tore at my skin, growing fiercer and fiercer by the second.

Just when I couldn't take it anymore, a new sound, a new sensation.

A splash.

Force that knocked the wind from my lungs. 

Water so cold it burned my skin.

Nothing but darkness before my eyes.

Sinking.

Sinking.

Sinking.

Sinking.


	119. Little Author's Note

Hi everyone.

I'm so sorry, this isn't an update. I know I'm supposed to update tomorrow, but long story short, I'm typing this in the aftermath a thirty-minute panic attack. A family situation has come up that's stirring up a lot of repressed trauma, and while I have part of Chapter 119 written, I don't think I'll be okay soon enough to be able to a good update tomorrow. 

I'm going to push Chapter 119 back to next Wednesday, February 17. Hopefully over the course of the next week I'm able to finally find a bit of closure and peace of mind. Thank you so much for being patient with me through all of my ups and downs. I really do my best to be as consistent as possible and keep writing no matter what life throws my way, like when my best friend left for a while and my dog passed, but this time, I know that if I keep writing, it won't be anywhere near the quality you all deserve.

Since I left you all on a bit of a cliffhanger in Chapter 118, I'll provide a little bit of my plan for the next couple of chapters at the end of this, and you can choose whether or not you want to read it. I'll be sure to put plenty of space between the end of this note and the start of the summary so you can avoid spoilers if you'd prefer to wait for next Wednesday, but for those of you who would like a little extra insight into the story and my plans moving forward, I didn't reveal anything major about my timeline or any specific plot points, just overarching themes and ideas.

Thank you all for being so understanding with me and for sticking with me through everything! You all mean the world to me, and I'm so sorry to disappoint you all with this. I'll be back next Wednesday with Chapter 119, and I hope to be able to resume my Wednesday-Saturday updating schedule then.

Love always, @wheremyarmorends

* * *

Mild spoilers ahead!

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Mild spoilers ahead!

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Mild spoilers ahead!

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Alright, if you've scrolled this far, you must want to see, so here you go:

Chapter 119 will be written from all four perspectives. Henry and George will both be recruiting students for the DA after Hermione talks to each at breakfast one morning about her idea. Harry and Lucy will be in their own little world, Harry trying to take care of Lucy and Lucy doing her best just to get by.

Lucy's dream was symbolic. Whereas in her other dreams, she was just falling deeper and deeper into grief ("Falling. Falling. Falling."), she's now made contact with the surface of it (the splash and the sinking). Her grief for Cedric has really been delayed by the trauma of being kidnapped and her fight for survival, but now that she's safe and she knows it, she's free to grieve the way she wasn't before. The storm within her is no longer a war between anger and sadness — she's sinking in her grief, unable to feel the storm above for now.

But don't worry. Lucy's broken the barrier that separated her from Harry. The only problem left between the two is that he's trying so hard to help her he's blind to his own unresolved trauma and how it might affect Lucy. Lucy will see this, and want to help, but every time she tries, he's going to pull away because he feels that letting her help him would be counterproductive to him helping her. However, once he FINALLY realizes that if they're going to survive they're going to need each other equally, they will begin to reach a level in their relationship where they can start to love the other person as more than just a best friend. But first, they need to be honest.

Chapter 120 will be the meeting in the Hog's Head, and then from there, the Order of the Phoenix timeline will really get going. I'm excited to share this all within you in a week, and I hope you'll all join me then. Thank you to those of you who read this far, and I hope the little bit of insight I've shared here helps make the wait a little more bearable. Love you all.


	120. The Coasts of Hit or Miss

A/N: Hey everyone! I hope you've all been alright this past week! Thank you so much for your patience with me and for all of your kind words. You're the best, truly.

Well, before you begin, this is your warning that this chapter will be a tad confusing on purpose. You might want to read it a time or two so you get everything. Essentially, Henry and George will have parallel timelines, and Harry and Lucy will have parallel timelines, so make of that what you will. And... I'm sorry. Let's begin!

* * *

HENRY:

The second I arrived in the Great Hall, someone filled the seat across the table and slammed a book down.

"I hear you're great at Transfiguration," Hermione Granger said loudly. "Would you mind helping me?"

"Er, no, not at all," I replied.

"I can't quite make sense of this sentence, right here." She pointed to something in the book that certainly didn't belong in a Transfiguration textbook.

_If Harry and Lucy led a club of sorts to teach people Defense Against the Dark Arts, would you join?_

I glanced up at Granger. Her eyes were bright, expectant.

She lowered her voice. "We're not learning anything of use. With You-Know-Who out there, we've agreed it would be wise to be as prepared as possible. Just a group of trustworthy people who want to learn what Umbridge isn't teaching us."

"Good old PVT herself," I remarked, remembering George's hilarious nickname of Pink Venomous Tentacula. "I'm in." I glanced at the note again. "If Lucy wants her brother's notes from the Tournament, I remember packing them in his trunk when I... well, they're in his trunk. I'm sure I could get my parents to go to her house and send them our way."

"That would be great! Harry's good, of course, but I reckon Cedric was far better prepared, being two years older and all."

I nodded, offering her a small smile. "Cedric was always prepared. That's- well, that's part of why it's still so hard to believe sometimes."

"We won't have any more losses like Cedric," she said firmly. "Not if we can say anything about it."

"Hear, hear," I replied with a tip of my pumpkin juice.

"If you know any other trustworthy people who would be interested, would you mind asking if they'd join too? I'll be talking to as many people as I can, myself, but I think you would reach different people than I would."

I nodded. "Sure thing, Hermione. Perfect timing, really, a group of us have a free period this morning."

"Perfect! Thank you! Oh, wait, there are the Weasley twins! I need to talk to them, too! Bye, Henry!"

"Bye," I called after her, but she was already hurtling toward the twins, book wedged under her arm.

* * *

GEORGE:

Hermione rushed over to where we were sitting, looking awfully glad to see us for some reason. 

My first thought was of Lucy, since Hermione was alone.

"What's the rush, Granger?" Fred asked with a teasing grin. "Got a burning desire to try one of our products?"

"Is Lucy alright?" I asked, far more seriously.

"Yes, yes, she's fine, she was still asleep when I left the dorm," she replied. "Listen, if Lucy and Harry taught a group of us Defense Against the Dark Arts, would you join in?"

We snorted in unison.

"Obviously," Fred retorted.

She cracked a grin. "I was hoping I could count on you. Would you mind telling a couple of other trustworthy people about it? Angelina and Alicia and Lee, maybe? Anyone else in your classes who might be interested?"

"Your wish is our command, Prefect Granger," I said with so much formality her small grin gave way to a real giggle. 

* * *

LUCY:

When I opened my eyes, it felt as if I hadn't slept. As if I had been fighting all night. As if I had actually fallen into the deepest, darkest water, as if I had been struggling against the tide for the past several hours, as if every moment of sleep had been lost to something else.

I felt heavy.

I felt horrible. 

I let my eyes sink shut again and pulled the blankets tighter around my chin even though I could see sunlight filtering through one of the cracks in the curtains around my bed. I waited for sleep to take me away again, hopefully somewhere more restful, but the curtains parted first.

"Sorry, Lucy, but you should probably get up now," Parvati said softly. 

I pulled a blanket over my head and nodded. "Okay. Thanks."

"Are you alright?" Lavender asked as her weight settled toward the end of my bed. 

I nodded again. "I'm alright. Go on without me, I'll be down at breakfast in a minute."

"If you're sure," Parvati said slowly.

I lowered my blanket from my face and nodded, still not opening my eyes. "I'm getting up."

Apparently convinced, they left and I was alone. I shielded my eyes against the morning sun as I pushed myself to my feet.

My head was spinning. 

_What do I need to do?_

I closed my eyes again and managed a small sigh. Opening my eyes required no small amount of effort, and I moved as if through molasses through some semblance of my morning routine. Slipping my nightgown over my head. Socks, one foot at a time. Skirt. Shirt, leaving a couple of buttons undone at the bottom because my robes covered them anyway. I draped my tie around my neck and pulled my hair up into a ponytail in the same motion. I managed to run a brush through it a couple of times before it grew too heavy. I dropped my nightgown on my bed and grabbed my bookbag and shoved my feet into my shoes and sighed again before making my way down the stairs.

* * *

HARRY:

I was just about to run up the stairs and check on Lucy myself when she appeared.

_What happened to her?_

I noticed her eyes first. Gone was the light of the night before. Gone was the light, period. 

She lifted her chin a bit in greeting. 

"Well, there you are," Ron said with a rather forced smile when he saw Lucy. "We were afraid something was wrong."

Lucy shook her head and shrugged. I noticed her tie second, hanging limply around her neck.

Ron and I all exchanged a brief panicked look, but if Lucy saw it, she didn't say anything.

Ginny bounded down the stairs, screeching to a breathless halt behind Lucy. She grinned. "Are we all running late today? Excellent! I thought I would be the only one left. I'm starving. Let's go!"

She walked toward the portrait hole, and the rest of us followed suit. I hung back a bit to walk with Lucy, who still hadn't spoken. I wasn't quite sure what to say, myself. Aside from her eyes and her tie, nothing seemed amiss. I didn't think anything had happened the night before that had made her like this; I had just spoken with Neville about how much better she seemed. 

I was baffled.

I couldn't do anything about the light in her eyes, but her tie I could fix. Just before we got to the Great Hall, I reached for her shoulder and spun her around a bit to face me and ducked into a quiet hallway. I managed a bit of a grin, a weak attempt to mask my concern.

"Forget about your tie?" I said as teasingly as I could.

I expected her to blush, but she didn't. She glanced down and nodded a bit, reaching up to tie it. 

I noticed her hands weren't shaking.

I grinned for real. "Hey, look at that!"

She blinked and glanced up at me, slowly twisting the fabric in her hands. "Hm?"

"Your hands," I said. "They're not shaking."

Lucy's brow furrowed, and she glanced down. "Huh. You're right."

"That's a good sign, isn't it?" 

I expected another nod, but she bit her lip, staring at her still hands tangled in her tie. 

"Lu?"

"I..." She lowered her hands, tie still undone. "I'm not sure."

I couldn't find a reply for that.

After a couple of seconds, she met my eyes again. "I think Neville said it was supposed to slowly get better, not get worse then stop entirely."

"It's better this way, though, isn't it? Having it just stop?"

"Maybe," she replied, her voice strained. "Best hope Umbridge doesn't find out, yeah?"

I swore under my breath. 

Lucy shrugged. "'S not the end of the world if she does."

I narrowed my eyes at Lucy. "Don't say something like that." I reached forward and tied her tie myself, taking a silent deep breath. "Just because you don't seem to care if she finds out doesn't mean the rest of us don't. Just keep up the shaking in her class, and it should be fine."

"Alright." Lucy tucked her tie into the front of her robes. "Thanks. I think I left my brain in my room this morning."

"Want me to head up with you to get it?" I asked with a laugh.

She shook her head. "Not worth it. I'll be alright."

"Are you sure?"

It was a far more loaded question than she probably realized. I knew whatever was going on was much more than her being forgetful.

I knew she would be alright. She had to be. Eventually. I had known that ever since the last night of summer when she finally let herself cry and she fell asleep in my arms. Professor Lupin's words, from the first day of summer we had gotten to spend together, rang in my ears.

_"I just worry that in the coming weeks, as she begins to process what her life will look like now, with everything that's happened, she could... begin to lose sight of the fact that there IS still a life of her that still has hope."_

I knew she would be alright, she had to be, eventually, I had known that for as long as I'd known Lucy, but I needed to know that she knew that too.

Finally, she nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure," she said. But that's not what I heard.

It was her eyes that betrayed her. It was as if her eyes were like shattered glass, as if the sky had fallen overnight.

I understood what she said. But I heard exactly the opposite.

* * *

_Much too tired to try  
Much too stubborn to quit  
On an island in between  
The coasts of hit or miss_

* * *

HENRY:

The free period as right after breakfast, but I needed a moment to collect myself, so I could do what I needed to do in the best way possible.

I wasn't cut out to be prefect. Cedric was. He was naturally observant, always spotting the silent sighs and the shaking hands and the frustrated twitches, and that coupled with how deeply he cared about everything and everyone meant that he was a brilliant leader, though he was never comfortable in the spotlight. 

But then I thought maybe leadership wasn't about the spotlight, or the badge, or the title. Maybe a leader was someone who did what needed to be done in order to make sure everyone felt important. Cedric certainly did that. I cared, too. I was trying, trying desperately to hold together a sinking ship, a ship that had been torn in two by the cannonball that was the loss of Cedric.

We couldn't lose anyone else.

I made my way to the common room, where I knew a number of seventh-years would be studying together. It was quiet when I entered, so everyone's heads turned toward me. I counted quickly.

_Perfect. We're all here._

I rubbed the back of my neck. "I, er, have something to ask you all."

Without looking at anyone, I walked in front of the fireplace.

"Hermione Granger asked me something during breakfast this morning, she's a fifth-year Gryffindor prefect." I crossed my arms and stared at my feet as I paced, one foot in front of the other. "She had an idea for a club, a small club of trustworthy people who want to learn Defense Against the Dark Arts since Umbridge isn't teaching us any."

"Are we supposed to run it since we're the oldest?" Isabella asked.

I shook my head. "No, Lucy and Harry Potter will."

"What do they know about anything? They're fifth-years."

"Harry learned a lot preparing for..." I couldn't bring myself to say it. I released the rest of my breath through my nose before continuing. "And Lucy can acquire Cedric's notes from when he was preparing for... yeah. Not to mention, their mum was an Auror. Lucy probably knows more than we would expect."

I took another breath and glanced around the room. I couldn't tell how everyone was feeling. Everyone's expressions were shuddered, shut off, hidden away behind the grief that they tried to hide away too.

"Look, I..." I swallowed hard. "I miss him too. This... this is just one way we can try to make sure that, well, what happened to Cedric doesn't happen to any of us, too."

"But he was so much better than any of us," Alex said slowly, glancing up from his hands. "How are we supposed to- if he couldn't- we-"

I bit my lip, scrambling for a response. I didn't have a good answer, or even a logical one. I just had a feeling in my gut that this was the right thing to do, and I wanted to trust that. 

_All faith is blind in the darkness._

"I don't have a good answer," I admitted finally. "I just have hope. I think this is a good idea, and I think you all agree."

A couple of reluctant nods. 

"We can help make the club as strong as possible, too, since we're seventh-years," I went on. "We can leave behind something of a legacy so that it'll be alright, even after we graduate. I-I'm sorry, I know we've all heard this too many times, but... I think this is what Cedric would want."

It was true. We had heard that phrase so many times it felt simultaneously like an empty offering of hope and a slap across the face. But I had never meant it more than I did in that moment.

I stopped pacing and leaned up against the wall, closing my eyes and releasing everything I felt into a long sigh. "I know everything feels hard right now, even the ordinary day-to-day parts of life, but I think that of everything we've been doing this year, this is our first real chance to do something worth more than just... just getting by. Getting by is... exhausting right now, but maybe this is what we need. We need to do something FOR Cedric, because I mean it when I say I'm convinced this is what he would want for us. He- he wouldn't want any of us to... to..."

"You're right."

I opened my eyes to see Emily rising to her feet and turning to the others. 

"Henry's right. Cedric never missed a chance to do the right thing, and I think we all know this is the right thing. They're not asking too much of us. Just a club to better protect ourselves, our housemates. Cedric did that, too."

"He was the best at it," Alex agreed. "I mean, we were all picked up off the ground by Cedric at least once. Most of us, it was a lot more than once." He looked up at me. "I'm in."

* * *

GEORGE:

Fred and I were on a recruitment mission during the free period. Angelina and Lee were easy to convince. We spotted Alicia studying by herself in the courtyard.

Fred pushed me forward. "You take care of this one, mate, I'll go find Kenneth."

I turned around to protest, but he was gone.

_Git._

I strode forward and greeted Alicia with a gentle tug of her ponytail. "Morning, sunshine! Lovely day, isn't it?"

"What do you want?" she asked with a resigned smile.

"What do I-" I narrowed my eyes at her. "I am _offended_. Who says I want anything? Can't a bloke greet a lady without the lady assuming an ulterior motive for such a delightful greeting?"

She blinked at me, her smile not budging.

"Fine." I sighed as I laid on the cobblestone using my bookbag as a pillow. "How would you feel if I offered you an invitation to a top-secret club of elite Hogwarts students with a goal of defeating Voldemort?"

She huffed a laugh. "Well, _that's_ not what I was expecting."

I sat up quickly and searched my bag for a scrap of parchment. I pretended to read it frantically (it was blank) and declared, "Oh bloody hell, I'll have to resort to a different vocabulary to persuade you! Let's see, what does my script recommend? Oh, perhaps this: I, your name h- oh, I mean _George Weasley_ , would like to ask you, Alicia Spinnet, if you would be interested in a subtle resistance group focused on learning the defensive magic that Dolores Umbridge will not be teaching us this year?" I looked up at her and plastered a smile on my face. "What would you say to _that_ one?"

"I would say yes, of course." She shut her book with a snap. "Tell me more."

"Harry and Lucy would lead it, since Harry had experience preparing for the Tournament and Lucy was Cedric's brother and their mum was an Auror. We're not too sure of the details yet, seeing as Prefect Granger informed me of this idea just this morning, but Freddie and I were tasked with recruitment so recruitment we shall attempt."

Alicia nodded slowly. "So it's like a Defense Against the Dark Arts club?"

"Precisely! But I prefer the more dramatic terms, myself, it fills me with quite the sense of importance."

"You say that as if you don't already have enough confidence to fill the Quidditch World Cup stadium," she retorted.

I pressed a hand to my chest as if mortally wounded. " _Only_ the Quidditch World Cup stadium? Darling, I would say I have enough confidence for at least _two_ Quidditch World Cup stadiums _and_ possibly a third."

She laughed. "Alright. Whatever you say."

I grinned. Truthfully, confidence was Fred's thing and not mine, but I would sooner kiss a Dementor than admit my insecurities, so two Quidditch World Cup stadiums it was. I opted for a quick topic change. "What book are you reading?"

"Charms textbook," she muttered, opening the book again. "Dreadfully boring, of course."

"Would it be less boring if I read it for you?"

Alicia cocked an eyebrow at me. "You can read?" She giggled as I made a face at her and wrenched the book out of her hands.

"I can read!" I insisted, lying on my back and holding it over my head. Upside down. On purpose, of course. I squinted at the page. "Merlin's beard, woman, no wonder it's boring! You've got yourself a book of nonsense!"

"It's upside down, you prat," she said with a giggle.

"I'm not stupid, darling, I would know if the book-" I flipped it around so it was in fact readable, and started reading aloud. Fred looked rather smug when he found the two of us still there twenty minutes later, but I elected to ignore it. Alicia was just a friend. I would have done that for anybody.

* * *

HARRY:

"Hey Neville, we have a question for you," I said once we were left to our own devices in Charms. Our conversation would surely be drowned out by the chorus of bullfrogs. We were working on the silencing charm in class.

Neville's eyes immediately went to Lucy's hands, and for half a second, he looked thrilled. Then his expression gave way to one of concern, just like I had seen on Lucy's face. "That's not normal."

"I was afraid of that," Lucy whispered, reaching forward and catching her frog before it leaped off the desk.

"What happened?" Neville asked.

"Nothing."

"No, Lucy, that's not nothing," he pressed, his voice gentle but not yielding. "It wouldn't just... do that. What happened? Did you take a different potion? Did you hit your head?"

She shook her head. "I didn't do anything different."

"They were still shaking at the party, right?" I asked. "I didn't miss anything?"

Lucy glanced at me for a second before shaking her head again. "You didn't miss anything," she said with an emotion I couldn't quite identify. She pointed her wand at the bullfrog. "Silencio!"

I had seen Lucy do that charm as a second-year, I had seen her silence the entire Slytherin Quidditch team after they laughed at Ron's wand backfiring, she was brilliant at that charm. 

When the frog croaked audibly again, I knew something was seriously wrong.

I blinked, panic ripping through me. Lucy seemed unfazed.

"Silencio!"

The frog croaked again.

"Silencio!"

The frog croaked again.

I waited. I waited for the flash of fury in Lucy's eyes, the frustrated fighting fire. I waited for her anger to spark to life, waited for SOMETHING to spark to life, but no such thing happened.

* * *

LUCY:

I sighed. Neville and Harry both looked somewhat horrified, though I couldn't understand why. I wasn't surprised in the slightest. I wondered if this was just... part of the deal.

I glanced at Neville with a silent question. 

He answered out loud. "I-I don't think this is..."

When he couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, I nodded and tried again. And again. And again.

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.

I kept trying for the rest of class. And still, nothing. The croaks didn't even get a tiny bit quieter. Nothing happened. It was as if I were just pointing a stick at the frog and muttering gibberish.

It was just as well, really. I would have hated for something to go wrong. I might have hurt the frog by accident if that had happened.

I had the same luck in Transfiguration. Whereas I had been close to vanishing my mouse almost entirely, nothing happened in that class either. The fur didn't fade, the tail didn't shrink, the whiskers didn't disappear. The mouse stayed on my desk. I could feel Professor McGonagall's concerned eyes boring into the top of my head even though I couldn't bring myself to meet her gaze. 

It was just as well, really. I would have hated for something to go wrong. I might have hurt the mouse by accident if that had happened.

* * *

_Every cloud above's full of splattered paint  
Every seed below lies patiently in wait  
But a watched kettle never boils  
A watched tree never grows_

* * *

HENRY:

Two weeks later, all of the seventh-years in Hufflepuff had agreed, along with a number of fifth- and sixth-years. The meeting was to be held in the Hog's Head in the morning, and there was an air of nervous anticipation in the common room. Secretive glances back and forth, an unspoken excitement of sorts. We were finally doing something, and we were doing it for Cedric so that nobody would have to die the way he did.

* * *

GEORGE:

Two weeks later, all of the seventh-years in Gryffindor had agreed, along with almost all of the fifth- and sixth-years. The meeting was to be held in the Hog's Head in the morning, and everyone in the common room who was in on it was excited. Secretive whispers back and forth, a thirst for revenge or glory or something in between. We were finally doing something, and we were doing it for ourselves so that nobody would have to go through what Lucy did.

* * *

HARRY:

Two weeks later, Lucy still hadn't cast a single successful spell in class. She was doing well, of course, in Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures and Potions and History of Magic and Ancient Runes, keeping up with her verbal essays because her fingers were still clumsy and unpracticed at writing even though her hands had stopped shaking, but Charms and Transfiguration was a different story. Her frog was still the loudest. Her mouse was still completely visible. Something was wrong with her magic, but more concerning, something was wrong with _her_. Most concerning of all was the fact that she either didn't notice something was wrong, or didn't care.

But the meeting was coming. I hoped against hope that she would feel better then.

* * *

LUCY:

Two weeks later, I still couldn't produce any magic in any of my classes. I did successfully heal up Ron's hand when he tried to swat a Bludger in practice and was too embarrassed to go to Madam Pomfrey, and I healed it without second thought, but aside from that... I was utterly useless. I thought of the Everlins a fair amount. While Harry and Ron were at practice and Hermione was working on homework and the twins were testing their products, I often sought solitude. I never told anyone where I was going, but I would go to the Room of Requirement or wander in the Forbidden Forest, depending on my mood. The Room of Requirement when I wanted to be alone with the past. The Forbidden Forest when I wanted to be alone with the darkness.

But the meeting was coming. I would have to confront both the past and the darkness then.

* * *

_May we have our tea in the forest  
May we reap all that we sow_

_"Hit or Miss"  
Sleeping At Last_


	121. Romulus

HARRY:

At breakfast before we left for Hogsmeade, an owl landed on Lucy's shoulder and dropped a letter onto her lap. She jolted visibly, but as soon as fear flickered across her eyes, it was replaced by the same vacant, haunted expression that had lived in the blue ever since the day after Hermione's birthday.

"Romulus?" she asked, a flicker of confusion disappearing as soon as it appeared. "If you're here, that means..."

The twins exchanged a look as Lucy slit the envelope and drew out a long letter. She scanned the words, biting her lower lip harder and harder as she neared the bottom of the page. Fred and George read over her shoulder, exchanging another look at the end of it.

Lucy folded the letter back into thirds and glanced between the twins. "Are either of you any good at extension charms?"

"Extension ch-?" Hermione shook her head. "Lucy, those are-"

"Terribly tricky and ridiculously risky? Indeed!" George finished.

"So yes, of course we are, they're fascinating! Want us to help you pack?" Fred asked. He sounded upbeat enough, but he and George exchanged a third look loaded with meaning. 

It was suddenly impossible to breathe.

"Pack?" I managed, looking at Lucy, whose face was a perfect blank save the haunted look in her eyes, which, again, was nothing new. "You're not- Malfoy didn't-"

Lucy shook her head. "No, n-no, he didn't, it's not- here, this will clear it up." She passed me the letter and turned to the twins. "Which one of you is better at it?"

"Me, of course," they said in unison.

Lucy should have laughed. It was funny. But whatever ghost was holding her captive hadn't let her laugh for nearly two weeks. "Alright, you can both come, I don't need too much for only three days."

"Three-?" I started to ask, but Lucy gestured at the letter with her chin. 

"That's all I know," she said in a small voice. "I... I just found out."

"It makes sense, though," George said.

Lucy looked for a second as if she'd disagree, but she bit her lip instead and rose to her feet. The twins followed her out of the Great Hall, and Hermione wrenched the letter from my hands.

She skimmed it quickly, then sighed with relief. "I was afraid it was something horrible," she said, passing the parchment to me. Ron read over my shoulder.

_Dear Lucy,  
I'm terribly sorry for the short notice, but the Order deemed it necessary to keep you as safe as possible. At noon today, meet me at the Hogsmeade train station. A number of your peers and professors have expressed concern in regards to your apparent lack of ability to do magic, and it's been decided that St. Mungo's should run a couple of tests to attempt to determine the cause and remedy the problem, if possible. It's been complicated trying to get clearance for you to leave school, but we figure that once you're gone, there's nothing ~~that horrible woman~~ ~~Professor Umbridge~~ ~~High Inquisitor Umbridge~~ that horrible woman can do about it. You'll be back at school by dinner on Tuesday, assuming everything goes according to plan.  
Again, I'm sorry for the lack of notice and your lack of involvement. It's been difficult trying to coordinate all of this in a way that wouldn't land anyone in trouble, but I assure you that everyone has your best interests at heart. I'll see you at noon.  
Best regards, Remus Lupin_

My heart pounded. My head was spinning.

Lucy? St. Mungo's? Tests? Three days?

I was obviously relieved that the Order had heard and decided to do something to try to fix whatever was wrong with Lucy, but, well, I wanted to be there to help if I could. I knew that the healers at St. Mungo's were obviously far more competent than I would be, but what if she needed me while she was there? What if she had a nightmare and she was all alone? What if there was a loud bang and she panicked and they didn't know that the best way to help was to make sure she didn't feel suffocated and help her focus on something else?

What if what happened in July happened to her again? And I couldn't help... again?

Ron sucked in a breath between his teeth. "At least she'll be back by the full moon," he said softly.

Hermione and I whipped our heads to face him in perfect unison, both shocked.

He blinked. "What?" When neither of us could find a reply, he smiled uneasily. "Oh. Well, Gin was doing Astronomy homework that night Lucy went home in August. The twins wouldn't let her out of their sight for three days after that. And then when she disappeared again in September on a full moon, we guessed she was, well, you know. Did we guess correctly? Neither of us have mentioned it to her."

Hermione nodded after a moment. "I'm not surprised you noticed the twins hovering. They didn't hide it well. Lucy wouldn't tell me what happened for a reason."

"What happened?" I asked, looking at her out of the corner of my eye. "At the time, I just thought they were hovering because she didn't sleep well after being home. Obviously now I know what was going on, but... what happened? Did something go wrong?"

"According to George, she almost died," Hermione replied delicately. 

"What?" Ron and I burst out in unison.

"Shut up!" she hissed. "We don't need to draw any more attention to ourselves right now. Anyway, er, a cabinet landed on her in wolf form, and she transformed back with a number of badly-broken ribs. It was apparently quite frightening. It even rattled Fred, who is never rattled by anything. Not Lucy so much, though, she seemed completely unfazed, which they both thought was odd."

If my head was spinning before, it was a full-blown tornado after that onslaught of information. Suddenly not hungry, I folded the letter with shaking hands.

"I'm going to go see if she needs help packing," I muttered, clumsily rising from the table. "Wouldn't want her to forget anything."

I hurried from the Hall without looking back. My feet led the way to the Gryffindor Tower, and I managed to say the password without even really thinking about it. Lucy was watching with fascination as Fred pulled the tiny backpack down over his head, around his shoulders, all the way down to his knees.

"I think it worked," he announced with a muffled voice.

"I agree," she replied. "Thanks, boys, now I don't have to carry a suitcase around all day." Her eyes met mine as she yanked the backpack off of Fred's upper body. "Impressive, isn't it?"

I nodded, smiling a bit at the twins. "Brilliant, really. You two have a product that uses that one?"

"Not a working one," Fred replied with a suppressed laugh. George looked equal parts amused and sheepish.

"Must be quite the product, based on that reaction," I remarked sarcastically. I glanced at Lucy, growing serious. "D'you want some help packing?"

She looked for a second as if she'd say no, the way she always did when someone offered help, but this time she shrugged. "If you want to help, sure."

The twins headed back down to the Great Hall, and I followed Lucy up to her dormitory.

"I don't need too much," she said as she closed the door behind us. "Just a couple of nights."

Her voice was light, but forcibly so. She didn't look at me as she tossed the backpack onto her unmade bed and stared at it. For a second, something intense flickered across her face, but it disappeared. Normally I wouldn't pry, not wanting to make her feel embarrassed or uncomfortable, but, well, I wasn't going to see her for a while. And we were alone. And I wanted to help.

"Are you alright, Lu?" I asked gently. I walked forward and slid the letter into her bag, turning to get a better look at her face. Tears were filling her eyes. I lowered myself onto her bed, and she sank down beside me.

"St. Mungo's is where Cedric was," she said after a moment. "I-I didn't want to go in August because- because- but now, I- I-" She sighed shakily. "Sorry. Very eloquent of me."

"Merlin, I don't need eloquent." I huffed a weak laugh. "Just say what you want to say."

Just three words, spoken in a voice that was tired of crying.

"I miss him."

Lucy leaned back until she was flat on her bed, and she pressed her fists to her eyes. I laid back too and rested my hands one on top of the other on my stomach. A long minute passed in silence.

"I've never been at St. Mungo's without Cedric," she said. "He... he always wanted to go with me."

"You've been before?" I asked.

She nodded. "Quite a bit. More so when I was younger, I haven't been since I started Hogwarts, but I... I never went without Cedric. The only time I was alone there was when I was transformed because it wouldn't have been safe, but he was always there right after. He..." Her voice faded, and she laid her hands flat against her face. "I miss him." She sat up suddenly. "Bloody hell, the dogs."

"I can feed Tuck and Fang," I offered, somewhat startled by her rapid turnaround.

"You wouldn't mind?"

"No, of course not. I'll take good care of them."

Lucy nodded. "I know you will. Thank you."

With that, she pushed herself to her feet, and I followed suit. Helping her pack was easy enough. She didn't say anything further about Cedric, and I didn't want to push my luck, so we worked together in comfortable silence except for my occasional "You alright?" and her soft "I don't know" followed by a sniffle.

Once we were done, I glanced her way only to find she was already looking at me. Searching.

"You alright?" I asked again. 

"Are you?"

I blinked. _Why on earth is SHE asking ME if I'M alright?_ I blinked again. "Er, Lu, I'm not the one who hasn't done proper magic in nearly two weeks."

"I _did_ heal Ron's hand, but I know what you mean," she said, her gaze not wavering. _What is she looking for?_ "You didn't answer my question. What's bothering you?"

Normally, I would have said nothing. But something about her in that moment seemed to suck the truth right out of me. "Last time we weren't together, you..."

"Oh."

Lucy crossed the room in an instant, throwing her arms around me.

A bit of the anxious knot in my stomach loosened as I let my cheek rest against the top of her head. Just like it had been the night she came back. But I couldn't shake the feeling that if I let her go, she'd disappear forever. Just like I had felt the night she came back.

* * *

An hour later, we were on our way to Hogsmeade. Lucy had her small backpack hanging from her shoulders, and I'll admit I was walking closer to her than usual. My anxiety was a tightly-coiled spring in the pit of my stomach. Still, I tried not to show it, for Lucy's sake.

“Where are we going, anyway, The Three Broomsticks?” I asked.

“Oh, no. No, it’s always packed and really noisy. I’ve told the others to meet us in the Hog’s Head, that other pub not on the main road. I think it’s a bit, you know, _dodgy_. But students don’t normally go in there, so I don’t think we’ll be overheard.”

I nodded and led the way inside once we reached the pub. 

I understood at once why Hagrid wasn't unnerved by the fact that the bloke who pawned off the dragon egg our first year hadn't once lowered his hood. Everyone there had their face hidden in some way, shape, or form. Lucy beside me immediately put her hood up too, her whole body going rigid. 

“I don’t know about this, Hermione,” I said immediately, half-stepping in front of Lucy out of instinct. I scanned the pub for any sign of someone who might want to hurt Lucy. One particularly suspicious witch caught my eye. “Has it occurred to you Umbridge might be under that?” _Or Rose?_

“Umbridge is shorter than that woman. And anyway, even if Umbridge does come in here there’s nothing she can do to stop us, Harry, because I’ve double- and triple-checked the school rules. We’re not out-of-bounds; I specifically asked Professor Flitwick whether students were allowed to come in the Hog’s Head, and he said yes, but he advised me strongly to bring our own glasses. And I’ve looked up everything I can think of about study groups and homework groups and they’re definitely allowed. I just don’t think it’s a good idea if we _parade_ what we’re doing.”

“No, especially as it’s not exactly a homework group you’re planning, is it?”

Hermione turned slightly pink, and I offered a sarcastic grin.

“I'm going to go save that large table in the back,” Lucy said in a voice so quiet and strained I almost missed it. “I'm not thirsty.”

Before I could follow, the barman emerged. “What?”

“Four- wait, no, three butterbeers, please,” Hermione said.

“Six Sickles,” he replied, slamming three rather dirty bottles on the counter.

“I’ll get them.” I set the silver on the counter, not missing the way the barman's eyes found my scar. The three of us made our way over to Lucy.

“Reckon you had the right idea, Lucy,” Ron said with a small smile as he gestured toward the fingerprints on his dusty bottle of butterbeer. 

“Mum went undercover here a fair amount,” she replied in the same quiet, strained voice, as if she were afraid of being heard. “Never got anything stronger than butterbeer so her senses would still be sharp. You'll want to use your sleeve to wipe off the neck of the bottle. She, er, got quite sick the one time she didn't.” The three of us automatically did as she recommended, and Lucy looked mildly amused. “You should all be fine, but you can never be too careful.”

“Is that why you've got your hood up?” Hermione asked.

Lucy nodded, her eyes scanning the room.

“If you think you recognize anyone, we can leave,” I said quietly.

“I think someone recognizing _me_ would be the problem.” She shuddered. “I didn't see too many faces, it was dark and I... er, well, I was a little too distracted to really notice faces.”

She fell silent just as a man whose face was hidden behind moldy bandages anyway knocked on the counter to signal he wanted another beverage, one that smoked as if it was on fire.

Ron brightened. “You know what? We could order anything we liked in here, I bet that bloke would sell us anything, he wouldn’t care. I’ve always wanted to try firewhisky-”

“You are a _prefect_!” Hermione hissed.

“Oh... yeah.” Ron's face fell.

“Wouldn't mind some myself,” Lucy muttered, prompting snorts of laughter from Ron and me and a stern look from Hermione.

“So who did you say is supposed to be meeting us?” I asked to change the topic again.

Hermione glanced at her watch, then at the door. “Just a couple of people. I told them to be here about now and I’m sure they all know where it is — oh look, this might be them now.”

Surely enough, people rushed in. My jaw dropped.

I turned to Hermione in shock. “A couple of people? _A couple of people_?”

“Yes, well, the idea seemed quite popular! Ron, do you want to pull up some more chairs?”

“What have you been telling people, Hermione? What are they expecting?”

“I’ve told you, they just want to hear what you two have got to say, you especially, Harry. You don’t have to do anything yet, I’ll speak to them first.”

Lucy retreated deeper into her hood, and I took a swig of butterbeer to try to steel my nerves. 

I held the bottle out to her. “You sure you don't want any?”

“Not enough alcohol,” she replied simply.

“I'll ever understand how you manage to be funny in moments like this,” I said as I laughed.

She turned just far enough so I could see her curious eyes glinting in the depths of her hood. “What do you mean?”

“It's not a bad thing,” I added. “But, say, before I headed into the tent for the first task, the last thing you said to me was 'Nine minutes, you hear me?'”

“Yes, well,” she stammered, “I had to make sure you remembered our agreement. And it worked, didn't it?”

“Like a charm.” 

She looked pleased with herself for half a second before turning toward Neville, who had just taken the seat across from us. Cho and her friend sat nearby, and despite the sip of butterbeer, I found my mouth had gone rather dry.

Once everyone was seated, the meeting began.

Hermione's voice was rather squeaky. “Er, well — er — hi. Well, you know why you’re here. Er, well, Harry here had the idea — I mean _I_ had the idea — that it might be good if people who wanted to study Defense Against the Dark Arts — and I mean, _really_ study it, you know, not the rubbish that Umbridge is doing with us, because nobody could call that Defense Against the Dark Arts. I thought it would be good if we, well, took matters into our own hands. A-And by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just theory but the real spells-”

“You want to pass your Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. too though, I bet?” Michael Corner, a Ravenclaw I thought, interrupted.

“Of course I do! But I want more than that, I want to be properly trained in Defense because... because... because Lord Voldemort’s back.”

A shock wave went around the table at the name, but once it quieted again, everyone's eyes returned to me.

“Well... that’s the plan anyway,” Hermione finished. “If you want to join us, we need to decide how we’re going to-”

“Where’s the proof You-Know-Who’s back?” a boy I recognized as a Hufflepuff Quidditch player asked.

“Well, Dumbledore believes it-”

“You mean, Dumbledore believes _him_.” He looked pointedly at me.

“And who are _you_?” Ron asked.

“Zacharias Smith, and I think we’ve got the right to know exactly what makes _him_ say You-Know-Who’s back.”

I realized all at once that Lucy and I were both somewhat correct about everyone's intentions. They were here for Cedric, yes, but they were here because of me, too. I was the one who had been there when he died. Most of the people there, I reckoned, had only wanted to hear me tell my own story.

Hermione huffed. “Look, that’s really not what this meeting was supposed to be about-”

I shook my head and interrupted. “It’s okay, Hermione.” I met the eyes of this Zacharias Smith unflinchingly. “What makes me say You-Know-Who’s back? I saw him. But Dumbledore told the whole school what happened last year, and if you didn’t believe him, you don’t believe me, and I’m not wasting a morning trying to convince anyone.”

“All Dumbledore told us last year was that Cedric Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought Diggory’s body back to Hogwarts. He didn’t give us details, he didn’t tell us exactly how Diggory got murdered, I think we’d all like to know-”

“If you’ve come to hear exactly what it looks like when Voldemort murders someone I can’t help you. I don’t want to talk about Cedric Diggory, alright? So if that’s what you’re here for, you might as well clear out,” I snapped.

I glared at Hermione. She was the one who'd gotten me into this situation, after all, and I had the irrational, angry, paranoid feeling that she had done this all on purpose, trying to make me out to be a freak-

A girl sitting near Zacharias piped up suddenly. “Is it true that you can produce a patronus?”

The question sent a ripple around the table. 

I nodded. “Yeah. I can. Lucy can, too, but I reckon quite a few of you knew that already, since she did in the Quidditch match two years ago.”

“But you can produce a corporeal patronus too?” the girl pressed.

I nodded again, looking at her with a more critical eye. “Er, you don’t know Madam Bones, do you?”

She smiled. “She’s my auntie. I’m Susan Bones. She told me about your hearing. So, is it really true? You make a stag patronus?”

“Yes, I can.”

Lee Jordan's eyebrows shot up. “Blimey, Harry! I never knew that!”

Fred laughed. “Mum told Ron not to spread it around. She said you got enough attention as it was.”

“She’s not wrong,” I retorted with a huff, prompting a couple of laughs.

Terry Boot had a question next. “And did you kill a basilisk with that sword in Dumbledore’s office? That’s what one of the portraits on the wall told me when I was in there last year.”

“Er, yeah, I did, yeah.”

“And in our first year, he saved the Philosopher's Stone from You-Know-Who,” Neville piped up.

Cho was next to speak. “And that’s not to mention all the tasks he had to get through in the Triwizard Tournament last year, getting past dragons and merpeople and acromantulas and things.”

“Look, I-I don’t want to sound like I’m trying to be modest or anything, but I had a lot of help with all that-”

“Not with the dragon, you didn’t! That was a seriously cool bit of flying!” Michael protested.

“I wouldn't have had the idea in the first place if Lucy and I hadn't spent the Saturday before flying around-”

“And nobody helped you get rid of those dementors this summer,” Susan added.

“No, no, okay, I know I did bits of it without help, but if Professor Lupin hadn't taught Lucy and me the charm for it our third year... look, the point I’m trying to make is-”

“Are you trying to weasel out of showing us any of this stuff?” Zacharias Smith asked accusingly.

Before I could respond, Ron fired back, “Here’s an idea, why don’t you shut your mouth?”

Zacharias had the decency to flush a bit in embarrassment. “Well, we’ve all turned up to learn from him, and now he’s telling us he can’t really do any of it.”

“That’s not what he said,” Fred snapped. 

George grabbed something long and sharp and metallic from his Zonko's bag. “Would you like us to clean out your ears for you?”

“Or any part of your body, really, we’re not fussy where we stick this,” Fred added with a falsely bright smile.

“Look, even if you think _I'm_ a nutter, Lucy can do all of this too,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest and leaning back in my seat so she was a bit more visible to the group. “She produced a corporeal patronus before I did, you've all seen she's brilliant on a broom, and I fought off the dementors over summer, sure, but she-” I stopped myself before I said anything about what happened to her over summer, but nobody seemed to notice. 

Lucy had lowered her hood. 

She leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table, tracing a pattern with her finger so she didn't have to meet anyone's eyes. “I know I'm not Cedric and I'm not Harry, but I'm doing my best and... well, it's been hard. Unbelievably hard.” She exhaled sharply. “You have no idea how hard it was just getting out of bed this morning, knowing this would happen. I _knew_ you'd all want to pester Harry about what happened to Cedric, and I can't blame you, I would want to know too if I didn't already, but I _do_ and-” She sighed. “Look, knowing or not knowing exactly what happened that horrible night doesn't change the fact that he's gone.” Her voice broke on the last word. “A-And it doesn't change the fact that Voldemort's back, either. The truth doesn't care what you believe or don't believe.” 

She clenched her healed-over hand into a fist, and _I must not tell lies_ became clear even through the other stray scars from her shaky handwriting. 

I laid my scarred fist down too, right next to hers. _I must not tell lies. I must not tell lies._

I glanced around the table as if daring someone to say something bad back to Lucy. Everyone was silent.

“I miss Cedric, and I know you all do too,” Lucy said quietly, finally looking up from the table. “But we... we can't change what happened. We _can_ , however, do our best to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else, and I want to help with that if I can.”

“Me too,” I added. And for the first time in a long time, Lucy smiled at me. Just the tiniest bit, just for the tiniest fraction of a second, but it was there. I saw it. I saw it. I smiled back, just a bit, just for a second.

“So are we agreed we want to take lessons from Harry and Lucy?” Hermione asked after a moment. 

A murmur of assent swept over the table.

Hermione smiled, looking rather relieved. “Well, then, the next question is how often we do it. I really don’t think there’s any point in meeting less than once a week-”

“Hang on, we need to make sure this doesn’t clash with our Quidditch practice,” Angelina interjected.

“Nor with ours!” Cho and Zacharias burst out.

Hermione bit back a groan with considerable effort. “I’m sure we can find a night that suits everyone, but you know, this is rather important, we’re talking about learning to defend ourselves against V-Voldemort’s Death Eaters-”

“Well said! Personally I think this is really important, possibly more important than anything else we’ll do this year, even with our O.W.L.s coming up!” Ernie declared. “I, personally, am at a loss to see why the Ministry has foisted such a useless teacher upon us at this critical period. Obviously they are in denial about the return of You-Know-Who, but to give us a teacher who is trying to actively prevent us from using defensive spells-”

“We think the reason Umbridge doesn’t want us trained in Defense Against the Dark Arts is that she’s got some mad idea that Dumbledore could use the students in the school as a kind of private army. She thinks he’d mobilize us against the Ministry,” Hermione said.

A hush fell around the table. 

Luna spoke next. “Well, that makes sense. After all, Cornelius Fudge has got his own private army.”

I cocked my head. “What?”

“Yes, he’s got an army of heliopaths,” Luna said with a nod.

Hermione furrowed her brow. “No, he hasn’t.”

“Yes, he has.”

“What are heliopaths?” Neville inquired.

Luna seemed rather pleased that he asked. “They’re spirits of fire. Great tall flaming creatures that gallop across the ground burning everything in front of-”

“They don’t exist, Neville,” Hermione sighed.

“Oh yes they do!” Luna replied furiously.

“I’m sorry, but where’s the _proof_ of that?”

“There are plenty of eyewitness accounts, just because you’re so narrow-minded you need to have everything shoved under your nose before you-”

“Hem, _hem_.” Everyone looked around in a panic before realizing the Umbridge impersonator was only Ginny, who looked rather pleased with herself. “Weren’t we trying to decide how often we’re going to meet and get Defense lessons?”

Hermione nodded. “Yes, yes, we were, you’re right.”

“Well, once a week sounds cool, as long as-”

“Yes, yes, Quidditch. Well, the other thing to decide is where we’re going to meet.”

A couple of people threw out suggestions, but none quite fit the bill. 

“Right, well, we’ll try to find somewhere. We’ll send a message round to everybody when we’ve got a time and a place for the first meeting.” Hermione shuffled through her bag and produced a quill and parchment. “I-I think everybody should write their name down, just so we know who was here. But I also think that we all ought to agree not to shout about what we’re doing. So if you sign, you’re agreeing not to tell Umbridge — or anybody else — what we’re up to.”

Lucy reached forward and scribbled her name on the list. I followed suit. Then Fred, then George. George tried to pass it to Zacharias, but he didn't take it.

“Er... well, I’m sure Ernie will tell me when the meeting is,” he mumbled.

Ernie shifted uncomfortably, staring at the list without signing. “I, er, well, we _are_ prefects! And if this list was found... well, I mean to say, you said yourself, if Umbridge finds out-”

“You just said this group was the most important thing you’d do this year,” I said dryly.

“I — yes, yes, I do believe that, it’s just...”

“Ernie, do you really think I’d leave that list lying around?” Hermione asked with a cold glare.

“No. No, of course not. I — yes, of course I’ll sign.”

“Here, I'll do it first,” Henry said, his first words of the meeting. He reached forward and signed the parchment with a flourish.

The girl next to him, who I thought might be another Hufflepuff prefect, signed it too. Ernie signed it next. One by one, everyone at the table signed the parchment. Once it was signed and Hermione had stowed the parchment away, the crowd began to disperse.

Cho smiled and waved as she left, and I think I returned the gesture, though I was rather flustered and not thinking clearly.

Lucy pulled her hood over her head again and checked her watch as the last people left. “I should start heading to the station. I'll see you all... well, on Tuesday, I reckon.”

“Oh please,” Hermione huffed. “You're not walking alone.”

“It's okay, really, I-I-”

“We're going with you,” I insisted. Lucy didn't protest again.

“Well, I think that went quite well,” Hermione chirped as the four of us headed out of the pub. 

“That Zacharias bloke’s a wart,” Ron muttered.

Hermione sighed. “I don’t like him much either, but he overheard me talking to Ernie and Hannah at the Hufflepuff table and he seemed really interested in coming, so what could I say? But the more people the better really — I mean, Michael Corner and his friends wouldn’t have come if he hadn’t been going out with Ginny-”

Ron choked on the butterbeer he had just sipped. “He’s WHAT? She’s going out with — my sister’s going — what d’you mean, Michael Corner?”

“Well, that’s why he and his friends came, I think — well, they’re obviously interested in learning defense, but if Ginny hadn’t told Michael what was going on-”

“When did this — when did she-?”

“They met at the Yule Ball and they got together at the end of last year.”

“Which one was Michael Corner?”

“The dark one.”

“I didn’t like him. But, wait, I thought Ginny fancied Harry!”

“Ginny _used_ to fancy Harry, but she gave up on him years ago. Not that she doesn’t _like_ you, of course, Harry, she just moved on.”

I nodded. “Alright. Wait, so that’s why she talks now? She never used to talk in front of me.”

“Exactly!” Hermione exclaimed, delighted I had made the connection.

Ron still looked rather upset, but he relaxed once we reached the station. Professor Lupin was there on a bench, and he grinned as he saw us approaching. The anxiety in the pit of my stomach had gotten worse as we walked over, but I felt a bit better seeing him.

_Lucy will be fine. Professor Lupin won't let anything happen to her._

We talked for a bit, seeing as the train wasn't set to leave for another fifteen minutes. Lucy hovered close to me, and I could almost tangibly feel the anxiety radiating off of her, too.

The train gave a warning whistle, and Professor Lupin offered a grin that manage to mask his worry. “Well, we really should be off. Don't worry, I'll return your friend to you shortly, hopefully in good working condition.”

Lucy blushed as Ron and Hermione laughed a bit. Professor Lupin climbed onto the train as Ron pulled her in for a quick hug, then Hermione. I held her tightly for a moment longer than the other two had.

“I'll always come back,” she said with perfect seriousness, as if she knew already that I needed to hear it. Then her tone changed. “You'll be here still, right? Not going to try to break me out?”

“Lucy, again with the out-of-pocket humor in moments I'm not expecting it,” I chuckled as I reluctantly let her go. 

“I know, I know, I'm insufferable.” The briefest twinkle of mischief, amusement, then gone. 

I pretended not to notice any of it. “Just shut up and come back in one piece, Lu.”

“I'll do my best,” she said with a nod. “See you Tuesday.”

With that, Lucy spun on her heel and hurried onto the train. The three of us waved until it disappeared from sight.


	122. Worth the Fight

LUCY:

"Well, how are you, Lucy?"

The question was innocent enough. It was polite, it was sensible, it was expected. But it was a question with an answer nobody wanted to hear.

I shrugged. "I've been worried about Harry lately."

Professor Lupin was clearly caught off-guard by my answer, but I pretended not to notice and continued.

"He doesn't _want_ me worrying about him. That much is obvious. But, well, I am. He had to see Cedric die. He had to see Voldemort return. And now, he's been slandered left and right, and I just _know_ it's weighing on him. I can see it. I don't know why he feels like he has to try to keep it a secret. I'd help if he would let me." I sighed and glanced out the window. "I told him, by the way. I told him everything."

At this, Professor Lupin chuckled. "I was about to point out the irony there. I'm glad you told him, that's great."

I glanced at him sheepishly, pulling my legs to my chest and wrapping my arms around my knees. "I wasn't exactly planning on it, but, well, Umbridge kept harping on the Everlin bit, and he followed me when I ran away after getting upset, and, well, it just... all crashed down."

"And it went well, I'm guessing?"

"Better than I would have thought possible," I admitted in a soft voice. "It... was the first time I told someone who didn't already know. You being the exception, but..."

He grinned a bit. "Yes, well, dare I say I was already quite familiar with your predicament."

I nodded. "Exactly. Except for the Everlin part, of course."

" _That_ I was not familiar with in the slightest." Professor Lupin looked at me curiously. I knew what he was thinking. I spared him the trouble of debating whether or not to ask.

"I haven't, er, contacted anyone yet," I said, glancing out the window again. The sky was overcast. I was a bit disappointed to see it; the blue sky often helped me remember that somewhere out in the world, there was a man who called me Sky Eyes. Assuming he... well, assuming he survived the attack.

"Would you like to?"

"Not yet." I blinked and tried to organize my thoughts. "I do think about my family, though. Quite a bit. Especially considering... everything, I suppose. It's just that, well, because of everything, I'm... not ready."

"That's alright." I glanced away from the window and at Professor Lupin. His expression was still searching. I wasn't quite sure what he hoped to find. "I may not be an expert in secret families, but I can imagine it all takes time to understand. And it is a rather delicate matter. It's alright to not be ready. I know you would want to do it right."

I nodded. "Exactly."

I glanced back out the window again, and lost myself in the rolling hills.

* * *

My arrival at Grimmauld Place was ushered in by the lovely screams of Walburga Black. On one hand, it was nice, because she was only alerted because of the way Tonks knocked something over in her rush to greet me. But on the other... that portrait could _scream_.

"Lucy! Hi!" I braced myself just in time for her enthusiastic hug. "Merlin, you've gotten even taller!"

"Really?" I asked as we pulled away. "I... hadn't realized."

Tonks patted the top of my head. "Bit by bit, child, bit by bit." She turned to Professor Lupin. "Mundungus just arrived two minutes before you, he said he could wait a bit before starting the meeting." She turned back to me. "You know your way around by now, yeah? You'll be in the same room as you were this summer. I'm your roommate this time, though."

"Or, actually," Professor Lupin said quickly, "you haven't seen Buckbeak in a while. Sirius! Have you fed Buckbeak yet?"

Sirius sauntered out of the dining room with a grin. "Well, well, well, Buckbeak's second-favorite person!"

"Third probably," I said. "You can't forget Hagrid."

He laughed. "Nice to have you back for a couple of nights, even if circumstances are less than ideal. Come on, let's go see our fine feathered friend."

The two of us made our way up to Buckbeak, who appeared quite delighted to see me.

"Hi Beaky," I said as he wrapped his neck around me in his best imitation of a hug. "How have you been?"

He made a low growling sound in his throat.

"Yeah, I guess I could say the same," I whispered.

"WHAT?" someone shrieked downstairs.

I must have jumped, because Sirius immediately went to pull the door shut. "They don't bother with the silencing charms now that you lot aren't running around trying to stick your noses into everything."

"Was that Mrs. Weasley?" I asked even though I knew the answer. I was embarrassed by how much I was shaking. I was being overly sensitive, it was just a little bit of shouting, I loved Mrs. Weasley, I knew she would never hurt me.

"You bet!" Sirius replied, reaching for a bag of food for Beaky. "I wonder what old Dung brought up this time. I'm almost certain he was the one who got _that_ reaction from her." 

I nodded again. "Does that happen often?"

"More often, now that everyone's in school. She worries, Molly does."

"Doesn't everyone nowadays?"

"Isn't that why you're here?"

"Touché," I said with a small sigh of resignation. "How did everyone hear about my, er, problem in the first place? I wasn't sure if I'd get a straight answer on the ride here."

"So you came to me? I'm honored."

I bit back a smile as I nodded. "You never beat around the bush with Harry over summer. I was hoping you might do the same with me."

"Your wish is my command! Dear Minnie — Professor McGonagall to you, in case you didn't know — wrote Remus a little over a week ago about your little problem, he decided it was worth a little risk to make sure you were alright."

"Why wouldn't I be?" I wondered aloud as I tossed Beaky a bit of food.

"Er, I'm not sure if you'd like the list to be alphabetical or ranked by relevance. It's quite a long one."

I laughed at the bluntness of his reply, glancing at him in surprise out of the corner of my eye.

He opened his mouth to say something, but the door opened to reveal Mundungus Fletcher, looking a bit annoyed.

"Well, nobody downstairs seemed to like my announcement, but I reckon you will, Sirius," he drawled. His gaze wandered over to me. "Your little speech was quite inspiring, by the way."

"My little-?" I started, but Dung was already talking again.

"Anyway, Sirius, that godson of yours is going to be leading a defense group with this one here. Had a whole group of kids in the Hog's Head this morning, it was quite impressive."

Sirius whirled to face me, grinning from ear to ear. "You could have mentioned that sooner! That's brilliant!"

"Oh, well," I stammered, "I was getting there." I turned to Dung. "You were there?"

"I was that witch Harry thought was Umbridge," he said with a roll of his eyes. "Insulting, that is, but it gets the job done."

I gnawed on the inside of my cheek for a second before speaking again. "Am I allowed to know why you were there in the first place? Did you somehow know about the meeting?"

He and Sirius exchanged a furtive look. I bit my cheek again.

"If not, it's alright," I said quickly. "I just, er, I'm worried about who else might have heard about the meeting."

Sirius sighed. "We didn't know about it, this is news to me. Great news, though!"

I nodded. "Alright."

"Order business," Mundungus said, leaning against the doorframe. "You'll understand soon enough, once you join."

"The sooner the better," I remarked. Buckbeak growled impatiently behind me, so I turned around and tossed him another piece of food while Mundungus told Sirius a couple more details of the meeting before saying he was going to head downstairs to see what was for dinner.

"Well, Lucy." I turned as Sirius grinned halfheartedly. "As I was saying before Dung entered, there's nothing wrong with having a hard time. You don't have to pretend it hasn't been hard. I doubt you'd be fooling anyone anyway."

"Not Harry, that's for sure," I muttered.

Sirius laughed. "I could have told you that much. You mean a lot to him."

Hermione's words surged to the forefront of my mind. _"It was like someone had sucked the light out of him, when you were taken away."_

"I'm not surprised he's been concerned," Sirius continued, tossing the empty bag onto a growing pile in the corner. "The past few months have been far from ideal, to put it lightly."

"For what it's worth, I worry about him plenty, too," I said softly.

"I'm not surprised by that either. Worry is unfortunately — or fortunately, perhaps — a two-way street when you care about someone and that someone cares about you."

I snorted. "Feel free to mention that to Harry sometime. He's under the impression that by not telling me how he really feels about anything, he's making me worry less, when in reality it's really just making me worry more."

Sirius chuckled. "You're far from the first person to feel this way. Just ask Remus sometime. Have you tried mentioning it to Harry? I know he's a bit thick, but he means well."

"I know he does," I mumbled. "That's why I'm scared to bring this up directly. Assuming I actually got through to him, I wouldn't want him feeling bad about any of this. I know he just wants to help, but I... want to help, too. He hasn't exactly had an easy time of it lately, either."

"It's a mess," Sirius agreed with a shrug. "Life is tough right now, there's no denying it. But we're tougher, aren't we?"

"I'd like to think so."

"Me too. Now come on, Molly's cooking smells wonderful as always. Just, er, don't mention the Hog's Head. And try to ignore Mundungus. She might be in a bit of a foul mood."

* * *

Mrs. Weasley was certainly happy to see me, but I understood what Sirius meant — hearing about what happened at the Hog's Head had sent her into a bit of a nervous frenzy. I wasn't terribly surprised given her strong opposition to any of us being involved in Order meetings over summer. I heeded the advice Sirius had given and steered clear of anything that might remind her of the meeting. But the air was still tense over the table, and I knew I was a large part of the reason why. I wasn't supposed to be there. I was supposed to be alright. But I wasn't. Just the same, the meal passed without any mention of the Hog's Head or DADA or anything of the sort, and after helping Mrs. Weasley clean the kitchen, I headed up to the room I would be sharing with Tonks.

While Tonks was in the shower and I was emptying the contents of my backpack onto my bed, Mrs. Weasley tapped on my doorframe.

"Lucy, darling?"

I glanced up. I recognized immediately the concerned furrow of her eyebrows and the uncertain smile that didn't reach her eyes. Something was troubling her.

I offered what semblance of a smile I could, though I knew it wasn't much. It was as if my face had forgotten how it felt. It was foreign. "Is everything alright, Mrs. Weasley?"

She shifted a bit uncomfortably, searching for words. "I just... wanted to talk to you."

I nodded and set my backpack down to show I was listening. 

Still, she struggled a bit. "Lucy, I... I know it's not truly my place, seeing as I'm not your mother, but I just wanted to talk about what you're planning on doing with Harry. With the... secret group."

I bit my lip and nodded, heart racing as I realized what she was about to ask. _Don't cry, Lucy, don't cry, Lucy, don't cry, Lucy..._

"I know you all feel, very strongly, that this is the right thing to do, but, well, I'm not sure if you've all realized yet just how much is at stake here. With Dolores Umbridge at the helm, you could possibly be punished, or expelled, or even worse."

I instinctively flexed my hand at the mention of Umbridge, at the mention of punishment, the one into which _I must not tell lies_ was carved. If anyone at Grimmauld had noticed the scar, they hadn't said anything. To be fair, I had plenty of other scars to notice instead. But none hurt quite as much as that one, save maybe the bite mark on my abdomen.

"I just don't want to see your futures ruined because you wanted to join a fight that really shouldn't be yours in the first place. D-Does that make any sense, dear?"

I managed a tiny nod and swallowed my tears away as best I could. Words I could have said ricocheted around my brain.

_This IS my fight. My mum the Auror would have wanted me to lead this group. Cedric would have wanted me to help however I could, the way he would have if he had been given the chance, if he hadn't been taken away too soon. Some things in the world are worth the fight, like love and loss and love in spite of loss, regardless of consequences._

_I don't have a future anyway._

Words I could have said ricocheted around my brain. But Mrs. Weasley meant so well. I swallowed a second time and tried to express this all, stammering, "It's- it's just-"

I tried to swallow again, but the lump in my throat had swollen, and a tear escaped, and it was over.

Mrs. Weasley crossed the room and wrapped me in a hug unlike any I could remember. I hugged her back, the magnitude of all that had happened striking me anew.

Mum was gone, Dad was gone. But Mrs. Weasley wasn't. Mr. Weasley wasn't. Professor McGonagall wasn't. Professor Lupin wasn't.

Cedric was gone. But Harry wasn't. Hermione wasn't. Ron wasn't. George wasn't. Fred wasn't. Ginny wasn't. Henry wasn't. And... I wasn't.

So much had been lost, but there was so much still that didn't need to be.

And that was worth the fight.


	123. Cracks in the Floor

HARRY:

"You alright, Harry?" Ron asked.

I blinked hard and glanced at him across the table. "Yeah, why?"

He considered saying something for a second before shaking his head. "Just checking."

"Yeah, I'm fine," I muttered, returning my attention to the half-written essay in front of me. I must have spaced out again. As I pressed the quill tip to the parchment, my hand trembled ever so slightly. "Just hope she's alright."

"Don't worry, I'd know if she was in any danger," Hermione said, twirling the ring on her finger. "I've been keeping an eye on it. Nothing's frightened her."

Ron and I both glanced at the ring. At the moment, Lucy's half was a dull shade of blue. Hermione's was a bit of a war between purple and white — purple, I guessed, was fear, but I hadn't seen white too often.

"That... doesn't look promising," Ron managed after a moment. 

Hermione sighed. "Well... it's... somewhat better than it has been the past couple weeks, in a sense, maybe."

"I haven't been glancing at it lately," I said. Truthfully, I'd somewhat forgotten about it. I hadn't _needed_ to look at the ring much at all the past month, come to think of it. I had just... noticed more about her. Like the way she flinched at loud noises and sudden movements, or the way her shoulders tensed when anything reminded her of Cedric. "What has it been?"

She shifted uncomfortably, as if she had wished I hadn't asked. "It's... odd."

"How so?" I pressed. 

"I'm not sure if something's gone wrong with the ring's magic since something's gone wrong with hers, but it's been blank more often than not."

"Is that better or worse than, well, this?" Ron asked.

Hermione sighed. "I don't know. If something's wrong with the ring, that's one thing, but if she's, I don't know, _actively_ shoving everything down and somehow fooling herself into thinking she's fine..."

"That sounds more likely," I admitted quietly.

As all three of us stared at the ring, Lucy's half went to blank silver.

Hermione checked her watch. "That probably means she's fallen asleep, with how suddenly it disappeared. Reckon we should probably do the same."

"But there's so much homework still to do, Hermione!" Ron groaned dramatically, poking fun at her to try to lighten the mood around the table because of Lucy's empty chair. "Are you _sure_ we could afford to take a break overnight?"

"Affordable or not, I'm taking the break," I replied with a roll of my eyes. "Tomorrow might be one of the last nice days of the year, we could work outside for a change of scenery."

"I'm in!" Hermione said.

"Great, me too." Ron gathered up his parchment, and Hermione and I did the same. After a round of "Good night"s, we retreated to our own respective dormitories. A surge of the worry I'd been trying to push down swept over me again as Hermione headed for the door alone. I tried to push it down again, but once I was asleep, it roared back to life with a ferocity it hadn't possessed since the worst of the summer.

I'd mentioned a couple of my nightmares in the diary a couple of times, but I'd never gone into detail. She had never asked, either. Not that I would have wanted to explain even if she _had_ asked. It wasn't the same nightmare every time, but the end result was consistent, terrifyingly consistent: no nightmare ever ended well for Lucy.

In July, it was variations of the Triwizard tasks that haunted me most. Sometimes it was the first task. A freak accident with the dragon that left her fatally wounded. Sometimes it was the second task. No one getting there in time to save her before she drowned. Sometimes it was the third task. Somehow. Somehow she would be there too, somehow she would be there with Cedric and with me and she would die right in front of me in the same brilliant flash of green that killed my parents and her brother and her parents. The third task ones were the nightmares that were bad enough to warrant me mentioning it in the diary. 

In August, it was different. Before she escaped, before she was safe again, for those horrible nights when I didn't know if she was dead or alive or somewhere in between, there were no dragons or drownings or Death Eaters in my nightmares. Just her, surrounded by this darkness, this black smoke. It would whisper in her ears, wrap around her neck, stop her from moving. But she hated most of all when it passed in front of her eyes, hiding me from view. Only then, when she couldn't see me, would she start to panic. Only then, when she started to panic, would I realize the same black smoke was wrapped around me, stopping me from helping her at all. Now _those_ nightmares, when I didn't know _what_ to fear... those were the worst. 

In September, it was different again. Full moons and spooky caves and lost families clashed in chaotic confusion in my mind. Umbridge's quill, too. I had to watch Lucy carving into her skin over, and over, and over, and over. 

That night, the nightmare was different yet again. 

Lucy and I were together in the living room of Grimmauld Place, just the two of us. We were on opposite ends of the couch, but facing each other, Lucy reading a book about charms and me reading _Flying with the Cannons_. I could tell from the slight reddish tinge of Lucy's cheeks that the full moon was approaching, but she seemed to be at peace. She glanced up from her book, and her eyes didn't look the way they had looked for the past couple of weeks. There was light in the blue, life.

Lucy grinned. But as soon as she did, the earth opened up beneath her, and she disappeared from view.

I immediately launched myself after her into the abyss that had appeared so suddenly. I couldn't see her. It was impossibly dark. I couldn't hear her. It was impossibly loud. I reached my hand forward, straining as hard as I could to reach her. But I couldn't find her. I was grasping at air. 

As we fell, as I reached, as I strained, I realized I should have known all along that this would happen. I remembered all at once the cracks in the floor, the instability of the couch. I should have known that one day it would all give way and this would happen.

If I had noticed sooner, maybe I could have saved her. 

I reached, I strained. 

Something grazed my fingers. The charm bracelet. Her hand was right there.

"Lucy!" I shouted. "Come on, please, reach for me, I'm right here!"

But she didn't move. I reached, I strained, harder and harder and harder, but nothing changed.

We kept falling, and falling, and falling. I kept reaching, and reaching, and reaching. 

The first sign of morning light filtering through a crack in my bed curtains jerked me awake. It took me a couple of seconds to process I was no longer falling, to realize the bed beneath me was stable. I pushed myself up and shook my head, trying to clear away the residual fear of the nightmare, but the anxious knot in my stomach was worse than it had been since summer.

I remembered that I had told Lucy I'd feed Tuck and Fang, though, so I didn't stay in bed dwelling on it. I dragged my hand down my face and reached for my glasses.

Ten minutes later, I was opening the door to Hagrid's hut. I was met by a cacophony of barking.

"Good morning," I retorted as both Fang and Tuck started skidding across the floor in my direction. I shut the door behind me and knelt just in time for Tuck to launch himself at me. "Hi, Tuck!" Fang, less excitable but equally enthusiastic, shoved at my hand with his nose. "Yeah, don't worry, I'll get your breakfast."

With some effort, I wrestled Tuck off of me and headed toward all of the food Lucy had gathered for the two of them. The gentleness of the sun on the windowsills and the excited snuffling of the dogs and the helped chase the last of the nightmare from my mind. It unnerved me, of _course_ it unnerved me, but it was far more fantastical than the other nightmares. As worried as I was about Lucy, I was sure she wasn't flying down a bottomless pit at the moment. At least I hoped not.

I glanced out the window at the waking world.

_Wherever you are, Lucy, whatever's going on, you better be alright. I don't know what I'll do if you're not._

* * *

A/N: Psst... keep going. This is a two-chapter day. Lucy and Harry's timelines match up without overlapping. These two chapters make up the entirety of Sunday in the story!


	124. Silencio and Evanesco

LUCY:

By the time the rest of the world was beginning to wake up, I was alone on the fourth floor of St. Mungo's. I was in a small room by myself, at the very end of a long hallway. Professor Moody was sorting something with the healers. Professor Lupin had stopped at the second floor to visit an old friend of his. Tonks had to leave, seeing as she was doing Order business that day, but she'd walked with us there.

I heard approaching footsteps and internally braced myself for whatever the day would bring as soon as the door opened. But as they neared, I realized these footsteps weren't those of an adult. They belonged to a child. A hesitant knock at the door confirmed that guess.

"You can come in," I called softly, and the door creaked open.

A young girl stood there, curly hair tumbling around her shoulders. Her eyes, though tired, were bright, and a shy smile made its way to her face.

"H-Hi," she said, stepping in and closing the door behind her. "Y-You don't know me, but I know Cedric. I heard you were here. Lucy, isn't it?"

"I am. And you're- oh Merlin." I swallowed hard. "You're Sloane?"

When she nodded, I jumped up and rushed forward to hug her. If she was surprised by the gesture, she didn't show it.

The young girl's story returned to me in a rush, as clearly as if it had been just yesterday Cedric and I were talking about her, that day after the Quidditch World Cup.

_"There was a little girl bitten by a werewolf. In June. Her name is Sloane. She couldn't have been more than six or seven. She told us that she had gone outside to see the bright full moon when... when..."_

_"Fenrir Greyback?"_

_"We think so. He's known to target children."_

_"She's alright now, isn't she?"_

_"We were able to stop the bleeding. Powdered silver and dittany. But she was so scared, and her parents, they..."_

_"They what?"_

_"They didn't want her, Lu. I saw a lot of horrible things this summer. Some injuries we couldn't heal. Some poisons that moved too fast for antidotes. Some illnesses that had progressed too far. But nothing haunted me more than what happened to Sloane."_

_"Where is she now?"_

_"Still in St. Mungo's. Everyone there has more or less adopted her. We worked together to help her make her own space, and unless someone adopts her, we're hoping she can stay there until she goes to Hogwarts. That way we know she has a safe place to transform and access to wolfsbane. I want to take you to meet her next summer. I think you could really help her. She's the sweetest little girl, Lucy. You'd love her."_

_"Take me. I want to meet her."_

_"I will. You will."_

I held the girl a little tighter for a moment before releasing her. Her smile widened a bit as she glanced up at me. "You're taller than I thought you'd be."

I shrugged and nodded. "I've grown recently." I returned to sit on the bed and patted one end of it. "No one's coming for another little while, I reckon, the paperwork might be... a bit difficult."

Sloane nodded as she perched herself on the bed and crossed her legs the same way I had. "It happens. We aren't always easy."

I couldn't help but stare at her. Cedric was going to take me to visit her that summer. That summer, the one he had never gotten to see. That summer, the one that had stolen him, and Mum, and Dad. Seeing her, sitting with me, was... surreal, in a sense. Like a ghost from the past, from my life with Cedric in it, had just appeared in front of me.

She cocked her head. "Why're you here? You don't look sick."

"My, er... my magic is a bit... broken at the moment."

"Broken?"

"I can't cast spells as well as I used to," I explained, taking my wand out of my pocket and twirling it on my fingers. "Normally, if I wanted to, I could turn your hair blue, but I don't think I could right now."

"Oh." She frowned. "I think I would look good with blue hair."

I couldn't help but grin a bit. "I think so, too. Next time you see me, I'll try the charm, alright?"

"Alright! But, wait." She cocked her head. "Why can't Cedric just fix your magic? He can fix anything! Well, almost anything. He's still working on fixing us, so the monster can't hurt us anymore."

I sucked in a breath, the air in the room having just disappeared. _She doesn't know?_

"He stopped writing me letters," she went on, her eyes narrowing bit by bit as she gauged my reaction, "but I thought maybe he was just busy trying to fix us and didn't have much time for writing. Is that why he hasn't fixed your magic yet?"

I opened my mouth to try to explain, but the words stuck in my throat. My mouth was completely dry. I closed my mouth and swallowed as best I could, my heart pounding. I swallowed again, past the massive lump that was forming, and managed, "Sloane, he, er... he... hasn't been writing b-because he... he's not here anymore."

"He... left?" 

"H-He died," I stammered, voice cracking. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't know that you didn't know."

Her lower lip trembled. "He's gone?"

I opened my arms as her eyes filled with tears, and she launched herself at me, crying quietly. I let a number of tears fall, too, because never once had I dreamed I would ever have to... never once had I dreamed someone wouldn't have...

I hadn't been angry in what felt like an eternity. Sadness had won the war, it seemed, and it had claimed me for itself as a prize. Sadness tugged down on every part of me every moment of every day. It made my eyelids heavy, my limbs heavy, my heart heavy. Everything was heavy. There was no fiery anger to combat the darkness, so the darkness... took over.

But in that moment, I felt it again. Just a bit. A bit of a spark. 

I knew in my head that Cedric's death had been covered up, buried, ignored. But in that moment, seeing exactly how well it had been hidden away, I was devastated. And angry. Just a bit. But angry nonetheless.

"I'm so sorry no one told you," I murmured after holding her for a couple of minutes. "I would have myself, but I didn't realize you had been writing to him or else I would have written you back."

"It's okay," she said, pulling away and wiping her nose with her sleeve. "I only wrote if he wrote me first, s-so when they stopped in June, I didn't send another one. I-I just kept waiting." She looked at me, tears still shining in her eyes. "What happened?"

I considered my answer for a second. _What a dangerous question to ask right now._ I opted for the most neutral answer I could find while keeping it truthful. "It happened during the last task of the tournament."

"Oh." She glanced down at her hands, sniffling. "The tournament sounded scary. He was really brave." 

"He was, he absolutely was. R-Right until the end." I reached forward and tipped her chin up to face me. "He thought you were really special, you know."

Sloane nodded. "I know. He thought you were special too. He always told me that the two of us were the strongest people he knew. Did you know that?"

"I-I can't remember if he ever mentioned that to me," I admitted. 

"Well, I know he meant it," she said with a tiny smile.

I reached forward and swiped away a tear from her cheek. "I know I'm not my brother, but if you'd like to write me, I promise I'll always write back."

Her smile widened. "Really?"

"Of course." I did my best to send a smile back her way. "Say, I hear you have your own special place here."

She nodded, wiping her cheeks. "I do! Do you want to see it?"

Before I could reply, the door opened to reveal a healer in the same type of lime-green robes that I knew were still hanging in Cedric's room. The young man smiled. "I see you've already found her, Sloane!"

"I did!" she said with a proud smile.

I turned to the girl. "I'd love to see your place sometime."

She nodded again. "Next time!" She hugged me quickly and scampered from the room. "Bye, Lucy!"

"Bye, Sloane!" I called after her as the door closed. 

The healer grinned at me. "Lovely, isn't she?"

I nodded. "Ced adored her."

"He did." The healer's grin faded. "I'm so sorry, by the way. I heard the news, somewhat recently. I had wondered why he didn't reply to my letters over summer, but I... didn't think he might be gone."

"I didn't realize how much it had been covered up until Sloane didn't know," I said in a somewhat hollow voice. "If you don't have a sibling at Hogwarts or a parent in the Ministry departments helping with the cover-up, there would be no way of knowing."

"Being a Muggle-born only child, I suppose it's something of a miracle I heard at all," he replied mildly. 

I nodded as a realization clicking into place. "Were you his flatmate last summer, by any chance?"

He nodded, smiling and extending a hand. "I'm Jabari. Gryffindor, like you, if I'm remembering correctly."

I smiled a bit as I returned the handshake. "Lucy. You're right, I am."

From there, Jabari walked me through the general plan for the next two days. The first day was for trying to find the problem, he said, and the second day was for trying to find the solution.

The first day ended on the fifth floor, in an area that was all too familiar.

My heart raced as we grew closer and closer to the room. The room behind the secret door that could only be revealed with an incantation only a handful of the staff members knew. It was the room where I had transformed. More than that, it was the room where my transformations were watched. Studied. Monitored. It was the room where Arurors learned how to fight werewolves. Learned to fight me.

Jabari seemed to sense my distress as he whispered the spell that opened the door. He glanced at me, his mouth making an O shape. "I'm sorry."

I glanced up at him curiously. 

"I know what this room has been for you," he said in a soft voice that seemed sincere. More sincere than most healers who had been in the room with me, waiting to drop the barrier between me and the others should I come too close to biting anyone. "I promise this isn't that. I just needed a place to see what magic you can do without alarming anyone else. I didn't think... are you alright if we go in here?"

I nodded numbly and followed him in, shaking from head to toe.

I wasn't sure where I was in time. I wasn't sure _what_ I was in time either. Five, seven, fifteen, survivor, monster, victim. I didn't know for a moment.

With a flick of his wand, a training dummy appeared in front of me. It looked almost exactly like one of the dummies I practiced on when Fred and George were teaching me spells. I felt a bit of calm wash over me at the thought of the twins. 

"I want you to try to have a one-sided duel," Jabari said with a smile. "I know it sounds ridiculous, but I want you to try. I'll give you a spell, and you'll either respond offensively or defensively based on the spell and your own preference."

I managed a nod. "Okay."

"You ready?"

I nodded again. "Ready."

"Incendio!"

"Aguamenti!" 

A jet of water shot from my wand, and I drenched the dummy up and down. I staggered backward, surprised by my own sudden display of power.

Jabari grinned. "Well then. Alright, how about expelliarmus?"

"Protego!" A small shield formed in front of me.

"What about a stronger spell, like depulso?"

"Protego!" I said, and the shield in front of me grew.

"Try an attack of your own. Something you'd use to take an opponent by surprise, maybe?"

"Diffindo!" The training dummy sustained a fairly large scratch across the chest.

Jabari nodded, looking impressed. "That would leave a hell of a mark on a human. Alright, say someone fired something at you that you didn't recognize."

"Protego!" The biggest shield I had yet produced formed in front of me, a shield that protected my entire body.

"And what would you fire back?"

"Stupefy!" The spell struck the dummy square in between where a human's eyes would be, and it fell backward almost to the ground before bouncing back up into its proper position.

"Alright, alright! Well, er, this is... certainly eye-opening," he said, watching as the quill at his side scribbled notes on a roll of parchment. "How do you feel about all of that?"

"Er," I stammered, admittedly feeling quite exhilarated. I still had magic. "I'm not sure where that... I don't know why I..."

"Me neither," he admitted. "But that's what I'm here to figure out, isn't it? Now, what spells did you say you've been struggling to perform in school?"

I flushed. "Lately? Silencio and evanesco."

"Alright." Jabari drew his wand and pointed it at the dummy. "Cantis!"

The dummy immediately burst into a horrible rendition of "Do the Hippogriff." 

I smiled. "Brilliant." I took a deep breath to steady myself, then shouted, "Silencio!"

Silence immediately descended upon the room.

"Hm." Jabari stared at the dummy. I could tell he was surprised and trying not to show it. "Alright. Well, it's a rather large object, but you can try to vanish it. If you can't, I'll conjure something for you to try to vanish, something smaller. But, well, given everything else, give this a shot."

I nodded, inhaling slowly through my nose, focusing on the spell. "Evanesco."

The training dummy disappeared bit by bit. 

Jabari stared at the spot where it had been, utterly dumbfounded. "Well... I mean, first of all, brilliant job. That was very impressive, for a fifth-year no less."

I felt the tips of my ears burning. "Thanks."

He nodded, still deep in thought. After a couple more seconds of silence, he turned to me again, grinning ever so slightly.

"Well... this isn't exactly hospital protocol, but you're not exactly a typical patient. I want to challenge you to a duel."

"A duel?" I repeated.

He nodded. "I promise I'll immediately heal any damage I do to you."

"B-But what about you?" I asked. "I don't want to hurt you."

"I'll heal it too."

"I don't want to hurt you," I said again.

"I promise I'll be okay," he said, a curious look on his face. "I just want to see how you do when the actual spells are thrown at you."

I managed a nod, then assumed a proper dueling stance. And then it began.

I blocked his attempt to disarm me. He blocked my attempt to disarm him. I blocked all of his spells after that, too.

"Try to hit me with something instead of just protecting yourself!" he said as I blocked for the fifth time in a row.

I held my wand up, hand trembling. "Er, incendio!" He countered it well, but he had nothing to counter. No fire shot from my wand. I tried one of the spells I used to escape in August. Nothing. I tried one of the lesser-known spells the twins taught me. Nothing. 

I tried one last spell. "Expelliarmus!" 

His wand flew into my hand, and I stared at it for a second before tossing it back to him.

Jabari gnawed on the inside of his cheek. "Interesting. Very interesting."

And with that, my first day at St. Mungo's was done. 

* * *

A/N: I'm so sorry this is late! I've had a rather horrible week, so motivation to write was difficult to come by. Just the same, I hope you enjoyed this double update! Please feel free to comment on any mistakes I made, I'm exhausted so I'm sure I made a couple. I hope you all have a great rest of your weekend, and I will see all of you wonderful people on Wednesday! Thank you so much for reading and commenting and loving on me in general despite all of my ups and downs. You're the best!


	125. The Champion for Hogwarts

HARRY:

The dream I had the second night Lucy was gone wasn't nearly as catastrophic as the first... in a sense. In another sense, it was even worse.

It was the night of the Goblet of Fire ceremony, exactly as I remembered it at first. Lucy kept stealing glances at the Hufflepuff table to see how her brother was doing. I didn't want to turn around and risk making Cedric uncomfortable, so I caught Lucy's eye one time and raised my eyebrows in a _Well?_ sort of gesture.

She bit her lip and glanced over my shoulder before meeting my gaze again. "He's nervous, but I don't think he regrets putting his name in."

"That's fair." Fred shrugged. "I reckon I'd feel the same way if I had been able to enter my name, nervous but not regretting it."

"You? Nervous?" Lucy asked incredulously.

"I don't exactly make a habit of putting myself in potential mortal peril in front of the whole school," he quipped. When Lucy bit her lip again, he grinned. "Not that I think anything will happen to anyone, but this isn't exactly your typical school event. Prefect and Quidditch Captain are very different titles compared to Triwizard Champion for Hogwarts, but I'm sure he'd handle all three very well."

Lucy nodded her agreement, looking a bit reassured. 

George tugged on one of her braids. "You do the same type of thing when you're nervous, you know."

"What?" Lucy turned to me. "Do I?"

I made a show of looking down at her relatively untouched food, then looking back up at her, then down again, then up again. "Nope. Not at all. You eat everything in sight and run your mouth when you're nervous."

She immediately turned bright red, a slight embarrassed smile flickering across her face. 

"Mhm, that's what I thought," George teased.

Lucy reached forward for her cup, and I grinned. She had a habit of reaching for it whenever she was embarrassed or nervous, but I wasn't sure if it was to hide her face or to give her hands something to do or to settle her nerves or some combination of the three. She usually seemed nervous about one thing or another and she was easily embarrassed, though, so she reached for her cup quite often.

Before anyone could tease her further, Professor Dumbledore spoke. 

"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision! I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber, where they will be receiving their first instructions."

Lucy set her cup down and glanced over my shoulder for probably the twentieth time that night. She smiled and offered a thumbs up, but after a couple of seconds, her smile gave way to a nervous expression again and she locked her gaze on the Goblet of Fire. I searched for her foot under the table and pressed gently on her toes. She looked at me for half a second, a tiny bit of the tension draining from her shoulders, and managed the smallest _I'm okay_ nod before looking back at the Goblet, which had just glowed red.

"The champion for Durmstrang will be Viktor Krum!"

Cheers and applause filled the Hall. I began to feel a bit nervous. I knew how this memory ended. It would be Viktor, then-

"The champion for Beauxbatons is Fleur Delacour!"

Cheers and applause again filled the Hall. Then it would be Cedric, then me.

The Goblet glowed red again, ejecting a third scrap of parchment into the air.

"The champion for Hogwarts is Lucy Diggory!"

* * *

I jolted awake, feeling as if I'd just been fired from a cannon. My ears were ringing, my face was burning, and my entire body trembled. I pushed myself to a sitting position and buried my head in my hands, gasping for breath.

_It was just a dream._

Inhale, exhale.

_It was just a dream, she didn't actually-_

Inhale, exhale.

_She didn't actually get chosen, it was Cedric and then it was me-_

Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale.

_She didn't actually get chosen by the Goblet, but... didn't she have to bear the worst of the burden, in the end?_

Still shaking, I got out of bed and changed into my uniform for the day. It was still dark outside, but the sky was beginning to lighten. I figured it gave me plenty of time to head down to Hagrid's, feed the dogs, and be back in the dormitory before anyone even knew I was gone. 

I wanted to be with Lucy, but seeing as she wouldn't be back for another day and a half, I reckoned being alone with my thoughts was the next best thing.

The morning was frigid, and my breath made clouds in front of my face as I hurried through the icy grass to Hagrid's hut. I received the same enthusiastic greeting from Tuck and Fang as I had the day before, but my mind was admittedly distant as I reached for the bowls. I was thinking of the time I'd come down to Hagrid's hut to help with the blast-ended skrewts when Lucy was sick — no. I realized it must have been a full moon. A fresh wave of pain tore through my chest at the thought of how much she had suffered without me knowing about any of it. I forced the thought aside — _At least I know now, at least she told me, at least I know now, I can help now_ — and set the food in front of the dogs.

I stayed at Hagrid's hut for a while after the dogs had eaten, playing with them a bit and trying to forget about my dream. I felt a bit better as I made my way up to the castle, though I would have felt even better if I had known Lucy would be there waiting for me. I headed up to the dormitory to get my bag for the day, and when Ron and I headed down to the common room together, a crowd had gathered around the bulletin board. There was a new sign on it, one I had missed that morning.

**by order of  
The High Inquisitor of Hogwarts **

**All Student Organizations, Societies, Teams, Groups, and Clubs are henceforth disbanded.  
An Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students.  
Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge).  
No Student Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor.  
Any student found to have formed, or to belong to, an Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled. **

**The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four.**

**Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, high inquisitor**

Just like that, I was furious. I clenched my hands into fists. “This isn’t a coincidence. She knows.”

“She can’t,” Ron replied.

“There were people listening in that pub. And let’s face it, we don’t know how many of the people who turned up we can trust. Any of them could have run off and told Umbridge.” 

“Zacharias Smith! Or — I thought that Michael Corner had a really shifty look too,” he added in a disgusted tone.

I shook my head and turned to the door to the girls' dormitories. “I wonder if Hermione’s seen this yet.”

“Let’s go and tell her,” Ron said, hurrying over to the door, wrenching it open, and hurrying up the stairs before I could warn him. On the sixth step, the steps became a slide, and my poor friend tumbled all the way down to my feet.

I tried very hard not to laugh as I helped him up. “I don’t think we’re allowed in the girls’ dormitories, mate,” I chuckled.

Two of Ginny's roommates slid down, giggling. 

“Oooh, who tried to get upstairs?” one asked.

Ron reddened. “Me.” They kept giggling as they left, and Ron turned to me, face burning. “I didn’t realize that would happen. It’s not fair! Hermione’s allowed in our dormitory, how come we’re not allowed in hers?”

Hermione slid down with a smile. “Well, it’s an old-fashioned rule, but it says in _Hogwarts, A History_ that the founders thought boys were less trustworthy than girls. Anyway, why were you trying to get in there?”

“To see you — look at this!” Ron said as we approached the notice again. “Someone must have blabbed to her!”

“They can’t have,” she replied quietly.

“You’re so naïve, you think just because you’re all honorable and trustworthy-”

“No, they can’t have done because I put a jinx on that piece of parchment we all signed. Believe me, if anyone’s run off and told Umbridge, we’ll know exactly who they are and they will really regret it.”

“What’ll happen to them?”

“Well, put it this way, it’ll make Eloise Midgen’s acne look like a couple of cute freckles. Come on, let’s get down to breakfast and see what the others think. I wonder whether this has been put up in all the Houses?”

The Great Hall was buzzing, so it appeared that the whole school knew about the new rule. As soon as we reached the Gryffindor table, everyone who had been there on Saturday rushed over to us. “Did you see it?” “D’you reckon she knows?” “What are we going to do?” 

Everyone's eyes were on me. I wondered for a second if I should wait until Lucy was back to make a decision. We were leading together, after all.

But then I realized I knew exactly what Lucy would want me to say. 

“We’re going to do it anyway, of course,” I said

George grinned. “Knew you’d say that.”

“The prefects as well?” Fred asked, glancing between Ron and Hermione. 

“Of course,” Hermione replied.

Ron sighed. “Here comes Ernie and Hannah, and those Ravenclaw blokes and Smith. No one looks very spotty.”

“Never mind spots, the idiots can’t come over here now, it’ll look really suspicious!” Hermione hissed. She gestured for them to go to the Hufflepuff table, mouthing, “Sit down! Later! We’ll talk to you later!”

Ginny huffed. “I’ll tell Michael. The fool, honestly.”

I watched as she left. Cho was there, too, with the friend she had brought to the Hog's Head. I hoped the sign wouldn't deter Cho from still coming.

“Reckon Lucy will be rather put-out by this,” George commented as the table began to settle down a bit. “She'll still want to do it, of course, don't you think?”

“Definitely,” I agreed with a firm nod. “You heard her on Saturday. She wants to fight.”

“We will,” Hermione said. “We absolutely will.”

Before anyone could say anything else, Angelina rushed over and planted herself between the twins, looking incredibly distressed. 

I nodded. “It’s okay! We’re still going to-”

“You realize she’s including Quidditch in this? We have to go and ask permission to re-form the Gryffindor team!”

The four of us present who were on the Quidditch team looked at her with the same horrified expression. 

“No way,” George said numbly.

“You read the sign, it mentions teams too! So listen, Harry, I am saying this for the _last time_. Please, please don’t lose your temper with Umbridge again or she might not let us play anymore!”

“Okay, okay, don’t worry, I’ll behave myself,” I said quickly, panicked by the tears in her eyes.

“Don't worry, darling, it'll take more than the Pink Venomous Tentacula to get between us and the Quidditch Cup,” Fred assured her with a kiss on the cheek. She calmed down after a couple minutes, and the rest of breakfast passed without incident.

“How long have Fred and Angelina been together?” I whispered under my breath to Hermione on our way to History of Magic.

“Quite a while now,” she replied slowly, grinning. “Are there any other couples you didn't know existed?”

I felt my face heat. “Er, I don't know. I was surprised by Michael and Ginny.”

“Ah.” Hermione's grin widened. “I see.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I mumbled, face growing even hotter. “You're not dating anyone, are you?”

At this, she burst out laughing. 

“What's so funny?” Ron asked. 

“Harry didn't realize Fred and Angelina were dating, so he asked if he had missed anyone else. No, Harry, I'm not dating anyone,” she said, still laughing.

I still didn't fully understand why this was all so amusing, but I ventured another question. “Is Lucy?”

“No-o-o-ope!” she singsonged, and even Ron snickered. Before I could embarrass myself further, we entered the classroom, and the conversation was dropped.

I couldn't focus. I was too preoccupied by E.D. 24 and the threat of losing Quidditch and wondering what on earth was so funny about me not knowing Fred and Angelina were dating when Hermione kicked me, pointing at the window. Hedwig was perched on the windowsill, letter tied to her leg.

My heart pounded. _What if it's news about Lucy?_

I glanced at the front of the room to see if Professor Binns was looking. When I realized he wasn't, I stole quietly to the window and let Hedwig in. She perched herself on my shoulder rather than flying off to the Owlery, so I headed back to my desk and set her in my lap before going to untie the letter from her leg.

It was then that I realized her wing was injured.

“She’s hurt! Look, there’s something wrong with her wing! Bloody hell, if Lucy were here, she could fix it in a second,” I moaned softly. 

I gently hid Hedwig behind my back and rose to my feet.

“Professor Binns, I’m not feeling well.”

The ghost glanced up. “Not feeling well?”

“Not at all well. So I think I’ll need to go to the Hospital Wing.”

He nodded uncertainly, as if this had never happened in one of his classes before. “Yes... yes, Hospital Wing... well, off you go, then, Perkins.”

As soon as I left, I put Hedwig up on my shoulder and considered my options. Lucy would have been the first person I'd have wanted to help Hedwig, but she wasn't there. Hagrid was next, but he wasn't there either. Hoping Professor Grubbly-Plank would help, I hurried to the window. I didn't see a Care of Magical Creatures class in session, so I made my way as quickly but carefully as I could in the direction of the staffroom.

Professor McGonagall was the one who opened the door when I knocked. Her eyes widened. “Please tell me you haven’t been given another detention!”

I shook my head. “No, Professor!”

“Well then, why are you out of class?”

“I’m looking for Professor Grubbly-Plank. It’s my owl, she’s injured.”

“Injured owl, did you say?” Professor Grubbly-Plank echoed, appearing in the doorway. 

I nodded. “Yes, she turned up after the other post owls and her wing’s all funny, look-”

She carefully removed Hedwig from my shoulder and studied her wing. “Hmm. Looks like something’s attacked her. Can’t think what would have done it, though. Thestrals will sometimes go for birds, of course, but Hagrid’s got the Hogwarts thestrals well trained not to touch owls.”

“Do you know how far this owl’s traveled, Potter?” Professor McGonagall asked.

“Er, from London, I think.”

I knew from the slight change in her face that Professor McGonagall understood that London meant 12 Grimmauld Place.

“I should be able to sort this out if you leave her with me, Potter,” Professor Grubbly-Plank said, studying Hedwig with a monocle now in her eye. “She shouldn’t be flying long distances for a few days, in any case.”

“Er, right, thanks,” I said as the bell rang signaling the end of class.

“No problem,” she replied, turning back into the staffroom.

“Just a moment, Wilhelmina! Potter’s letter!” Professor McGonagall called.

I felt my face heat yet again that day. “Oh, right!”

Once I had the small scroll in my hand, I turned to go, but Professor McGonagall called my name again.

“Yes, Professor?” I asked as I turned back around.

She looked around at the students pouring out of classrooms for a moment before turning back to me. “Bear in mind that channels of communication in and out of Hogwarts may be being watched, won’t you?”

I managed a small nod before she disappeared back into the staffroom. I let the crowd sweep me away until Ron snagged me by the arm and pulled me over to where he and Hermione were standing. 

“Is Hedwig okay? Where did you take her?” Hermione asked.

“To Grubbly-Plank,” I replied, finally opening the scroll with trembling hands.

The handwriting belonged to Sirius. _Today, same time, same place._

“Does he mean the fire in the common room?” Ron asked.

Hermione nodded. “Obviously. I just hope nobody else has read this.”

“Professor McGonagall mentioned that communications may be being watched now,” I said in a low voice.

“Well, we _were_ just thinking... what if someone had tried to intercept Hedwig? I mean, she’s never been hurt on a flight before, has she?” Hermione inquired, looking as if she thought she knew the answer.

“But it was still sealed and everything, and nobody would understand what it meant if they didn’t know where we’d spoken to him before, would they?” I wasn't sure who I was really trying to convince, myself or my friends.

She sighed. “I don’t know. It wouldn’t be exactly difficult to reseal the scroll by magic. And if anyone’s watching the Floo Network... but I don’t really see how we can warn him not to come without _that_ being intercepted too!”

“What d'you reckon he wants to talk about?” Ron asked as we started making our way to Potions.

“I don’t know,” I replied, shaking my head. “I just hope Lu's okay.”

The other two nodded their emphatic agreement.

As we entered the dungeons, we were met by the sound of Malfoy's lovely drawl. “Yeah, Umbridge gave the Slytherin Quidditch team permission to continue playing straightaway, I went to ask her first thing this morning. Well, it was pretty much automatic, I mean, she knows my father really well, he’s always popping in and out of the Ministry.”

I stiffened at the mention of Lucius Malfoy. He had been in the graveyard. He had been in the caves. He had been there when Cedric was killed, when I was tortured, when Lucy was tortured, he might have even been one of the Death Eaters who cast the curse. But then Malfoy just kept talking.

“It’ll be interesting to see whether Gryffindor are allowed to keep playing, won't it?”

I clenched my fists. The thought of the tears in Angelina's eyes made me even angrier. But then Malfoy just kept talking.

“I mean, if it’s a question of influence with the Ministry, I don’t think they’ve got much chance. From what my father says, they’ve been looking for an excuse to sack Arthur Weasley for years, and as for Potter, my father says it’s a matter of time before the Ministry has him carted off to St. Mungo’s. Apparently they’ve got a special ward for people whose brains have been addled by magic.”

I was most furious about the St. Mungo's comment, especially while Lucy was there that very instant, but before I could fire a response back, Neville pushed past me, hurtling straight for Malfoy.

“Neville, no!”

I managed to snag his robes and quickly grab him around the neck to pull him back. Ron jumped into action to help, and the two of us combined were able to hold him back, though his face was still cherry red and he was spluttering things like “Not... funny... don’t... Mungo’s... show... him...”

Perfect timing as always, Snape chose that moment to open the door.

He looked rather pleased with himself as he said, “Fighting, Potter, Weasley, Longbottom? Ten points from Gryffindor. Release Longbottom, Potter, or it will be detention. Inside, all of you.”

I let go at once and was taken aback by the intensity of Neville's glare. “I had to stop you, Crabbe and Goyle would’ve torn you apart.”

Neville didn't reply as he marched into the classroom with his jaw clenched.

“What in the name of Merlin was _that_ about?” Ron wondered aloud.

I didn't reply, either. Lucy and I were the only people who knew the truth about Neville's parents, and not even Neville knew that I knew. The classroom was buzzing about Neville, but once Snape shut the door, it all stopped.

“You will notice that we have a guest with us today,” he said, and we all turned to see none other than the Pink Venomous Tentacula, Umbridge herself, sitting in the corner.

_Lucy's going to be upset she missed THIS. Though... I'm not sure who she'd want to win in this battle of wills. I don't know if I know, either._

“We are continuing with our Strengthening Solutions today,” Snape continued. “You will find your mixtures as you left them last lesson, if correctly made they should have matured well over the weekend. Instructions are on the board. Carry on.”

I was distracted for the second class that day. This time, I was too preoccupied by worrying about the note from Sirius and hoping it wasn't bad news about Lucy and being impressed by Neville to focus properly on my potion. Not to mention Umbridge's interactions with Snape for the second half of the lesson.

“Well, the class seems fairly advanced for their level, though I would question whether it is advisable to teach them a potion like the Strengthening Solution. I think the Ministry would prefer it if that was removed from the syllabus. Now... how long have you been teaching at Hogwarts?”

“Fourteen years.”

I tried to work on my potion, but I was far more interested in the conversation. _This is going to be good._

“You applied first for the Defense Against the Dark Arts post, I believe?”

“Yes.”

“But you were unsuccessful?”

Snape looked as if he couldn't believe he had been asked that question. “Obviously.”

“And you have applied regularly for the Defense Against the Dark Arts post since you first joined the school, I believe?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have any idea why Dumbledore has consistently refused to appoint you?”

“I suggest you ask him.”

“Oh I shall.”

“I suppose this is relevant?”

“Oh yes. Yes, the Ministry wants a thorough understanding of teachers’, er, _backgrounds_.” With that, Umbridge turned to Pansy Parkinson for the student interview part of the inspection.

Unfortunately, Snape caught me staring, and I had neglected my potion to the point of ruining it.

He vanished the contents of my cauldron wordlessly. “No marks again, then, Potter. You will write me an essay on the correct composition of this potion, indicating how and why you went wrong, to be handed in next lesson, do you understand?”

“Yes,” I muttered, rage surging in me again. He had already given us homework. And I had Quidditch practice.

* * *

I was tempted to skip Divination to work on it, but Hermione — “You've already missed History of Magic, and I don’t think you ought to miss anything else today!” — was unfortunately very effective in convincing me to go, so, after lunch, I found myself in the stuffy old classroom, thoroughly disgruntled.

Professor Trelawney seemed similarly disgruntled based on the way she slammed the copy of _The Dream Oracle_ on our desks. When we were all too stunned by her angry book distribution to do anything, she grew a bit hysterical. “Well, carry on! You know what to do! Or am I such a substandard teacher that you have never learned how to open a book?”

Parvati was the first to find her voice. “Professor? Professor, is there anything — er — wrong?”

“Wrong! Certainly not! I have been insulted, certainly! Insinuations have been made against me, unfounded accusations levelled, but no, there is nothing wrong, certainly not! I say nothing of sixteen years’ devoted service. It has passed, apparently, unnoticed, but I shall not be insulted, no, I shall not!”

“But Professor... who’s insulting you?”

“The establishment! Yes, those with eyes too clouded by the Mundane to See as I See, to Know as I Know... of course, we Seers have always been feared, always persecuted. It is — alas — our fate.”

Parvati's face remained completely sympathetic despite the theatrics, Lavender too. I understood why Lucy liked them so much, though I could also understand why Hermione wouldn't. Parvati bravely continued, “Professor, do you mean... is it something Professor Umbridge-?”

“Do not speak to me about that woman! Kindly continue with your work!”

With that, we all started working, and the class was rather subdued. DADA was obviously completely silent as well, since we were just reading with “There will be no need to talk” hanging over our heads.

Quidditch practice was canceled, seeing as Umbridge said she “needed a bit of time to consider,” so rather than heading down to the Pitch, I stayed in the common room that night, working on my Potions essay and trying to ignore the sounds of Fred and George testing their projectile-vomiting-themed Skiving Snackbox as well as Hermione's disapproving sniffs. After about the fifteenth one, I snapped a bit.

“Just go and stop them, then,” I muttered.

“I can’t, they’re not _technically_ doing anything wrong. They’re quite within their rights to eat the foul things themselves, and I can’t find a rule that says the other idiots aren’t entitled to buy them, not unless they’re proven to be dangerous in some way, and it doesn’t look as though they are.”

Ron looked up too as George vomited into a bucket, popped the other end of the candy, stopped immediately, and stood back up to the cheers of the crowd. Lee cleared the bucket with a lazy vanishing spell as the twins began collecting Galleons from the kids around them.

“You know, I don’t get why Fred and George only got three O.W.L.s each. They really know their stuff,” I said.

“Oh, they only know flashy stuff that’s no real use to anyone,” Hermione replied with a sigh.

Ron shook his head. “No real use? Hermione, they’ve got about twenty-six Galleons already.”

“Flashy stuff is how Lucy escaped, too, in case you've forgotten,” I muttered, glaring at her.

She paled a bit. “Right. I-I didn't mean to- I just-” After a moment, she fell silent. “She told you? Everything?”

“Yeah. That first night after detention. I think she just wanted to have someone here who knew the whole story, since Professor Lupin and the others aren't around.”

Hermione bit her lip, deep in thought. “What about McGonagall? Wouldn't she know?”

“Not everything, I don't think,” I said after a moment of consideration. _Not about Lucy's family, anyway_. “She... doesn't like to talk about it. It's a touchy subject in a lot of ways, I was surprised she ended up being so willing to talk to me. I just... hope she's okay, and that Snuffles wants to talk to us for another reason.”

Ron nodded. “I'm sure she's alright, mate. And hey, when she wants to talk, she'll talk. She knows we'll be here whenever that is.”

“She _does_ know that, right?” Hermione pressed. “She knows she can come to any of us, not just you?”

“I'm sure she does,” I said in a tone I hope signified that the conversation was over. _Until then, I'll keep her safe. As safe as I can._

_Merlin, I hope she's alright._

_Merlin, I miss her._

_I was the one Cedric asked to take care of her. I promised Cedric I would._

Clenching my jaw against the anger and the guilt and the sorrow and everything else, I returned to my Potions essay and waited for Sirius to show his head in the fire.


	126. Dear Cedric,

_September 30, 1995_

_Dear Cedric,_

_I always miss you. Every moment of every day, I miss you. I've been missing you even more, somehow, as of late. I miss you so much I don't have room to do much else._

_I've been thinking a lot about water lately. I feel like I'm sinking, Ced. Worse than that, I feel like I'm drowning with no way of pulling myself up. I know what you'd say. You'd look at me, and cock your head a little, and say, "Well... who said you had to pull yourself up?" I know you'd try to convince me that I didn't have to save myself, that it was okay to admit I was struggling, that everyone would want to help. And I know that you'd be right, technically speaking, but, well... what if it's too late? What if by the time I decide to ask for help, I've been sinking for too long, I've gone too far down? What if someone drowned trying to save me? If I drown, I drown. But I'm terrified of bringing someone else down with me, especially knowing that person would most likely be Harry._

_I hope he's doing alright without me, he seemed really worried about me leaving. I was at St. Mungo's all day yesterday and all day again today. I barely got back in time for dinner, not that I was terribly hungry anyway. My magic has been... odd. It's not that it hasn't worked at all, it's that it only works part of the time and nobody can seem to find a reason why it works when it works and doesn't when it doesn't. I bet you would know if you were here. Sometimes I felt like you knew me better than I knew myself._

_I met Jabari by the way, and Sloane. They both miss you, so much. Everyone does._

_Oh, speaking of Sloane, she said something odd today, something about a procedure she's having done soon. St. Mungo's is sending an updated copy of my record to Madam Pomfrey in a week or two, so I want to look through for myself and see if my record has something like that on it. She said that the healers wouldn't tell her what it was. I vaguely remember something similar happening to me, but... oh, I don't know, you know how memories are for me. I wish you were here to help me figure it out._

_I should probably wrap this up, I'm sorry. It's late, and Sirius is going to talk with Harry and Ron and Hermione soon, and I'm going to be nearby just in case they want to see me. Merlin, I would give just about anything for one more conversation with you, Ced. I miss you more than words can properly express. I feel like I know what you'd say, or at least part of it. But at the same time... I wish I could hear you say it anyway._

_I love you. I miss you. But I love you even more than I miss you, no matter how much I miss you. I promise._

_Love always, Lucy_


	127. A Knack for Escaping

HARRY:

“Sirius!” Ron said sleepily quite a while later.

Hermione and I both jumped up, and the three of us gathered around the fire, where, surely enough, we could see Sirius's head.

Sirius smiled. “Hi.”

“Hi,” we all said back.

“How's Lucy?” I asked.

“She's alright. A bit tired, understandably, but she'll be back there tomorrow. How're things there?”

I sighed. “Not that good. The Ministry’s forced through another decree, which means we’re not allowed to have Quidditch teams-”

“-or secret Defense Against the Dark Arts groups?”

I blinked. “Did Lucy mention that?” 

“She didn't have to. You want to choose your meeting places more carefully. The Hog’s Head, I ask you-”

“Well, it was better than the Three Broomsticks! That’s always packed with people!” Hermione said.

“Which means you’d have been harder to overhear. You’ve got a lot to learn, Hermione.”

“Who overheard us?” I inquired.

“Mundungus, of course. He was the witch under the veil,” Sirius explained, laughing.

I cocked my head. “That was Mundungus? What was he doing in the Hog’s Head?”

“What do you think he was doing? Keeping an eye on you, of course.”

“I’m still being followed?” I asked, indignation burning the tips of my ears.

“Yeah, you are, and Lucy, too. It's just as well, isn’t it, if the first thing you’re going to do on your weekend off is organize an illegal defense group.”

From anyone else, this might have come across as a rebuke. But Sirius was still smiling, as if he were proud of us.

Ron broke the silence next. “Why was Dung hiding from us? We’d’ve liked to have seen him.”

Sirius snorted. “He was banned from the Hog’s Head twenty years ago and that barman’s got a long memory. We lost Moody’s spare Invisibility Cloak when Sturgis was arrested, so Dung’s been dressing as a witch a lot lately. Anyway... first of all, Ron, I’ve sworn to pass on a message from your mother.”

“Er... yeah?”

“She says on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defense Against the Dark Arts group. She says you’ll be expelled for sure and your future will be ruined. She says there will be plenty of time to learn how to defend yourself later and that you are too young to be worrying about that right now. She also advises Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, though she accepts that she has no authority over either of them and simply begs them to remember that she has their best interests at heart. She would have written all this to you, but if the owl had been intercepted you’d all have been in real trouble, and she can’t say it for herself because she’s on duty tonight.”

“On duty doing what?”

“Never you mind, just stuff for the Order, so it’s fallen to me to be the messenger, and make sure you tell her I passed it all on, because I don’t think she trusts me to.”

Ron sighed. “So you want me to say I’m not going to take part in the defense group?”

“Me? Certainly not! I think it’s an excellent idea!” Sirius replied enthusiastically.

I smiled a bit. “You do?”

“Of course I do! D’you think your father and I would’ve lain down and taken orders from an old hag like Umbridge?”

“But last term all you did was tell me to be careful and not take risks-”

“Last year all the evidence was that someone inside Hogwarts was trying to kill you, Harry! This year we know that there’s someone outside Hogwarts who’d like to kill us all, so I think learning to defend yourselves properly is a very good idea!”

Hermione furrowed her brow. “And... if we _do_ get expelled?”

“Hermione,” I said exasperatedly, “this whole thing was your idea!”

“I know it was, I just... wondered what Sirius thought.”

“Well, better expelled and able to defend yourselves than sitting safely in school without a clue,” he replied.

“My thoughts exactly,” said a new voice on the other side of the fireplace. 

“Lucy!” all three of us exclaimed, leaning closer to the fire.

Sirius grinned, half-turning around, presumably to face her. “Alright, your turn, it sounds like they all want to see y-” His eyes widened suddenly, and his head snapped all the way around and disappeared.

“Sirius?” I asked after a moment. “What's wrong? Why did y-”

A hand emerged in the flames, groping through the embers. The three of us jumped up and ducked behind the couch.

The hand belonged to none other than Dolores Umbridge.

We all needed a moment to collect ourselves. I was shaking. _If she had grabbed Sirius, or Lucy..._

“Umbridge has been reading your mail, Harry,” Hermione panted. “There's no other explanation.”

“You think Umbridge attacked Hedwig?” I asked.

“I’m almost certain of it.” She sighed heavily. “I’ve been suspecting this ever since Filch accused you of ordering Dungbombs, because it seemed such a stupid lie. I mean, once your letter had been read, it would have been quite clear you weren’t ordering them, so you wouldn’t have been in trouble at all — it’s a bit of a feeble joke, isn’t it? But then I thought, what if somebody just wanted an excuse to read your mail? Well then, it would be a perfect way for Umbridge to manage it — tip off Filch, let him do the dirty work and confiscate the letter, then either find a way of stealing it from him or else demand to see it — I don’t think Filch would object, when’s he ever stuck up for a student’s rights?”

“That was a close call,” Ron muttered. He hazarded a glance over the couch. “Her hand's gone. I reckon we're in the clear.”

I managed a nod, feeling somewhat numb from head to toe. I hadn't even realized I had broken out in a cold sweat. 

“I-I doubt they'll come back,” Hermione said as we all rose to our feet. “We should probably go to bed, we don't want to give Umbridge any more reason to suspect that we're up to something by being exhausted tomorrow.”

“We didn't get a chance to talk to Lucy. You reckon she's alright?” I asked, gaze wandering to the fire. No faces appeared again.

“Snuffles said she was, didn't he?” Ron inquired.

“He did,” I agreed, “but he didn't say much else.”

“Well, we'll talk to her tomorrow, so try not to worry too much,” Hermione said though she looked plenty worried herself. “Besides, it might even be for the best we didn't talk to her. If Umbridge found out she was with Snuffles of all people, or Professor Lupin...”

I nodded. “Right.” I replayed what Sirius had said in my mind. She was alright, but tired, but coming back the next day. Then he changed the topic. 

_Well... I suppose that makes sense. We can catch up with Lucy tomorrow. This was probably the last chance we would get to talk to Sirius for quite a while._

_But at the same time... what if there was something he didn't want to tell us? Something he doesn't want us to find out?_

I finally tore my eyes away from the fire and sighed, a bit shaky still. “Well, knowing Snuffles, he's probably getting a good laugh out of this right now.”

Ron grinned. “Definitely.”

“Well, he shouldn't be laughing!” Hermione said indignantly. “That was an incredibly close call!”

“All the more fun for him,” I remarked with a tired, half-hearted smile. “He certainly has a knack for escaping.”


	128. A Bit Lighter

LUCY:

Sirius flew backwards out of the fireplace with a startled look on his face.

"What is it?" I asked. "Is everything alright?"

He blinked, staring at the fire in silence for a moment before speaking again. "Yeah, I think so. I don't think we can use the Floo network to communicate anymore, though, so I suppose you'll have to wait until tomorrow to talk to your friends."

"What happened?"

"Someone tried to grab me," he said. Then he grinned. "And I escaped." With that, he threw his head back and laughed.

Professor Lupin cracked a grin. "You've always loved a good escape story."

"My own record gets better and better with time," Sirius quipped back, pushing himself up and taking a seat at the table across from Professor Lupin. He propped his feet on the table and crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, that wasn't exactly what I had in mind, but that was better than no communication at all with those three."

"What all did they have to say?" Professor Lupin asked, since he had only walked in ten seconds before Sirius was so rudely interrupted by who I was assuming was Umbridge.

"Well, I passed along Molly's message," he muttered. He glanced at me. "I'm guessing she already tried to talk to you?"

I nodded. "Saturday night. I, er, well, I genuinely appreciate the concern. She said it wasn't my fight. But, well... I think it is." I paused for a second, shrugging. I turned to Professor Lupin. "It sounded like Harry and Ron and Hermione all shared that same opinion."

"I also mentioned that Dung was the witch under the veil," Sirius informed him with a grin. "Harry seemed a bit put out by the fact that he's still being followed, but I reckon he'll get over it soon enough. I'm sure he'll find the disguise hilarious come morning. Oh, and the first words out of Harry's mouth? 'Hi, how's Lucy?'"

"I told you he worries too much about me," I mumbled.

"I'm not surprised. He really is just like James in that regard," Professor Lupin said with a sad smile in the direction of Sirius.

"Really?" I asked, looking back and forth between the two.

"Oh, certainly," Sirius agreed. "He had a talent for making sure people were as safe and happy as possible. Merlin, he was a nightmare sometimes, always making sure we were drinking enough water and getting enough sleep. I can't even begin to tell you how many times he tried to slip me sleeping potion. I was quite the insomniac, you see, and he often disapproved of my late-night escapades around the castle with Marlene McKinnon seeing as we often returned with a new bruise or scrape or two."

"Er... late-night escapades?" I asked somewhat hesitantly.

"Oh! Not like that," he chuckled. "No, no, we never dated. She was far too smitten with Dorcas Meadowes to so much as glance in my direction. Her loss, really. But anyway, yeah, the two of us often slipped out at night and had adventures."

"One time, they 'borrowed' a wheelchair from the Hospital Wing and smashed into a statue," Professor Lupin said with a grin. "And then they fell down a flight of stairs trying to escape Filch a couple days later."

"So many bruises that week. _So_ many bruises." Sirius shook his head. "It was worth it, though, and James didn't need to worry about the sleep I lost having fun. I got all caught up in Transfiguration class."

"Transfiguration?" I repeated incredulously. 

Professor Lupin glanced at Sirius out of the corner of his eye, his grin growing more mischievous by the second. "Oh yes. Transfiguration, and Charms, and History of Magic, and-"

"Oh, shove off, Moony," Sirius said with a loud laugh. "History of Magic was the best class for sleeping! I reckon even _you_ had the occasional nap in that class, Mr. Gryffindor Prefect, Professor Binns put me to sleep faster than any sleeping potion ever has."

I nodded, biting my lip to keep from smiling. "I'll admit I've, er, taken a nap or two in that class. Or... well... maybe more than one or two. Harry, er, takes better notes when I doze off, actually, so in all honesty you could argue I'm doing him a favor."

This time, they both laughed. 

"James always took his best notes after a full moon, knowing my notes were likely to be rather terrible," Remus commented. "Otherwise, he just doodled in class. He was a very gifted artist, actually, so his doodles were always impressive."

Sirius snorted. "He even doodled on essays. The professors all loved it, even McGonagall. I think she particularly enjoyed his essay on how to transfigure tortoises into hares and vice versa. Lily had told him the Muggle story about the race between the tortoise and the hare, so he had the little doodles chasing each other around the parchment."

I grinned. "That's brilliant! Who won? I don't think I've heard that story."

"The tortoise," Professor Lupin said. "'Slow and steady wins the race' is the moral of that story."

"James thought it was ridiculous, of course, because you have to be fast to win a race," Sirius added, "but he did let the tortoise win every lap around the parchment. He got perfect marks on that essay. Potions was his best subject, though, he got perfect marks on everything in that class."

I winced. "Harry did not inherit that particular trait. He hates Potions. Well, to be fair, we all do," I mumbled. 

"To be fair, we would have hated it too, but Slughorn was alright," Professor Lupin said. His eyes darkened. "The bitter irony of it all is that James wanted to be Potions master, and he would have been a bloody good one, too, nothing at all like Sniv- Professor Snape."

"You don't have to filter yourself around me," I said with a small smile. "I promise I can handle it."

He looked somewhat embarrassed for a second before smiling back. "Right. Well, James was exceptionally gifted with Potions, and he always got along well with the younger kids. He had quite the fan club, really, being a popular Quidditch player and eventual Head Boy. He would have been a great professor, and he certainly wouldn't have been anyone's boggart."

"That still makes me angry," I muttered. I snorted softly. "Neville still talks about Snape in his grandmother's clothes, though, whenever he gets upset about something Snape says or does. I doubt anyone will forget that any time soon."

"I haven't heard this story!" Sirius said, looking back and forth between the two of us. "What's this about Snivellus and someone's grandmother?"

"He was Neville Longbottom's boggart," Professor Lupin spat. "So, naturally, I had to find a way to make it funny so Neville could defeat it. I told him to imagine Snape in his grandmother's clothing, and it did the trick."

Sirius threw his head back and laughed. "I would pay good money to see that."

"Find me a Pensieve and I'll show you sometime," I said with a shrug. "Cedric... well, Cedric gave me a book on memories for my birthday this year, and I've managed to extract a memory a couple of times. I'm a bit out of practice, considering, well, everything, but I'd be willing to start again just to see that memory one more time. I think it's fair to say it was the best DADA lesson we've ever had." I looked down at the table and idly circled a knot of wood with my finger. "How long will it be until I'm able to remember him without it hurting so much? You've both been talking about James easily enough, at least I think so."

Professor Lupin thought for a moment before answering. "There will be a day where the light starts to make the darkness more bearable. There's no way for anyone to know when that day will be, because grief has no timeline, but you can't give up. It will come, and you'll be ready to face it when it does."

"The happy memories will always be happy memories no matter what happens," Sirius said. "Like the time James hexed someone down a flight of stairs for calling Lily a Mudblood. That was truly one of his finest moments."

"I bet she appreciated that," I remarked.

"Oh, Lily wasn't even around, if I'm remembering correctly," Professor Lupin chuckled. 

"Nope!" Sirius reported with a grin. "James and I were walking down the hallway, and we overheard this kid talking about her to one of his friends. A single hex sent him flying down the stairs, and he was unconscious before he hit the landing at the bottom. We both got a month's detention, James for the hex and me for laughing instead of helping the idiot. He loved fiercely, that James, and eventually, I remembered that love more so than, well, everything else of the last thirteen, almost fourteen years. The sorrow and the anger will always be there, because it's not fair what happened to James, or Lily, or your family, but the darkness will never be able to completely overcome the light that lies in those happy memories of yours."

My mind wandered a bit, back to Tahoe. I managed a tiny smile. "Like the time he sent me flying off the back of a Jet Ski?"

"Jet Ski?" Sirius repeated, glancing at Professor Lupin.

He glanced back at Sirius, grinning. "How do I explain this? Hm... well, alright, to put it as simply as possible, a Jet Ski is essentially a Muggle motorcycle but for water."

"That's wicked!" Sirius exclaimed. "Merlin's beard, I want to try a Jet Ski! _I_ wouldn't fly off the back!"

"I wouldn't be so sure," Professor Lupin remarked mischievously. He turned back and nodded at me. "Exactly right, Lucy. Hold on as tightly as you can to those memories. Something tells me we'll be needing to rely on our happy memories more than ever in the days ahead."

"Just remember to keep making happy memories, too," Sirius added. He smiled. "The more mischief you can manage, the better."

I nodded, feeling a bit lighter. A bit lighter, in the sense of being a little less heavy. A bit lighter, in the sense of pushing back a little against the darkness. I smiled a bit wider, a bit brighter. "I'll do my best."


End file.
